2018 Conference

Poster Presentation

In the case of meat consumption and production, important outcomes endemic to the growth process beyond population growth, namely increases in per-capita incomes and rates of urbanization, exacerbate environmental problems. Here, I investigate the growth in, and costs of, increased meat consumption and the role markets have to play in this dynamic. To illuminate the severity of the problem, I highlight the specific case of China.The natural capital impacted by animal husbandry must be considered non substitutable if meat consumption is to be practiced long term and on a global scale. With the increase in human population over time, and resultant increase in food consumption, challenges to Earth’s natural capital have become apparent: water quality and quantity for both plant-based agriculture and animal husbandry are being severely tested; soil is being eroded faster than environmental factors can replenish this natural resource and fertilizer production is dwindling. These problems are made even more acute with the increase in consumption and production of environmentally taxing animal-based foods.