
Agriculture
Senator Debbie Stabenow: "What I’m hearing now from farmers is,
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'yes...the climate crisis is real.
But we need help on what to do about it'.”

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"Limiting the impact of climate change...would mean major changes for agriculture —
from how we farm, to how we eat and waste food... ​
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[which would] require action by the more than two billion people employed in agriculture." ​
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Current agricultural practices harm the atmosphere. “A quarter of global emissions come from food.”
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Cattle farming underlies much of the expanded logging and burning of the Brazilian rainforest.
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Farm "animal manure...is a major polluter of both water and air.”
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“Pesticides...and pollution are major...factors in the...decline of...soil organisms.”
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Regenerative agriculture can be a much better choice, if possible. Here’s how:
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No till - “Minimize soil disturbance: ...farmers seed directly into the soil.
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Maintain soil cover: farmers leave crop residues after harvesting, or grow cover crops.
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Manage crop rotation: farmers change what is grown and where.”
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Chemical fertilizers use methane gas to make nitrogen, which has helped produce
an agricultural bounty for the past century! However, methane and nitrous oxide
pollute air and water - increasingly more every year.
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“By [replacing]...chemical fertilisers...with high-quality organic fertilisers, half...
of agricultural ghg emissions could be prevented while simultaneously building” healthy soil.
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“Another major intervention point” would be to promote “pasture grazing.”
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These methods “protect [the] soil, avoid emissions...sequester carbon,”
and help keep local watersheds clean.
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One example: "Agroforestry is a land use management system in which trees or shrubs
are grown around or among crops or pastureland."
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Also see: Agrivoltaics regarding bees and broccoli!
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Regenerative farming may not work for everyone, however:
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“When fields aren’t tilled, pesticides are often used to kill weeds."
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Some “farmers who planted...cover crops in a given year, failed to do so in subsequent years.”
Farming isn't always easy, but anyone can eat vegan.
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“What we should be scared of is double cheeseburgers.”
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"Excessive meat consumption is linked to numerous health issues.”
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“Industrial agriculture is associated with...habitat destruction."
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“The [hog and dairy] industries...slammed efforts to promote ‘Meatless Mondays’.” ​​​
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What if a famous celebrity promoted vegetarian eating, and got sued for it?
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In 1996, Oprah "Winfrey declared that the [beef safety] discussion ‘has...stopped me...from eating another burger’." This ”contributed to a drop in cattle prices.”
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“Cattle industry...executives filed a lawsuit...blaming her for millions in lost business.”
Ms. Winfrey won the case.
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Beef industry leaders then turned to state legislators.
"’Ag-gag’...bills are designed to [prevent] whistleblowers [from] revealing animal abuses.”
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These bills are still being argued over in courts and state capitals.
While meat production expands, working conditions remain unhealthy
in slaughterhouses, meat packing plants, and in the fields.
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“Toiling under difficult heat conditions, [farm] workers...gamble with their health: chronic dehydration can cause kidney damage.”
"'If slaughterhouses had glass walls, we’d all be vegetarians', Paul McCartney".
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Maybe you want to stop the cruelty? ​
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“Undercover video...shows workers shocking, kicking and shoving debilitated cattle with forklifts.”
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“The meat industry [employs]...impoverished and exploited workers; many [are]...immigrants
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who...never complain about...working conditions or cruelty...for fear of being deported.”
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“Cattle...can have [body] parts...cut off without pain relief."
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"To watch a cow die in a rendering plant is...horror...[with] the...approval of Congress.”
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For more on food-related topics, look for Let’s Ask Marion, which covers
“The politics of personal dietary choices...community food issues and...global food systems.”
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"The food industry's primary job is to sell products and return profits to stockholders.”
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For more on famine, see Collapse.
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There's still time to change the road you're on.
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