The true cost of animal farming

The most recent data about land animals bred, kept and slaughtered for consumption has revealed a figure higher than ever before: An estimated 92.2 billion land animals are slaughtered annually in the global food system, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation.

An ever-increasing proportion of animals are raised and reared for meat, milk and eggs industrially - that is, in facilities that concentrate large numbers of animals, plus their waste, in a limited geographical area.

In today’s meat and egg industries, many animals are confined in cages so small they can barely move. Mother pigs are locked in gestation crates - metal cages barely larger than the animals’ bodies. Similarly, calves used for veal are frequently tethered in crates too small to turn around. Most hens, meanwhile, are locked in battery cages so tightly they’re unable to extend their wings.

With industrial agriculture rapidly increasing in developing economies, it is important for us to establish what the cost of this production really is. Whether vegetarian, vegan or a die-hard meat-eater, consumers across the spectrum seem to now agree on one thing: large-scale industrial animal agriculture systems have negative impacts on rural communities, rural livelihoods, animal welfare and our environment.

While it’s clear that the main argument for enhancing animal welfare legislation are the animals themselves, some voices are questioning the economic feasibility of the proposed changes. Cost-efficiency is paramount for industrial animal agriculture to ensure that animal products are plentiful and consumer prices as low as possible. One of the main arguments against improving animal welfare is that farmers will be unable to shoulder the costs. And would consumers be willing or able to pay more for higher welfare animal sourced foods.

Cost to society

What we sometimes fail to consider, however, is that animal sourced foods should already cost much more. The relatively low prices we pay for animal products do not reflect their negative externalities: the costs to society at large associated with unsustainable farming practices that negatively affect people and communities, the animals, and the environment.

These externalities are manifold: animal sourced foods are responsible for low or very low animal welfare; industrial animal agriculture causes environmental degradation; certain types of animal products (e.g red and processed meats) increase the risk of diseases such as cancer or cardio-vascular problems; sectors with high geographical concentrations and extremely high stocking densities threaten public health as they are incubators of zoonotic diseases. In addition, the countries import and export animal products, thus contributing to global externalities, such as underpaid labour and deforestation.

When we include all of this in our calculations, the true cost is mind blowing. A recent report estimated that the externalities of animal sourced production in 2022 (EU) were $2.93 billion, or approximately 7.6 times higher than the economic costs of producing animal sourced food. The externalities attributed to EU animal sourced food consumption amounted to $2.72 billion, or approximately 7.8 times higher than the economic costs of consumption. As things stand now, nature and society are footing this enormous bill: we are already paying a staggering price for our animal products, just not at the point of purchase.

We’ve touched upon the true cost of animal production and aspects of consumers’ behaviour, but what about the industry? What about the farmers? Once again, reality is not black and white. While some vocally oppose any change, there is a quieter multitude that is already adopting higher welfare systems, acknowledging that a transition is inevitable.

Cost to farmers

Many have realised that it’s the right thing to do and that it takes their jobs to a different level. There are costs, of course. Two recent studies on the transition to cage-free farming estimate that the abolition of close confinement will increase the cost of pig meat production by 2-5 per cent, whereas egg production costs would increase by 5-6 per cent in aviary systems and up to 16 per cent in barn systems. The same studies, however, also provide evidence that a phaseout timeline of around 3-5 years is reasonable: with the appropriate financial and technical support, available via the funds of the Common Agricultural Policy, the transition towards cage-free housing will potentially have a reduced impact on producers and consumers.

Industrialised agriculture systems are also disadvantageous to small farmers and rural labourers because animal production is concentrated into the hands of a few large corporations. ‘Backyard’ farmers are at worst excluded from the market, and at best reduced to the role of contract farmers. Even when industrialised agriculture creates ‘on-farm’ jobs, because of the centralisation of production, these cannot possibly compensate for the numbers of small-scale farmers leaving the market.

Cost to the environment

The environmental implications of industrialised farm animal production are equally stark. Raising animals for food requires substantially greater quantities of water than raising plants for humans to eat. Globally, more than 60 per cent of corn and barley, and more than 97 per cent of soy meal, are fed to farm animals – a massive strain on already scarce water resources, which is only set to intensify if livestock farming continues to industrialise.

While any form of livestock farming requires large water inputs, and can contribute to the pollution of water sources, the problems are exacerbated within industrial animal production systems. Industrial operations consume water for cleaning enclosures, disposing of waste, cooling animals and processing animal products.

The same goes for climate change. The farm animal sector is a significant contributor to the emission of greenhouse gases. Farm animal production alone is projected to emit over two-thirds of the amount of greenhouse gases considered sustainable by 2050. Forested land continues to be cleared to allow farm animals to graze, intensifying climate change and destroying animal habitats.

Climate change itself has a knock-on effect for food security. The International Panel on Climate Change warns that warming temperatures could result in food shortages for 130 million people across Asia by 2050.

Animal consumption is unequal

Although India is one of the top egg and chicken meat producers in the world, at the start of the 21st Century, people in the lowest income quintile in rural areas were consuming fewer than ten eggs per capita per year. Egg consumption in urban areas was almost five times greater. Nutritional inequalities have increased as production has industrialised.

Yes, the advent of industrialised animal agriculture has resulted in a higher worldwide consumption of eggs, meat and milk; but the people consuming these products are, for the most part, not from marginalised groups. Instead, they are largely in developed economies, and in developing economies, they are largely from urban and higher-income groups.

Consumers can be the solution

Purchasing decisions are one way to tackle the problems associated with industrial farm animal production. Increasingly, those who continue to eat animal proteins are seeking out their products from local, free-range sources. They’re also eating more meat-free and dairy-free foods. Consumers are also supporting the work of animal welfare organisations that work to ensure better conditions for farm animals worldwide. In a rapidly developing nation such as ours, it is impossible to ignore the implications of an increasingly industrialised farming system on our environment and food security.

Humane Society International works with policy makers, corporations and law enforcement officials to end the intensive confinement of livestock in crates and hens in battery cages and to enforce animal protection laws in relation to transport and slaughter of farm animals.

As a consumer, you can help animals by joining millions of people across the world in reducing the number of animal products consumed, replacing them with more vegetarian products, and choosing animal products from sources that adhere to higher animal welfare standards when possible.

We are living in unprecedented times. There is now only a limited window of opportunity to enact the change that the planet and the animals so desperately need.