Vegetarians more efficient at saving energy and food resources.
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Why are vegetarians more efficient at saving energy and food resources?
Would our food problems be solved if everyone chose a vegetarian diet? Why or why not?
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In about 759 words with references, this solution discusses why vegetarians are more efficient at saving energy and food resources, as well as whether the world's food problems would be solved if everyone was a vegetarian.
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Hi,
Vegetarianism is often touted as the answer to the world’s food issues. The basic premise, as your question states, is that a vegetarian diet saves energy and resources.
The main reasons this is considered to be true are related to the fact that raising animals for food "consumes vast quantities of natural resources, including water, land, and oil; destroys habitats; and generates a tremendous amount of water and air pollution" (http://www.justgive.org/html/guide/50waysenvironment.html). A vegetarian diet also minimizes the threat of extinction of wild animal stock, like fish.
If you consider the food chain and the way that energy is concentrated as you move upwards, for each pound of animal flesh consumed something like 10 lbs of plant matter have been consumed by that animal. There is a great section here from the Wikipedia about this topic:
"Environmental vegetarianism is the belief that the production of meat and animal products at current and likely future levels is environmentally unsustainable. Industrialization has lead to intensive farming practices and diets high in animal protein, primarily in developed nations and mainly the United States. ...
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