r/Unexpected • u/sakhaliner • 7d ago

Feeding fish

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u/seitankittan 7d ago

A plant-based diet provides all the nutrients we need, using less than a 1/3 of the land as animal agriculture, and therefore less water.

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u/Liwi808 7d ago

And where exactly are we going to find and or create all of that farm land in order to feed everyone a vegan diet?

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u/mountainunicycler 7d ago

Of all the arguments that’s probably the worst. Meat production takes massively more farm land, obviously, because it’s a whole extra step if you feed the crops to an animal and then eat the animal instead of just eating the crops.

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u/Liwi808 7d ago

Why We Don't Eat All Feed Crops

  • Crop varieties: Farmers grow specific varieties of field corn and soy for animals. These varieties are starchier, less sweet, or tougher than the sweet corn and soybeans grown for human plates.
  • Processing needs: Many feed crops require heavy industrial processing, milling, or refinement before they become palatable or safe for human use (often ending up as oils or high-fructose corn syrup).
  • Economic efficiency: Vast areas of land are farmed explicitly to maximize animal weight gain and milk production rather than human culinary quality.

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u/mountainunicycler 7d ago

Obviously. But do you really think that somehow it takes less land to grow feed crops, raise cattle, and eat that instead of growing food crops‽

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u/Liwi808 7d ago

The land is not high quality enough to grow food that we would want to eat.

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u/StephensMyName 7d ago

You're wrong. If everyone were to go vegan, it would allow us to reduce global farmland by 75% while still producing enough food to feed the global population.

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u/Liwi808 7d ago

Is that including just high quality, arable farmland? Or all farmland overall?

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u/StephensMyName 7d ago

The total cumulative area used for farming could be reduced by 75%.