According to a new report by Environment America, Tyson, one of the largest meat
producers in the world, is responsible for dumping more toxic pollution into
our waterways than companies like ExxonMobil and Dow Chemical:
Tyson Foods, Inc. or its subsidiaries dumped more than 20 million pounds of pollution directly into our waterways in 2014 alone. This figure only includes pollutants reported to U.S. EPA’s Toxic Release Inventory, and does not include pollution from factory farms raising livestock for Tyson.
So not even counting
pollution from its factory farms, Tyson produced more than
six
times as
much pollution as ExxonMobil for the years included
in the report.
But it’s not just Tyson. Several other large-scale meat
producers ranked higher in toxic releases than Exxon, including Perdue Farms
and Pilgrim’s Pride.
It should come as no surprise that animal
excrement and other agricultural runoff from large-scale farms have polluted
nearly one-third of rivers in the U.S.
Not so long ago, agricultural pollutants from
factory farms were deemed the primary cause of dangerous
phosphorus algal blooms that spread in Lake Erie. This contamination left
hundreds of thousands of Ohio residents without safe drinking water.
Unfortunately, many environmentalists still have
no idea that raising animals for food is so incredibly destructive. That’s why informing
the public is crucial.
It’s not just our waterways that are threatened
by animal agriculture. Consider some of these facts:
• It takes 2,500 gallons of
water to produce just one pound of beef.
• Eighty percent of land deforested in the
Amazon is for raising cattle.
• Meat eaters generate twice
the CO2 emissions as vegans.
Luckily, we can all take a stand against environmental
destruction and animal suffering by ditching cruel
and resource-intensive animal products.
Click here to
order your FREE Vegetarian Starter
Guide.