#dairy sustainability

[dairymoos]

Most people don’t realize that conventional dairy already has been focused on sustainability, we just don’t advertise

- We sequester carbon with the crops growing for the cows

- We use organic fertilizer from the cows instead on relying on synthetic fertilizers

- We recycle all our water to grow crops for the cows

- Cows up-cycle food byproducts into usable nutrition that would otherwise go to a landfill

Cows are a valuable part of the earths ecology and ecosystems. Many dairy farms today are installing methane digesters- that take cow manure, capture the emissions, and make renewable power. Installing these systems make dairies carbon negative meaning they are taking out more emissions than they are creating.

[veganhippiechick]

[earlandladygray]

“Cows in Winter”

[severelynerdysheep]

“Animal Agriculture surpases oil as largest polluter in the world.” 

[mehanizem]

[kkujo]

veganism is a good option for some people and in ways is good for the environment etc but u have to understand that not everyone can be vegan and there are certain factors to consider like allergies, sensory issues, eating disorders etc that make it impossible or at least a lot harder to be vegan/vegetarian and if someone eats meat or dairy don't shame them or be an asshole abt it

[acti-veg]

Finally, a balanced discussion of this issue in the mainstream media which actually acknowledges that any plant milk is far more sustainable than dairy.

[vampirephlebotomy]

im going to commit murder i just saw the worst take on feminism and veganism ever and thats fucking saying something, i do not understand how some people genuinely think the way they do

[vibing-vegan]

Let’s talk about food waste.

This year (well basically every year), I’m trying to lower my food waste. Throwing away food means throwing away your money, while also polluting our planet. So many resources go into growing, packaging, and transporting food. It’s sad to see it get thrown out, especially when people are starving in many parts of the world. My sourdough bread was stale and on the verge of going bad, so last night I decided I would turn it into courtons. By doing this, I extended it’s life because now it’s good for a few more weeks. Right after doing so, I saw a post by @yqgand_ecome, and was inspired to also talk about food waste. Below are a few tips to reduce your food waste.

Buy intentionally - This is simple. Only buy what you’ll eat. Especially in the time of COVID-19, it’s easy to want to stock up on essentials. I’ve been doing this too. But make sure you’re going to eat everything you buy!

Frequently organize & clean your fridge/pantry - This allows you to always know what is in your kitchen, and when it’s about to expire. Fruits & veggies can start to go bad quickly. Add your veggies that are going bad to soups, stir-fry, tofu scramble, pasta, or baking them in the oven.

Freeze what you can - If something will last longer in the freezer, then freeze it! I do this with leftovers like soup, chilli, opened sauce jars, or bananas that are turning brown.

Give it a second life - Turn it into something new. Bananas, carrots, and zucchini are great to make breads/muffins out of. Or make croutons!

Best Before Date doesn’t always mean it’s bad! - Sure, it might not taste as good, but it doesn’t mean it should be thrown out on the day that it says it’s not good anymore. (I’m not sure if this is the same for meat/dairy, but if you go vegan then you wouldn’t have to worry about that)!

Compost what doesn’t make it - Of course, there will be things you aren’t able to save. This is when having a compost is great, because the food goes back into our earth & turns into nutrients for future food!

It breaks my heart every time I have to throw out food. Going forward, I’m going to work very hard at saving my food.

IG: Vibing.Vegan

[kogri]

Hi, do you learn things about sustainable farming in your course? I'd be interested to hear about these things. I personally don't think it's possible to feed the entire world population on a plant based diet. I know vegan people will kill you for saying as sad as it sounds animal products are more nutritious than plants. In some parts of the world that's where people get their nutrition from and it would be wrong to tell them to starve just because they don't like the idea of eating meat.

Hey! I love your question, because it’s a topic I feel connected to. In my studies sustainable farming isn’t one of my subjects, because I study food technology, but my university also teaches animal production and agronomy and that’s where they teach and talk about sustainable farming more specifically. But as I study food technology, we study how we can produce food in a sustainable way and what kind of production and raw material needs to be used for the full process to be sustainable in a bigger perspective. 

As my own family has been in the dairy production business for more than 10 years, this topic is very close to me. I totally agree with you - it is not possible to feed the entire population on plant based diet. As I’ve been connected to dairy production (we have cows) and with having animals we also have our own fields where we grow crops, corn and grass feed for our animals. And it really has been showing a full circle coming together = how plant based food production and animal based food production go hand in hand. 

