4 ms·

You may want to check your sources, because that’s not how commercial at works in the west. Cattle are indeed raised on grass for the majority of their life, h

You may want to check your sources, because that’s not how commercial at works in the west. Cattle are indeed raised on grass for the majority of their life, however they are fed grain to make weight for slaughter. In a sense, both positions are incorrect, because the image of cows grazing on grass most of their lives with little grain at the end is a very skewed picture (without grain the lifecycle would be substantially longer), but it is also the case that all cows do start off on grass. The whole narrative that cows are “good for the environment” because they eat grass is fairly absurd though. The amount of land they require alone in the US is absolutely massive, and you can just take a look at the many fights over western water rights to see that even the impact of grass feeding is substantial.

unity1001 4y ago
> because that’s not how commercial at works in the west You dont seem to be aware of factory farming... https://www.worldanimalprotection.us/blogs/hidden-driver-factory-farmings-planetary-destruction-animal-feed https://www.worldanimalprotection.us/blogs/hidden-driver-fac... > It is estimated that livestock consume 70% of the grain grown in the US, and that half of the water consumed in the US is used to grow grain for cattle.
- comte7092 4y ago
  I am aware of factory farming. As I explained in my statement, cows are finished at factory farms. It’s very clear that you have a very surface level understanding of how the American cattle industry works. At no point did I claim anything about how cows don’t consume a massive amount of grain. Unlike chickens and pigs, the American cattle industry is decentralized. Cows are raised on a series of different types of ranching operations, traded along the way, until they end up at a factory farm at the end where they rapidly gain weight due to grain feeding.
  - unity1001 4y ago
    > As I explained in my statement, cows are finished at factory farms No. They live there from birth to death. A factory farm is not a slaughterhouse. You seem to mistake them for it. https://thehumaneleague.org/article/factory-farmed-cows https://thehumaneleague.org/article/factory-farmed-cows > At no point did I claim anything about how cows don’t consume a massive amount of grain. You actually did. You said in repeated comments to me and others that in the west the cows consume grass. And showed it as an argument against the food inefficiency criticism.
    - comte7092 4y ago
      > They live there from birth to death. Citation needed, no where in your source does it substantiate your claim that cows are reared on factory farms, where they subsequently live out their lives. > You actually did. You said in repeated comments to me and others that in the west the cows consume grass. Because they do feed on grass. Look I get it, you clearly care about animal welfare, which is a good thing, but I was not making the argument you think i was making. Disagreeing with a factually incorrect statement does not mean I am an advocate for the meat industry. The story is more complicated than you make it out to be, and it is important to have it right. Cows in America start on grass and finish on grain, this is a fact. This does no imply that there isn’t a huge amount of grain used in the process. The food inefficiency criticism is true, it is, however, untrue to say that cows spend their entire lives in CAFOs.
      - unity1001 4y ago
        > Citation needed, no where in your source Factory farming is the same everywhere. Here's another citation. https://www.aspca.org/protecting-farm-animals/problem-factory-farming#:~:text=%E2%80%9CFactory%20farm%E2%80%9D%20is%20a%20term,are%20crowded%20together%20in%20pens https://www.aspca.org/protecting-farm-animals/problem-factor.... Another. https://thehumaneleague.org/article/what-is-factory-farming https://thehumaneleague.org/article/what-is-factory-farming Another. https://sentientmedia.org/factory-farms/ https://sentientmedia.org/factory-farms/ Another extensive one with more references inside. https://animalequality.org/blog/2022/10/14/factory-farming-facts/ https://animalequality.org/blog/2022/10/14/factory-farming-f... > Because they do feed on grass. Look I get it, you clearly care about animal welfare... however, untrue to say that cows spend their entire lives in CAFOs. That's the old world. You seem to have adopted a better 'factory farming' in your mind than what actually exists, in which you somehow combine old ma & pa small farms with 'some factories'. That doesn't exist anymore. Some stragglers existing in this or that particular state and still fighting 'the man' does not a reality make. There is no competing with the cattle sector that takes in ~$40 bn subsidies and employs factory farms. That is now the reality of cattle farming in the Angloamerican West. And its a major source of conflict in between the Eu and the US because the Eu does not permit the same to be done in Europe. And you miss the elephant in the room: Even if the cattle was 'first grass fed then shipped to factory farms to fatten' like you argue, the factory farming consuming ~70% of the grain in the US at that point would STILL make my argument. That's bad. That's inefficient. There is no defending it, even if your argument was true. This is a long topic, and I have no interest in fighting the inaccurate but more humane perception that you have adopted. The references I provided should be more than enough to get to the bottom of this if you are interested. Good afternoon.

