Food movement on the march

Dear A Burke

Thanks for your comments. You are right : our website could be better in order to make it easier for people like yourself to...

Dear A Burke

Thanks for your comments. You are right : our website could be better in order to make it easier for people like yourself to find information. Please see below additional info that might answer your comments.

As you know there is no shortage of environmental issues and urgencies that have to be addressed. Greenpeace can’t get involved in every issue. However, Greenpeace is part of a vibrant and diverse environment movement that can help addressing many of the issues that we face. Together, we can make a difference.

I can assure you that Greenpeace encourages initiatives that expose the destructive side of the intensive livestock industry and its negative impacts on our planet.

We agree with you that intensive animal production needs large amounts of feed (and indeed genetically engineered feed!). Feed that competes with land needed to produce food for humans, and which is often grown in fields that were once forests rich with wildlife. Greenpeace’s work on soy and cattle farming in the Amazon rainforest has been addressing this critical issue for over a decade.

Industrial livestock also produces vast amounts of manure that pollutes soil and water systems while further contributing to the emissions of climate change gases. As part of a number of lifestyle choices everyone can take to reduce their impact on the planet, Greenpeace encourages people to reduce their meat consumption. A plant-based diet is better for our health, for our climate, for our forests, for our rivers and oceans, and for global food security.

Ecological livestock should rely on grasslands, pasture and residues for feed. This minimizes waste and helps prevent competition for land that could be used for crops to feed humans directly.

You can also read our report on Cool Farming (http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/publications/reports/cool-farming-full-report/) which shows that there are many ecological ways to reduce CO2 emissions from agriculture including reducing meat and dairy products consumption.

Finally, Greenpeace has an ecological farming campaign in many parts of the world including China, India, the Philippines, Africa, Mexico and in Europe.