Livestock & Deforestation
Table of Contents
Introduction
Cattle grazing is the #1 driver of deforestation, followed by soy (70-75% of which is used as livestock food, 6% is eaten by humans), palm products (also becoming a major feed source, currently the UK feeds 10% of the world's palm meal to livestock and pets), followed by the timber industry. The cattle industry alone is responsible for the majority of deforestation in the Amazon (80%) and Australia with "More than 90% of land clearing in Great Barrier Reef catchments over a five-year period was attributable to the beef industry, according to new analysis by The Wilderness Society."
People often brag that Europe has virtually no deforestation for livestock farming, but that is because we have steadily deforested Europe since the Neolithic period to make space for grazing animals and later for growing their feed. Now we have so little land left that we're exporting our deforestation to places like Asia and South America to support our growing livestock industries.
Negative Effects of Deforestation & Livestock
Forest Structure
Deforestation and overgrazing also have effects that are less visible. Sometimes we may see what looks like a healthy woodland at first glance, but a closer look reveals more.
Overgrazed woodland may have old trees but lack youngsters to replace them. They are also missing a healthy shrub layer and ground flora.
Not only have we lost woodland cover. Like humans, deer have their favorite foods. This means that some tree species suffer more than others. Aspen, holly, rowan and juniper are high on the menu, so they are often absent or scarce in the remaining pockets. Less tree diversity means less wildlife diversity." - Trees for Life
Loss of Wildlife
"Key wildlife species have been lost due both habitat destruction and hunting. This has had a catastrophic effect. When species are removed, the ecological tapestry begins to unravel.
The top predators – wolf, bear and lynx – were all hunted to extinction by humans. Beaver, aurochs, elk, wild boar and others suffered the same fate. These animals each have an important, unique role in a forest, keeping it rich and diverse.
Predators keep herbivore numbers in check. They also keep nibbling mouths on the move, allowing vegetation to regenerate. A lack of predators is a major reason why deer numbers are now so damagingly high.
Herbivores’ feeding habits in turn create a varied structure in the forest, along with other important effects. Many other less obvious creatures have also been lost or have had their numbers decimated." - Trees for Life
Biomass Loss vs Carbon Storage
Plants make up the majority of Earth's organic biomass. Removing trees removes very large carbon stores, which can then be released into the atmosphere, especially when forest clearing is done via fire.
As mentioned above, changes to woodland structures results in trophic cascade where once-common species begin to dwindle or even vanish, meaning yet most biomass is lost and can end up back in our atmosphere.
Water Cycle
Deforestation impairs the water cycle, and since beef is responsible for 5 times more deforestation than any other industry, we can safely say that the disruption of "rivers in the sky" historically produced by rainforests can be attributed at least in part to the meat and feed industries.
Cattle and other grazers like sheep and goats do a lot of damage to trees and saplings, further reducing future water cycle opportunities. Their hooves can impact earth, adding another layer of barrier against water penetrating back into ground water.
When farmers over extract water from aquifers and waterways, this can rob the landscape of water that might otherwise sustain tree life.
In wetter climates, the problem can be quite different as explained by Trees for Life, "Trees draw up a huge amount of water from the ground, and release it into the air through their leaves and needles. When trees are cut down the ground can become waterlogged. This makes it hard for trees to return, especially when the seed source has been removed. It’s a vicious cycle."
Impact By Region
Since different industries have different impacts at different times, we've collected information about the impacts of livestock on forests areound the world, both in the past and modern times. It may surprise some people to learn that places we commonly think of as deserts or scrubland used to be lush forests with rich biodiversity until nomadic herders or farmers impacted those regions.
International/Global
The top 4 drivers of deforestation are Beef Grazing, Soy which is mostly fed to livestock (especially chicken), palm (an important ingredient in livestock feed), and finally wood products. Click the Deforestation button to learn about other major causes of deforestation and threats to forests
Our World In Data: Deforestation Check out the explanations, maps, and charts of where deforestation is most sever, which industries are driving these changes, and where forest cover is improving.
