<\n\n\n\n
Peta
\n\tPeople for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
\n\t501 Front St.
\n\tNorfolk, VA 23510
\n\t(757) 622-PETA (7382)
\n\tpeta-online.org<\/p>\n
Did you know this about eating MEAT? NOTE: Some of the figures in the following article need to be brought up to date. If you find an article that does this, please let me know. Thanx. Rhio<\/p>\n The Hunger Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n Number of people worldwide who will die of starvation this year: 60 million<\/p>\n Number of people who could be adequately fed with the grain saved if Americans reduced their intake of meat by 10%: 60 million<\/p>\n Human beings in America: 243 million<\/p>\n Number of people who could be fed with grain and soybeans now eaten by U.S. livestock: 1.3 billion<\/p>\n Percentage of corn grown in the U.S. eaten by people: 20<\/p>\n Percentage of corn grown in the U.S. eaten by livestock: 80<\/p>\n Percentage of protein wasted by cycling grain through livestock: 90<\/p>\n How frequently a child starves to death: every 2 seconds<\/p>\n Pounds of potatoes that can be grown on an acre: 20,000<\/p>\n Pounds of beef produced on an acre: 165<\/p>\n Percentage of U.S. farmland devoted to beef production: 56<\/p>\n Pounds of grain and soybeans needed to produce a pound of feedlot beef: 16<\/p>\n The Environmental Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n Cause of global warming: greenhouse effect<\/p>\n Primary cause of greenhouse effect: carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels<\/p>\n Fossil fuels needed to produce a meat-centered diet vs. a meat-free diet: 50 times more<\/p>\n Percentage of U.S. topsoil lost to date: 75<\/p>\n Percentage of U.S. topsoil loss directly related to livestock raising: 85<\/p>\n Number of acres of U.S. forest cleared for cropland to produce meat-centered diet: 260 mllion<\/p>\n Amount of meat U.S. imports annually from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras <\/p>\n and Panama: 200,000,000 pounds<\/p>\n Average per capita meat consumption in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras <\/p>\n and Panama: less than eaten by average U.S. house cat<\/p>\n Area of tropical rainforest consumed in every quarter-pound hamburger: 55 sq. ft<\/p>\n Current rate of species extinction due to destruction of tropical rainforests for meat grazing and other uses: 1000 per year<\/p>\n The Cancer Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n Increased risk of breast cancer for women who eat meat four times a week vs. less than once a week: 4 times<\/p>\n For women who eat eggs daily vs. less than once a week: 3 times<\/p>\n For women who eat butter and cheese 3 or more times a week vs. less than once: 3 times<\/p>\n Increased risk of fatal ovarian cancer for women who eat eggs 3 or more times a week vs. less than once a week: 3 times<\/p>\n Increased risk of fatal prostate cancer for men who consume meat, cheese, eggs and milk daily vs. sparingly or not at all: 3.6 times<\/p>\n The Natural Resources Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n User of more than half of all water used for all purposes in the U.S.: livestock production <\/p>\n Amount of water used in production of the average cow: sufficient to float a destroyer<\/p>\n Gallons to produce a pound of wheat: 25<\/p>\n Gallons to produce a pound of meat: 2,500<\/p>\n Cost of common hamburger if water used by meat industry was not subsidized by the U.S. taxpayer: $35 a pound<\/p>\n Current cost of a pound of protein from beefsteak, if water was no longer subsidized: $89.<\/p>\n Years the world's known oil reserves would last if every human ate a meat-centered diet: 13<\/p>\n Years they would last if human beings no longer ate meat: 260<\/p>\n Barrels of oil imported into U.S. daily: 6.8 million<\/p>\n Percentage of fossil fuel energy returned as food energy by the most efficient factory farming of meat: 34.5 percent.<\/p>\n Percentage returned from least efficient plant food: 328 percent<\/p>\n Perccentage of raw materials consumed by U.S. to produce present meat-centered diet: 33<\/p>\n The Cholesterol Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n Number of U.S. Medical Schools: 125<\/p>\n Number requiring a course in nutrition: 30<\/p>\n Nutrition training received by average U.S. physician during four years in medical school: 2.5 hours<\/p>\n Most common cause of death in the U.S.: heart attack<\/p>\n How frequently a heart attack kills in the U.S.: every 45 seconds<\/p>\n Average U.S. man's risk of death from heart attack: 50 percent<\/p>\n Risk for average U.S. man who avoids the meat centered diet: 15 percent<\/p>\n Risk for average U.S. man who consumes no meat, dairy products or eggs at all: 4 percent<\/p>\n Amount you reduce risk of heart attack if you reduce consumption of meat, dairy products and eggs by 10 percent: 9 percent<\/p>\n Amount you reduce risk if you reduce consumption by 50 percent: 45 percent<\/p>\n Amount you reduce risk if you eliminate these foodstuffs from your diet entirely: 90 percent<\/p>\n Meat, dairy and egg industries claim you should not be concerned about your blood cholesterol if it is: "normal"<\/p>\n Your risk of dying of a disease caused by clogged arteries if your blood cholesterol is "normal": over 50 percent<\/p>\n The Antibiotic Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n Percentage of U.S. antibiotics fed to livestock: 55<\/p>\n Percentage of staphylococci infections resistant to penicillin in 1960: 13<\/p>\n Percentage resistant in 1988: 91<\/p>\n Response of European Economic Community to routine feeding of antibiotics to livestock: ban<\/p>\n Response of U.S. meat and pharmaceutical industries to routine feeding of antibiotics to livestock: full and complete support<\/p>\n The Pesticide Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by grains: 1<\/p>\n Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by fruits: 4<\/p>\n Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by vegetables: 6<\/p>\n Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by dairy products: 23<\/p>\n Percentage of pesticide residues in the U.S. diet supplied by meat: 55<\/p>\n Pesticide contamination of breast milk from meat eating mothers vs. non-meat eating: 35 times higher<\/p>\n What USDA tells us: meat is inspected<\/p>\n Percentage of slaughtered animals inspected for residues of toxic chemicals including dioxin and DDT: less than 0.00004<\/p>\n The Ethical Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n Number of animals killed for meat per hour in the U.S.: 500,000<\/p>\n Occupation with highest turnover rate in U.S.: slaughterhouse worker<\/p>\n Occupation with the highest rate of on-the-job injury in U.S.: slaughterhouse worker<\/p>\n Cost to render animal unconscious with "captive bolt pistol" before slaughter: 1 cent<\/p>\n Reason given by meat industry for not using "captive bolt pistol": too expensive<\/p>\n The Survival Argument<\/strong><\/p>\n Athlete to win Ironman Triathlon more than twice: Dave Scott (6 time winner)<\/p>\n Food choices of Dave Scott: Vegetarian<\/p>\n Largest meat eater that ever lived: Tyrannosaurus Rex<\/p>\n Back to Animal Issues & Stories<\/em><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" < Peta People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals 501 Front St. Norfolk, VA 23510 (757) 622-PETA (7382) peta-online.org Did you know this about eating MEAT? by John Robbins Author: Diet for a New America Founder: EarthSave International NOTE: Some … Continue reading
\n\tby John Robbins
\n\tAuthor: Diet for a New America<\/em>
\n\tFounder: EarthSave International<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n