Phoebe Craft

RC 1000
Kane
10/18/19
The Meat and Dairy Industry

The meat and dairy industry is one of the most wasteful productions in the world but we
still continue to consume these products. The industry wastes a high amount of energy and
water for beef and milk. For example, it takes more energy to make one hamburger than the
amount of energy you receive from eating the hamburger. The energy from these products is
not energy efficient for the human body nor is it sustainable. This research project will
investigate how the meat and dairy industry is a waste of energy, how it keeps us from being
sustainable, and ways we can live more sustainably.
Taking care of livestock uses many resources and time. Cows require constant care in
large pastures. They need about two acres of land for grazing, and the more cows there are, the
need for land increases and the amount of trees decreases. They also need up to 30 gallons of
water a day and dairy cows require up to twice as much as that of a dry cow (How Much). Cow
feed contains corn, oats, wheat, barley, hay and more, and they all need gallons of water to
grow. They eat up to 3% of their body mass which is about 24 pounds of grazing and feed a
day, with a feed to beef ratio of 3:1 (Selk). It takes about 3,600 pounds of grain to grow a 1,200
pound cow, but not all parts of a cow are edible. The leather, bones, fat, and organs are all
extracted and processed into non-edible products like soap, animal food, and fertilizer. After the
removal of what is left, fat and bone, 490 pounds of edible meat is remaining to later become
your next meal (Rodgers). Dairy uses double the amount of resources. Statistically, 1 gallon of
milk requires 880 gallons of water; that includes raising the dairy cow, and bottling and
processing the milk (whole, 1%, skim, and cream). To produce 1 pound of cheese requires 600
gallons of water, and that is only a serving size for 16 people (Hallock). We are using these
resources that have a limit to them, and may not be renewable once we run out of them.
If these statistics are scaring you about our water consumption, there are simple ways
you can help reduce your water waste: turn off the water while brushing your teeth, reuse
clothing, travel sustainably, recycle and reuse, and reduce trash production. If you are up for the
challenge, go vegan. Cutting red meat out of your diet reduces your carbon footprint in half, and
that can make such a big impact toward sustainability. Look into the documentary “Cowspiracy”,
that is all about the meat and dairy industry, but in the bigger picture (Anderson). Turn to
alternative ways for energy. Use renewable resources such as solar power, geothermal heating,
and wind energy instead of electricity. Going sustainable is the best impact we can have on our
planet for now and we all need to start making adjustments.

“How Much Water Do Cows Drink.” ​UNL Beef​, beef.unl.edu/amountwatercowsdrink.

Rodgers, Diana, et al. “How Much Feed Does It Take To Produce a Pound of Beef?”
Sustainable Dish​, 12 May 2019,
sustainabledish.com/much-feed-take-produce-pound-beef/.

Selk, Glenn. “How Much Hay Will a Cow Consume?” ​Drovers​, Oklahoma State University,
2018, ​www.drovers.com/article/how-much-hay-will-cow-consume-0​.

Hallock, Betty. “To Make a Burger, First You Need 660 Gallons of Water ...” ​Los Angeles
Times,​ Los Angeles Times, 27 Jan. 2014,
www.latimes.com/food/dailydish/la-dd-gallons-of-water-to-make-a-burger-20140124-story.
html​.

Andersen, Kip, and Keegan Kuhn. ​Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret​. , 2014