Africa
Ethiopia
The article listed here explains a variety of threats to the last remaining forests of Ethiopia, including "how wandering livestock were damaging the delicate understory." as well as "Cattle wandering into the cool, shady forests trample tender young plants and damage the older trees."
Asia
UK Animal Feed Helping to Destroy Asian Rainforest, Study Shows "British cats, dogs, cows, pigs and even goldfish are helping destroy the rainforests of south-east Asia. A new study for the government finds that more than a tenth of all the world's palm kernel meal – a lucrative by-product of the production of palm oil – is fed to British animals.
Palm oil is an ingredient in an estimate third of all products on supermarket shelves, from biscuits and margarine to shampoo and confectionery. And it turns up on garage forecourts in biodiesel. Britain imports more than half a million tonnes of the oil a year. But the study for the Department of Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) reports that Britain imports even more palm kernel meal, mostly for animal feed.
The report found that while retailers and manufacturers of branded foods are rushing to buy certified "sustainable" palm oil that does not destroy the rainforests, animal feed manufacturers show "little awareness of sustainability". British imports of sustainable palm kernel meal are precisely zero.
The report, Mapping and Understanding UK Palm Oil Use, names three companies responsible for supplying most of the palm kernel meal for animal feed in Britain: the manufacturers AB Agri, owned by Associated British Foods, and BOCM Pauls, plus the commodity trader ED&F Man.
Some companies, it says, excuse themselves by claiming their product is simply a by-product of palm oil production – and oil is increasingly being certified. But the Defra official Sara Eppel, who unveiled the findings at a conference on palm oil at London zoo last Friday, said that didn't wash. "It's not just a by-product," she said, especially in Britain where "we import five times as much kernel from Indonesia as palm oil.""
Europe
Ireland
Livestock Grazing is Preventing the Return of Rainforests to the UK and Ireland "Most of the UK and Ireland’s grass-fed cows and sheep are on land that might otherwise be temperate rainforest – arable crops tend to prefer drier conditions. However, even if there were no livestock grazing in the rainforest zone – and these areas were threatened by other crops instead – livestock would still pose an indirect threat due to their huge land footprint. You need around 35 times more land to get 100g of protein from lamb than you do from peas, beans and other pulses."
Scotland
"Early farmers arrived on the scene about 5,900 years ago. (Humans had been around much earlier, but we don’t know what impact they had.) These Neolithic farmers grazed cattle, goats and primitive sheep. They burned areas of heath and pinewoods to encourage fresh growth of heather for their stock. Burning plus grazing was bad news for trees. Woodland couldn’t recolonise denuded areas and went into further retreat."
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"Through the centuries that followed, people cut down trees for timber, fuel and to make way for agriculture. Livestock grazing continued to limit tree regeneration. The forest was forced into smaller, isolated pockets."
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"By the 18th century, woodland cover reached its all time low. Some pinewood fragments were protected from overgrazing because timber had value, but cheap timber imports later changed all that.
The Highland Clearances were a devastating blow for Highland people and culture. They also made way for large scale sheep farming, which was an ecological disaster.
In Victorian times sheep farming declined and landlords turned to sport shooting for income. Deer stalking encouraged unnaturally high numbers of deer and grouse moors were burned. Regenerating trees stood little chance."
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"Such large-scale, long-term ecological destruction has transformed the Scottish Highlands. Today only around 1% of our native pinewoods remain, while many other habitats have been degraded or lost. The besieged remnants are in a state of poor health for many reasons."
UK
Livestock Grazing is Preventing the Return of Rainforests to the UK and Ireland "Most of the UK and Ireland’s grass-fed cows and sheep are on land that might otherwise be temperate rainforest – arable crops tend to prefer drier conditions. However, even if there were no livestock grazing in the rainforest zone – and these areas were threatened by other crops instead – livestock would still pose an indirect threat due to their huge land footprint. You need around 35 times more land to get 100g of protein from lamb than you do from peas, beans and other pulses." Click link to see map of land use in the UK plus the land abroad used to provide us with the livestock feed and foods we can't grow at home.
