Revision as of 22:15, 21 November 2017

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Animal farming poses a lot of problems in our modern world. It is responsible for about 15% of worldwide greenhouse gas emisions, with an important of that part being methane, a gas with a sorther lifetime than carbon dioxyde in the atmorphere but that's also considerably more potent as a greenhouse gas. Because the demand for animal products is so high, farmed animals aren't fed solely on agricultural waste but also on grains and soy grown specifically for livestock, which causes a large part of the world's farmland to be dedicated to animal agriculture, which in turn causes habitat loss for wild animals and prevents effective carbon sequestrations due to these lands being denied the ability to grow into forests. Farmed animals are also fed the majority of antibiotics in the world, which is a threat to public health because it promotes the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. And of course it is very cruel, with every year billions of animals being killed in a gory, painful slaughter at a fraction of the lifespan they could experience otherwise, generally after a short existence of incomfort, confinment and often mutilations.

To solve these problems, we can stop relying on livestock for our food system. That implies to know about the logistics of farming without animals nor animal inputs (like manure) and suggest a new, evidence-based farming and food system.

Plant agriculture

The role of trees in sustainable farming

There is evidence that trees in agricultural fields can help making agriculture more sustainable. Trees, thanks to their deep root networks, stabilize the soil, which combined with the fact they work as windbreak (which mean they decrease wind speed), make it more resistant to erosion. Trees can also take nutrients hidden deep in the soil superficial crops can't access to. When their leaves fall from them, they can then be decomposed in the soil, making the nutrients available for other crops. Trees also have the benefit of being able to limit nitrogen runoff, which can be a problem for the environment around.

By planting trees that produce food, this can also be a way to increase the overall supply of fruits and nuts, the later in particular being an important sourse of healthy fat.

Crop rotation

Fertilization

Pest management

Pesticides

Miscellaneous

Food system

Vitamin B12

Because the only vegan source of vitamin B12 is bacteria grown in a lab, it's important to make sure everyone would be able to get enough of it. It's reasonable to assume in a vegan world that a wide range of different foods would be fortified with it.