Explained like I’m 5 - Cows don’t pollute

A. Cows don’t create carbon, they perform neither nuclear fission or nuclear fusion. They can’t create elements.

B. Everything that comes out of a cow, must have gone into the cow.

C. Grass grows using carbon from the environment.

D. Cows eat grass, because they are a ruminant.

E. All the gas that comes out of a cow went into the cow as grass.

F. Therefore all the carbon that come out of a cow first has to be captured by grass to go into the cow.

G. Cows are part of a natural biocycle, they do not create pollution.

H. If cows don’t eat the grass something will - animals, fire, microbes, and the biocycle will continue.

  • psud@aussie.zoneMEnglish
    3·
    13 days ago

    There is maybe one person eating only meat for every ten eating vegan, and people eating only meat don’t eat more beef than what used to be normal before veganism appeared as a response to the climate crisis, we just eat a lot more fat

    You need about as many cattle to feed us as you do to feed a turn of the 20th century person.

    When you hear zero carbers talk of how much meat they eat they mean both the lean and the fat

    • SmoothOperator@lemmy.worldEnglish
      3·
      12 days ago

      Sure, nothing wrong with any of that.

      But global demand for beef is rising, and therefore so is production. No matter how you shape your diet, each time you eat a piece of meat, you’re part of increasing the pressure on our climate.

      No judgement from me, I think that’s completely my own and your own prerogative. But I think it’s important we make the decision based on facts.

      • psud@aussie.zoneMEnglish
        3·
        12 days ago

        Global demand for beef isn’t increasing in the English speaking world. It’s probably the masses of China increasing beef intake

        Luckily they also are world leaders in renewable energy

        Anyway what I’m getting at is carnivore eaters don’t eat more meat than a regular omnivore, we just deprive soap and candle makers of more fat

        • SmoothOperator@lemmy.worldEnglish
          2·
          12 days ago

          Global demand for beef isn’t increasing in the English speaking world. It’s probably the masses of China increasing beef intake. Luckily they also are world leaders in renewable energy.

          Sure. That also doesn’t change the fact that no matter where in the world you are, no matter how much energy is produced renewably, each time you eat a piece of meat, you’re part of increasing the pressure on our climate.

          Once the planet has stopped heating catastrophically, there might be some budget of GHG that we can spend on producing and eating meat more or less sustainably. But until then, it’s all part of increasing the pressure.

          Anyway what I’m getting at is carnivore eaters don’t eat more meat than a regular omnivore, we just deprive soap and candle makers of more fat

          First of all, this point holds whether you eat meat once a year, or every day. It’s not about more or less than the average, each piece of meat contributes.

          Second, interesting point, I’d love to read more about the numbers going into that calculation if you can link them.

          And just to make it clear: no judgement, these are just facts you need to make an informed decision.

          • jet@hackertalks.comOPMEnglish
            2·
            12 days ago

            Once the planet has stopped heating catastrophically, there might be some budget of GHG that we can spend on producing and eating meat more or less sustainably. But until then, it’s all part of increasing the pressure.

            ok, following this logic, let’s turn off all electricity generation, air travel, shipping, etc… food is foundational to society and health, we can’t deny the planet healthy food and expect to solve all our other problems.

            I’d love to read more about the numbers going into that calculation if you can link them.

            https://www.aleph2020.org/

            • SmoothOperator@lemmy.worldEnglish
              1·
              11 days ago

              ok, following this logic, let’s turn off all electricity generation, air travel, shipping, etc…

              I agree. We should look at all sources of emission as try to reduce them, starting with those that have highest GHG impact with lowest societal value.

              food is foundational to society and health, we can’t deny the planet healthy food and expect to solve all our other problems.

              Agreed!

              https://www.aleph2020.org/

              Thanks! I can’t find the numbers you refer, could you link them directly? Is Aleph 2020 a pro meat production project?

              • xep@discuss.onlineMEnglish
                2·
                11 days ago

                The ALEPH 2020 initiative was launched in 2020, with the support of an interdisciplinary group of internationally recognized experts. The ALEPH acronym refers to Animal-sourced foods and Livestock: Ethics, Planet, and Health. ‘Aleph’ is also the first letter of the Proto-Canaanite alphabet, which later morphed into the Greek ‘Alpha’ and Latin ‘A’. Originally, the letter was derived from the West Semitic word for ‘ox’ depicted in a Proto-Sinaitic glyph, obtained from an Egyptian hieroglyph showing a bovine head. As such, it not only represented a vocal sound and scriptural element, but also notions of strength, vitality, fertility, and generosity. Throughout (pre)history, animals (hunted or domesticated) and animal-sourced foods have always held these connotations.

                Recently, however, there is a remarkable tendency to invert their original meaning, especially in the urban centres of high-income countries. Their consumption is increasingly being represented as unethical and harmful to both our health and the planet, to the point that some advocate a diet without or with only low amounts of animal source foods, and in some cases even the end of livestock farming.

                We argue that these astonishing claims are not only counter-intuitive but also that their scientific foundations are misinterpreted and presented out of context. By addressing the topics of ethics (animal health), sustainability (planetary health), and nutrition (human health), we claim that livestock and the foods derived thereof have an important role to play in future food systems.

                Here, for your convenience, the text on the page about what ALEPH is. Did you not look too far downwards?

                • SmoothOperator@lemmy.worldEnglish
                  1·
                  10 days ago

                  Yes, I did, though it is not clear to me whether the group is meant to be a neutral observer of food production (as implied by “interdisciplinary group of internationally recognized experts” and working based on “scientific foundations”), or an explicitly pro meat production lobby organisation as e.g. indicated through sentences like “Throughout (pre)history, animals (hunted or domesticated) and animal-sourced foods have always held [connotations of strength, vitality, fertility, and generosity].”

                  How would you describe them? And could you link the numbers you mentioned?

                  • xep@discuss.onlineMEnglish
                    2·
                    10 days ago

                    I’m not sure what you’re trying to get at, since the description is clear. Perhaps you’d prefer to ascribe labels to them, such as “pro meat production lobby organization,” instead?

                    Also, since I’ve not mentioned any numbers, I won’t be able to link them.