An article opened my eyes to the marine damage caused by the meat industry, which I wanted to share with you.
What are ocean dead zones?
Ocean dead zones are areas of the ocean that become hypoxic with oxygen concentration below 2 milligrams per litre, preventing most organisms' survival.
Excessive nutrient pollution and organic matter (both containing Nitrogen and Phosphorus) from human activities (see diagram) combined with other factors can cause dead zones in a process known as eutrophication. This is where overgrowth of algae occurs and leads to the algae decomposing, depleting ocean oxygen. Climate change accelerates this process as warmer waters contain less oxygen.
The meat industry-ocean dead zones link
Recent findings implicate the meat industry in worsening ocean dead zones. In 2017, the largest dead zone in the Gulf of New Mexico of 8776 square miles, similar in size to the state of New Jersey, was recorded. It was argued that this was a result of manure from animals and fertiliser runoff from animal feed crops. The highest levels of USA nitrate pollution were found to correlate with the location of two major American meat suppliers, Tyson and Smithfield. The meat industry-ocean dead zones link highlights another major impact of meat-heavy diets.
Some action now being taken to minimise impact includes working towards pollution-free feed through nutrient management systems, increasing crop rotations with a greater diversity of grains, and ensuring responsible manure management. Meat suppliers have responded with varying effectiveness however, with America's largest meat supplier, Tyson, failing to adopt goals to reduce pollution and making plans that will increase pollution of heavily-polluted waters.