unity1001 4y ago

> because that’s not how commercial at works in the west You dont seem to be aware of factory farming... https://www.worldanimalprotection.us/blogs/hidden-driver-factory-farmings-planetary-destruction-animal-feed https://www.worldanimalprotection.us/blogs/hidden-driver-fac... > It is estimated that livestock consume 70% of the grain grown in the US, and that half of the water consumed in the US is used to grow grain for cattle.

comte7092 4y ago
I am aware of factory farming. As I explained in my statement, cows are finished at factory farms. It’s very clear that you have a very surface level understanding of how the American cattle industry works. At no point did I claim anything about how cows don’t consume a massive amount of grain. Unlike chickens and pigs, the American cattle industry is decentralized. Cows are raised on a series of different types of ranching operations, traded along the way, until they end up at a factory farm at the end where they rapidly gain weight due to grain feeding.
- unity1001 4y ago
  > As I explained in my statement, cows are finished at factory farms No. They live there from birth to death. A factory farm is not a slaughterhouse. You seem to mistake them for it. https://thehumaneleague.org/article/factory-farmed-cows https://thehumaneleague.org/article/factory-farmed-cows > At no point did I claim anything about how cows don’t consume a massive amount of grain. You actually did. You said in repeated comments to me and others that in the west the cows consume grass. And showed it as an argument against the food inefficiency criticism.
  - comte7092 4y ago
    > They live there from birth to death. Citation needed, no where in your source does it substantiate your claim that cows are reared on factory farms, where they subsequently live out their lives. > You actually did. You said in repeated comments to me and others that in the west the cows consume grass. Because they do feed on grass. Look I get it, you clearly care about animal welfare, which is a good thing, but I was not making the argument you think i was making. Disagreeing with a factually incorrect statement does not mean I am an advocate for the meat industry. The story is more complicated than you make it out to be, and it is important to have it right. Cows in America start on grass and finish on grain, this is a fact. This does no imply that there isn’t a huge amount of grain used in the process. The food inefficiency criticism is true, it is, however, untrue to say that cows spend their entire lives in CAFOs.
    - unity1001 4y ago
      > Citation needed, no where in your source Factory farming is the same everywhere. Here's another citation. https://www.aspca.org/protecting-farm-animals/problem-factory-farming#:~:text=%E2%80%9CFactory%20farm%E2%80%9D%20is%20a%20term,are%20crowded%20together%20in%20pens https://www.aspca.org/protecting-farm-animals/problem-factor.... Another. https://thehumaneleague.org/article/what-is-factory-farming https://thehumaneleague.org/article/what-is-factory-farming Another. https://sentientmedia.org/factory-farms/ https://sentientmedia.org/factory-farms/ Another extensive one with more references inside. https://animalequality.org/blog/2022/10/14/factory-farming-facts/ https://animalequality.org/blog/2022/10/14/factory-farming-f... > Because they do feed on grass. Look I get it, you clearly care about animal welfare... however, untrue to say that cows spend their entire lives in CAFOs. That's the old world. You seem to have adopted a better 'factory farming' in your mind than what actually exists, in which you somehow combine old ma & pa small farms with 'some factories'. That doesn't exist anymore. Some stragglers existing in this or that particular state and still fighting 'the man' does not a reality make. There is no competing with the cattle sector that takes in ~$40 bn subsidies and employs factory farms. That is now the reality of cattle farming in the Angloamerican West. And its a major source of conflict in between the Eu and the US because the Eu does not permit the same to be done in Europe. And you miss the elephant in the room: Even if the cattle was 'first grass fed then shipped to factory farms to fatten' like you argue, the factory farming consuming ~70% of the grain in the US at that point would STILL make my argument. That's bad. That's inefficient. There is no defending it, even if your argument was true. This is a long topic, and I have no interest in fighting the inaccurate but more humane perception that you have adopted. The references I provided should be more than enough to get to the bottom of this if you are interested. Good afternoon.