In my opinion the most sustainable model for food production (based on dairy industry) is smaller units of animals being in one facility - like I don’t think it’s sustainable to have farms where the numbers of animals go 1000+ in numbers. The best example is having a family owned dairy farm: 1) animal well-being is number 1 priority because the animals are being taken care of by the family who owns the farm - unlike farms that are owned by big corporations where the employees don’t really care about animals and owners don’t either. But in family farms the well-being of animals is the most important thing. Like our family dairy farm has ~200 milking cows (plus baby cows and young animals) - we can manage the cows with our own family and a couple men who work with the machinery. Our farm has very modern facilities - we have milking robots and cows can roam freely and they always have a lot of fresh feed and drinking water available all over the building, they have dry and soft beds and automatic brushes. Every cow can go milking when they want to because the robots are available to them 24/7, cows can eat, sleep and live out their natural herd behaviors. And in my opinion its sustainable and animal friendly production. Our goal is to keep our animals happy and healthy for years. We have cows in our farm who are more than 10 years old. Our cows are healthy WITHOUT crazy amounts antibiotics (we use antibiotics only on extreme cases of serious diseases) - and no we are not certified organic, we just see that as the best practice. And I could go even further with this but its getting too long :D 2) on fields we grow grains, corn, grass etc and the way we give power back to our land is not chemical - we fertilize the soil with cow manure, which can be taken straight into soil using modern machinery - it’s not left in the environment but taken straight to soil to nourish it back. But draining land by using non-animal fertilizers or no fertilizers at all - this land will be drained so quickly that in a couple of years nothing would grow there. The best way to grow plants for human food is to use animal fertilizers - that’s the most natural and sustainable way in my opinion. 3) You are right about animal based food being more nutritious for humans - we can eat small amount of animal based food to get the nutrients we need instead of big amount and great variety of just plant based instead. The best way to eat is to eat both plant and animal based food together. And to produce them together in the same cycle. 

TL;DR - the animal production on smaller family farms (~300 animals in one farm) is a production model that’s based on animal well-being and combining growing plant based food with animal production makes up the most sustainable way to produce both of them. (in my opinion) 

[dairymoos]

The truth about cows and the environment

Cows account for less than 4% of GHG emmisions in the U.S. while crops produce 4.8%

Cows take worthless grass/cellulose (that people can’t digest) and convert to nutrient dense foods. Without cows, you would need significantly more plant agriculture/ and environmental resources i.e. land, water

As a result changing your diet to vegan will only reduce your environmental impact as much as reducing 1 transatlantic flight

People forget though that cows are an important part of the earths ecology and nessesary- they perform an important function.

Methane from cows remains constant in the atmosphere— 10-15yrs— while C02 from fossil fuels accumulate in the environment— C02 lasts 100yrs. The key to reducing our environmental impact is not from changing our diet but reducing our dependence on fossils fuels

Dairy farmers in the U.S. have reduced their environmental impact 63% over the last 65 years. They’ve been able to produce more milk with less cows.

And many farmers today are working to convert the methane to renewable energy. Implementing this technology on dairy farms will allow these farms to become carbon-negative. Meaning they’ll be pulling more carbon out of the system than they put in- while producing renewable energy and food.

Cows have the potential to be the great change makers in our society

Cows can change our world for the better 🌎 🐄 🌱

[veganhippiechick]

[kihroto]

It’s September already and Raining sideways.. Perfect time to bring back a soul satisfying Tasty soup with some Pizazzz! This, is Duo of Fennel soup and crispy Potatoes!

It’s September already and Raining sideways.. Perfect time to bring back a soul satisfying Tasty soup with some Pizazzz! This, is Duo of Fennel soup and crispy Potatoes!

Does healthy, gluten free, Vegan, sustainable cooking have to be dull? Absolutely NOT!! With a little effort and imagination, we can elevate the flavors, nutritional value, and presentation in no time! Fennel is so versatile and delicious raw, grilled, sautéed, pickled, roasted and braised. Even as a Tempura! That’s only the Bulb(*White part*). The Green tops are Just as tasty, and the leaves…

[intelligentliving]

Traditional plastics are made from non-renewable petroleum and take centuries to degrade. German scientists have developed a new plastic alternative that should break down within 12 months. The scientists at Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute for Production Systems & Design Technology made this eco-friendly plastic from industrial waste, particularly fats, containing significant...

[puphoods]

theres a specific kind of like "vegan" community i see bits and pieces from every now and then that it is very clear they think that veganism is some kind of like moral stance beyond not using animal products and that u can be vegan even if u DO use animal products

[wildlife-film]

Here’s a film that has turned very many people #vegan, including me, @jasonpeters (back in 2014!) – @Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret – a groundbreaking feature-length #environmentaldocumentary now streaming on @Netflix. 🐮 🐄 As eye-opening as #Blackfish and as inspiring as #AnInconvenientTruth, this shocking yet humorous #documentary reveals the absolutely devastating #environmentalimpact large-scale #factoryfarming has on #ourplanet, and offers a path to global #sustainability for a growing #population. 🐄🐄 "One industry is destroying the planet more than any other-but no one wants to talk about it.” @aumfilms 🐄🐄🐄 Cowspiracy may be the most important film made to inspire saving the planet. — Louie @Psihoyos, Oscar-Winning Director of #TheCove 🐄🐄🐄🐄 "A documentary that will rock and inspire the environmental movement." — @DarrenAronofsky, Director of "Noah" and "Black Swan" 🐄🐄🐄🐄🐄 Also see @wthfilm … #WhatTheHealth - the follow up film, looking at the #health-impact of #meat, #fish, #eggs & #dairy 💊💊💊💊💊💊 @kipandersen's next film, #Seaspiracy is coming soon! Follow @seaspiracy 🎣 🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟🐟 #Netflix #Cowspiracy #animalagriculture #livestockfarming #animalfarming #potd #govegan #plantbased #cows #instagood #vegansofig 🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱🌱 https://www.instagram.com/p/CMhmAmrhXaN/?igshid=1xowzcp9puhpd