Asia
UK Animal Feed Helping to Destroy Asian Rainforest, Study Shows "More than a tenth of the world's palm kernel meal, a by-product of palm oil, is fed to British pets and livestock"
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"Some companies, it says, excuse themselves by claiming their product is simply a by-product of palm oil production – and oil is increasingly being certified. But the Defra official Sara Eppel, who unveiled the findings at a conference on palm oil at London zoo last Friday, said that didn't wash. "It's not just a by-product," she said, especially in Britain where "we import five times as much kernel from Indonesia as palm oil.""
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"Most of the world's oil palm is grown on giant plantations in Malaysia and Indonesia, where campaigners have documented continuing deforestation to meet growing world demand. The conference heard that plantations cause an 85% loss of biodiversity. Oil comes from the oil palm's fruit, while kernel meal comes from palm nuts."
Near East/Middle East
Blame it on the goats? Desertification in the Near East during the Holocene This study includes maps, photos, sketches, and charts.
North America
USA
Much of the USA's forests have already been destroyed for agriculture. Specifically, tree clearing over the last 100-200 years has wiped out entire ecosystems, replacing them in large part with corn, soy, oats, and alfalfa, which are major feed crops for livestock. Some of that land is also used for livestock grazing, though around 99% of US livestock now live inside factory farms full time. Beef cattle are often grazed as youngsters, then moved to feed lots shortly before slaughter.
South America
Brazil
Just a few years ago, the beef industry was responsible for 80-90% of deforestation in Brazil's rainforests, however, since the new president, the rate of deforestation has dropped
Solutions
Switch to Alternatives
We should support farmers switching from livestock to more eco-friendly alternatives. Since the majority of deforestation throughout history and still today is driven by livestock grazing and feed production, one of the fastest ways to reverse this trend is for farmers to switch to less intensive products.
Farmer Actions
Click the Alternatives to Livestock button to learn about some of the alternatives already being explored by ex-livestock owners from tourism and event hosting to algae and crop alternatives.
For those without the resources to transition away from livestock right away, consider planting trees to create the following:
Silvopasture this can provide a variety of benefits to livestock (including protection from wind and hot sun).
Riparian zones Replant and protect these vital wildlife corridors. Not only do they host bountiful and diverse plant life, but they also protect water quality, helping both farmers and their neighbors.
Hedgerows these can act as eco-friendly fencing, and wildlife corridors for beneficial insects and birds. In harsh climates they can function as wind-breaks that can prevent animals from freezing to death. Fields and pastures with hedge rows were found to have higher soil nutrition, while needed less fertilizations, since the plants blocked wind erosion which otherwise strips the oil of biological matter.
Consumer Actions
We can support plant, mushroom, and seaweed farmers by seeking their products.
If you don't know where to start, you can create bigger impact faster if you focus on replacing the worst causes of deforestation first, then worrying about the less-impactful products later. Check out our Deforestation page to see which foods and products impact forests the most, to guide you on your journey.
Rewild Grazing Land
All around the world different people, groups, and initiatives are taking things into their own hands, and returning land to nature.
Side by Side
This can include farmers sectioning off parts of their land to become Riparian Zones, or strips of wildflowers referred to as Prairie Strips or Meadow Strips depending on the location and ecological zones that would have once stood on that land.
Hedgerows are another option which provides many benefits to farmers as well as the local biodiversity.
One with Nature
Silvopasture and Paludiculture are examples of ways we can start to return land back to a more natural state, while still allowing farmers to earn an income.
Organizations
UK
Heal "is raising money to buy land in England and rewild it. We're giving land back to nature, forever."
Vegan Land Movement (VLM) "is ALL of us creating the change that we need to see in land use & farming practices. Buying back land to save all species."
Grants
International
The LUSH Spring Prize "A £200,000+ prize fund and other support activities, to build capacity for those repairing the earth’s damaged systems and leaving the world lusher than they found it."
Open Philanthropy "Open Philanthropy’s mission is to give as effectively as we can and share our findings openly so that anyone can build on our work."
North America
USA
Eat The Change "ETC Impact™ is a grant program working to promote and expand access to climate-friendly foods. We're donating more than $1.25 million over three years to support a diverse group of changemaking nonprofit organizations."