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|BRAZIL| BEEF & Deforestation |
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by Luiz Bispo | 23-07-2015 07:48
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Do you like a meat? I like meat. In fact, Brazil's main dish is the meat with beans so that consume of meat in Brazil is significant. However, the appetite for meat has a negative impact on environment. Today, I would like to introduce you how the export of Brazilian beef leads to deforestation in the Amazon.
Brazil is well known for the largest beef exporter across the world and the beef production has increased dramatically in here. Approximately 60-70% of Amazon has deforested to being used for cattle ranching, which leads to large amounts of carbon dioxide emission causing greenhouse effect. Interestingly, these beefs are not main factor to harm environment. The emission of carbon dioxide from cattle is zero while the average for carbon dioxide emissions from the beef's digestion and feed production is twice as high as that in Europe.
The study from Environmental Research Letters says that 30% of Brazil's carbon is emitted from deforestation, 29% of the one is due to soybean product and 71% are from cattle ranching. It is expected that the rate of deforestation will be increased and the beef export is also going to rise in the future as well. The report said that the greenhouse gases will be raised more due to beef production than the transportation industry (The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization).
As I mentioned the soy above as one of factors of emission in Brazil, some people might wonder what it could be related to. You can imagine soy with soy milk and some health stuff for human. However, most of soy is used to feed for pork, cattle or farmed fish so that expansion of soy for meat demand has resulted in deforestation.
Furthermore, biodiesel and ethanol are produced from soy and sugarcane, which lead to raising the land prices. Unfortunately, the vicious circle is repeated by for ranchers buying more land for cattle in less expensive place, northern regions. Unfortunately, Brazilian's desire to continue economic growth seems strong. We have a promising huge nature, Amazon, but at the same time we have a serious risk element to damage environment, a heavy producer of carbon dioxide.
In conclusion, I intend to decrease a lot my meat consumption and could be great if other could do the same in order to protect our environment of negative impacts.
Source : ScienceDaily / RTCC news / WWF Global |
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8 Comments
Rahul, It is interesting that you can use religion concepts to drive up people to become vegetariam. Thanks for the comment! =)
Posted 05-08-2015 22:46
Bindu, I am working out to reduce as much as I am able the meat consumption. =) Thanks for the comment!
Posted 05-08-2015 22:44
Elson, I am glad to know that you liked it! =D In my degree I was have some subjects regarding that. Thanks for the comment!
Posted 05-08-2015 22:43
Arushi, wow. I am surprised that your family have been vegetarian for such a long time. That is awesome! Thanks fo the comment!
Posted 05-08-2015 22:41
Thanks for depicting the contribution of Beef on climate change. It may come as surprise to many of us, but meat consumption is tempted to climate change. Proud to know you advocating for reducing meat consumption.
PS i am also veg. And in case of Nepal and India,we can use religion as armour to advocate people to go veg. :)
Thanks a lot for sharing the report Luiz :D
Posted 25-07-2015 23:18
Dear Luiz, so glad that you are reducing consumption of meat for the sake of environment. Like Arushi sister I feel proud to be vegetarian. Thank you for this detailed report about the beef production and its contribution to climate change :)
Posted 24-07-2015 23:45
Hi! I find this article really interesting since I am an agriculture student studying silvopastoral (forest + pastoral) system. This issue of beef production causing many environmental problems is indeed alarming especially with the increasing populations who are now more inclined to a meat diet. Not only that large areas of forests are cut to be transformed as wide areas for pasture grazing, but also the issue of carbon (esp. methane) release. I hope that more legislations or initiatives are done to promote silvopastoral systems where cattles are grown under forest systems. By doing so, we achieve long term sustainability in supplies of beef but also for the environment.
Posted 24-07-2015 22:49
Glad to know that you are reducing your meat intake. I and my family and our ancestors have always been vegetarians and I feel proud. Thanks for the vivid report.
Posted 24-07-2015 00:41