October, November 2017

Cattle ranching is now the biggest cause of deforestation in the Amazon, and nearly 80 per cent of deforested areas in Brazil are now used for pasture. The impact this is having on the forest is huge - between 1996 and 2006, an area the size of Portugal was carved out for cattle ranching. (Jan 31, 2009 Greenpeace). Next to this, growing food for the world’s burgeoning population is likely to send greenhouse gas emissions over the threshold of safety, unless more is done to cut meat consumption, a new report has found (Oxford Martin School). A widespread switch to vegetarianism would cut emissions by nearly two-thirds, it said. Both reasons have effect on climate change.
Cattle ranching is now the biggest cause of deforestation in the Amazon, and nearly 80 per cent of deforested areas in Brazil are now used for pasture. The impact this is having on the forest is huge - between 1996 and 2006, an area the size of Portugal was carved out for cattle ranching. (Jan 31, 2009 Greenpeace). Next to this, growing food for the world’s burgeoning population is likely to send greenhouse gas emissions over the threshold of safety, unless more is done to cut meat consumption, a new report has found (Oxford Martin School). A widespread switch to vegetarianism would cut emissions by nearly two-thirds, it said. Both reasons have effect on climate change.