For the Planet

Cows
- Cows produce more greenhouse gases than all transportation put together (all transportation = 13%; livestock = 18%)
- Livestock is the leading cause of resource consumption and environmental degradation destroying the planet today
- Animals are using very water intensive grains (that they eat)
- In 2009, animal agriculture was responsible for 51% of the greenhouse gas emissions

Water
- Fracking: uses 100 billion gallons of water per year in the United States
- Animal AG: uses 34 trillion gallons of water per year in the United States
- AG in California uses 1,500 gallons per day, half is related to meat and dairy products (incredibly water intensive)
- ¼ lb hamburger takes 660 gallons of water to produce (660 gallons of water = 2 months worth of showers)
- Domestic water use = 5%; animal agriculture use = 55%
- 1 lb. of eggs = 477 gallons of water
- 1 lb. of cheese = 900 gallons of water

Raising animals for food
- Consumes 1/3 of all fresh water
- Occupies 45% of all the earth’s land
- Causes up to 91% of Amazon destruction (for raising/grazing livestock, clearing for food production (soybeans) to feed animals)
- Leading cause of species extinction
- Leading cause of ocean dead zones
- Leading cause of habitat destruction
- 116,000 lbs. of animal excrement is produced every second
- Animal agriculture is responsible for 130 times more waste than humans (there is no waste management for animals).
- 70% of the antibiotics produced in the United States goes to the agricultural industry.  A majority of those antibiotics are administered to healthy livestock.

Oceans
- Animal excrement has produced 500 nitrogen dead zones in the oceans (devoid of all LIFE)
- For every pound of fish caught, there are 5 lbs. of untargeted species trapped such as dolphins, whales, sea turtles and sharks (known as by-kill).
- Between 40-50 million sharks are killed in fishing line and fishing nets every year (by-kill).

Rainforest
- 1 acre of rainforest is cleared every second (size of a football field) for logging or agribusiness.
- Everyday 100 plant, animal and insect species are lost (extinct!) due to rainforest destruction.
- Palm oil is responsible for 26 million acres of rainforest destruction (for cattle grazing and soy production) BUT animal agriculture is responsible for 136 million acres of rainforest destruction.
- The Amazon could be gone in the next 10 years.
- Brazil rainforest - people speaking out are being killed. Over 1,000 activists have been killed in the last 20 years.

Dairy
- There is not enough land to sustain the dairy industry.  It takes 110-150 lbs. of feed per day, 30-40 gallons of water per day.
- It takes 1,000 gallons of water to produce 1 gallon of milk.

Other
- Land required to feed 1 person for 1 year:
   > Vegan: 1/6th acre
   > Vegetarian: 3x as much as a vegan
   > Meat & Dairy Consumer: 18x as much as a vegan

- Each day, a person who eats a vegan diet saves 1,100 gallons of water, 45 pounds of grain, 30 sq ft of forested land and 20 lbs of CO2 equivalent.  

The facts cited here are from the film "Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret." To learn more, please visit http://www.cowspiracy.com