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All studied I'm aware of show that plant based protein is orders of magnitude less intensive than beef. If you look for "protein source total resource consumpti

All studied I'm aware of show that plant based protein is orders of magnitude less intensive than beef. If you look for "protein source total resource consumption meta analysis" you'll find many. Most people do not eat grass fed beef, they are in fact raised on maize or other feedstock which was grown on land that could also support plants for human consumption.

i_am_proteus 5y ago
You will find that most beef eat a mixture of grass and maize, often 100% of the former but almost never 100% of the latter. My curiosity concerns the use of what are today grasslands and maize fields to produce protein alternatives to the ruminants. Maize and soya are commonly rotated - over long periods, is it effective to rotate soya with other pulses? Or is it better for the soil to continue to crop maize or rotate land to pasture? Sources that I have seen, such as this source: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/protein/ https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you... indicate that ruminants are perhaps one order of magnitude more resource intensive than pulses. Poultry, pork, and dairy are on the same order of magnitude, perhaps 50% to 200% more resource intensive than pulses. But I cannot graze poultry where I can graze beef, nor can I grow pulses on pasture. This is my curiosity.
- mint2 5y ago
  >” You will find that most beef eat a mixture of grass and maize, often 100% of the former but almost never 100% of the latter.” That fact appears to be wrong or misleading. Often 100% grass is not true in the Us In the US something like 85% of beef spends a significant portion of their lives on feedlots where 70-90% of the feed is grain and protein concentrates.
  - i_am_proteus 5y ago
    The United States of America is not the only country, although it is a very prominent one. Grass-feeding is more popular in South America. Each of us is, of course, entitled to split the vocabulary hairs of his own choosing.
    - mint2 5y ago
      Given the amount of soya Brazil grows and how like 90% goes to animal feed and the amount of rainforest cleared for cattle, I don’t think South American cattle is something admirable. Grass fed is no good if by it means burning down the forest to range cattle and grow soybeans for animals.

i_am_proteus 5y ago

You will find that most beef eat a mixture of grass and maize, often 100% of the former but almost never 100% of the latter. My curiosity concerns the use of what are today grasslands and maize fields to produce protein alternatives to the ruminants. Maize and soya are commonly rotated - over long periods, is it effective to rotate soya with other pulses? Or is it better for the soil to continue to crop maize or rotate land to pasture? Sources that I have seen, such as this source: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/protein/ https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you... indicate that ruminants are perhaps one order of magnitude more resource intensive than pulses. Poultry, pork, and dairy are on the same order of magnitude, perhaps 50% to 200% more resource intensive than pulses. But I cannot graze poultry where I can graze beef, nor can I grow pulses on pasture. This is my curiosity.

mint2 5y ago
>” You will find that most beef eat a mixture of grass and maize, often 100% of the former but almost never 100% of the latter.” That fact appears to be wrong or misleading. Often 100% grass is not true in the Us In the US something like 85% of beef spends a significant portion of their lives on feedlots where 70-90% of the feed is grain and protein concentrates.
- i_am_proteus 5y ago
  The United States of America is not the only country, although it is a very prominent one. Grass-feeding is more popular in South America. Each of us is, of course, entitled to split the vocabulary hairs of his own choosing.
  - mint2 5y ago
    Given the amount of soya Brazil grows and how like 90% goes to animal feed and the amount of rainforest cleared for cattle, I don’t think South American cattle is something admirable. Grass fed is no good if by it means burning down the forest to range cattle and grow soybeans for animals.