A report recently issued by the Earth Policy
Institute provides an in-depth look at global trends relating to soybean
yields as well as revealing the link to destruction of tropical
rainforests. First grown by farmers in China some 3,000 years ago, soy
is now one of the world’s dominant crops, going from 17 million tons to
250 million tons in just 50 years, representing a 14-fold increased in
yields.
However, the report states that only about 30% of
soybeans are consumed directly by humans with some 70% being processed
for consumption by livestock and poultry.
And as new acreage is
carved out of the Amazon and other countries like Honduras and Paraguay,
vast amounts of carbon are released from both the areas cleared for
soybeans and the livestock that consumes them.
Currently, Brazil
is the world’s second largest producer of soybeans, with countries like
China importing 75% of the 55 million tons consumed primarily by
livestock in that country.
The Earth Policy Institute report
concludes that saving the rainforests depends on reducing demand for
soybeans and thus eating more plant-based foods.
Our heartfelt
thanks Earth Policy Institute for calling our attention to the
connection between meat consumption and the demise of our irreplaceable
rainforests.
May we all act now to save both the trees and the
planet by adopting the sustainable vegan diet. In an interview published
in the September 2009 edition of The House Magazine, Supreme Master
Ching Hai again addressed such tolls of the livestock industry along
with the most direct way to protect the rainforest and our ecosphere.
Supreme Master Ching Hai: On land,
meat consumption is responsible for vast regions being cleared for
grazing crops that are fed to livestock. One example is seen in the
deforested Amazon areas that have gone from lush forest to bare fields
used for cattle grazing or primarily animal feed crops.
With
these activities essentially robbing our biodiversity, there has been an
alarming rise in the disappearance of plants and animals. And one of
the most comprehensive studies ever conducted in the field is now
forecasting that over a million species will be lost in the coming 50
years.
The answer to all of this is quite clear. Stop the meat
consumption. Stop it yesterday. This will eliminate the so-called need
for livestock raising, which will immediately return immense amounts of
land to natural sustainability or to natural growing methods that allow
biodiversity to be replenished. This is the way we need to go, and fast.
http://www.earthpolicy.org/index.php?/plan_b_updates/2009/update86
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