This intensification and mechanization has also been applied to the raising of livestock with billions of animals, such as cows, pigs and chickens, being held indoors in what have become known as factory farms. Intensive farming practices produce more and cheaper food per acre and animal, which has helped feed a booming human population and may prevent surrounding land from being converted into agricultural land, but has grown to become the biggest threat to the global environment through the loss of ecosystem services and global warming, has led to the emergence of new parasites and re-emergence of parasites previously considered to be 'under control' by creating the conditions for parasite growth and is responsible for 80% of tropical deforestation (see also).
Furthermore, intensive farming kills beneficial insects and plants, degrades and depletes the very soil it depends on, creates polluted runoff and clogged water systems, increases susceptibility to flooding, causes the genetic erosion of crops and livestock species around the world, decreases biodiversity, destroys natural habitats and, according to WWF, "Farming practices, livestock, and clearing of land for agriculture are significant contributors to the build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere." However, certain aspects of intensive farming have helped ease climate change by helping boost yields in already cleared land that may be under-performing, which prevents the clearing of additional land. There are both pros and cons to intensive farming, but compared to the disadvantages, the advantages are less. The world is in transition from an era of food abundance to one of scarcity (see also). With 40% of the planet’s land devoted to human food production, up from 7% in 1700, and as the world’s demand for food rises 70% by 2050 (see also), feeding a rapidly growing human population can and should be done by adopting a sustainable food production approach that can run indefinitely with minimized impacts on the environment, animal welfare and human health.
With human population growing at a rate of approximately 78 million people per year with over 7 billion people living on the planet today and estimates reaching between 8 and 11 billion by 2050 and up to 15 billion by 2100, humanity faces perhaps our greatest challenge of keeping fed while keeping a healthy, productive foundation to feed ourselves with. Despite the odds, this can be done.
A comprehensive examination of nearly 300 studies worldwide shows that organic, small-scale farming can feed the world. Organic farms in developing countries outperformed conventional practices by 57% and that organic agriculture could produce enough food, on a per capita basis, to provide 2,640 to 4,380 calories per person per day, which is more than the suggested intake for healthy adults. According to the study, "With the average yield ratios, we modeled the global food supply that could be grown organically on the current agricultural land base. Model estimates indicate that organic methods could produce enough food on a global per capita basis to sustain the current human population, and potentially an even larger population, without increasing the agricultural land base and while reducing the detrimental environmental impacts of conventional agriculture." Furthermore, a United Nations Human Rights report states that "Eco-Farming can double food production in 10 years."
Although the use of pesticides has its benefits, such as controlling or killing potential disease-causing organisms and insects, weeds and other pests, reducing yield losses and time savings to the producer and lowering food and fiber costs for the consumer, there are many drawbacks, such as the gradual erosion of soil, threat of toxicity to humans and other animals, increased pest resistance and the unintended killing of pests' natural enemies. Astonishingly, over 98% of sprayed insecticides and 95% of herbicides reach a destination other than their target species, including non-target species, air, water, bottom sediments, and food. According to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, 9 of the 12 most dangerous and persistent organic chemicals are pesticides. As insects and weeds develop a resistance to pesticides, farmers are forced to use more, increasingly toxic chemicals to control these 'superweeds' and 'superbugs'. Known as the "pesticide trap," farmers get caught on the treadmill as they are forced to spend more on pesticides each year just to keep crop loss from pests at a standard rate.
Factory farms, also known as CAFO's (Concentrated Animal Feed Operations), are not what you typically see advertised on their products, with images of happy animals free-roaming farmlands beneath the bright sun in endless, lush green fields. It's far from it. Factory farms cram animals, such as cows, hogs and chickens, by the thousands into tightly packed, filthy, windowless sheds where they are confined to gestation crates, wire cages, barren dirt lots or other cruel confinement systems. As PETA explains, "These animals will never raise their families, root around in the soil, build nests, or do anything that is natural and important to them. Most won't even feel the sun on their backs or breathe fresh air until the day they are loaded onto trucks bound for slaughter." Designed to produce the highest possible output at the lowest possible cost to the operator, factory farms operate without regard for public health, the environment, food safety, rural economies, animal health, or their surrounding communities.
