Commenting on the Cowspiracy documentary, which explores the environmental impact of the meat industry, a Greenpeace UK spokesperson said:
“Greenpeace encourages initiatives like Cowspiracy that expose the destructive side of the intensive livestock industry and its negative impacts on our planet.
“Intensive animal farming needs large amounts of feed. Feed that competes with land needed to produce food for humans, and which is often grown in fields that were once forests rich with wildlife. Greenpeace’s work on soy and cattle farming in the Amazon rainforest has been addressing this critical issue for over a decade.
“Industrial livestock also produces vast amounts of manure that pollutes soil and water systems while further contributing to the emissions of climate change gases. As part of a number of lifestyle choices everyone can take to reduce their impact on the planet, Greenpeace encourages people to reduce their meat consumption. A plant-based diet is better for our health, for our climate, for our forests, for our rivers and oceans, and for global food security.
"The system-wide solution is ecological livestock which relies on grasslands, pasture and residues for feed. This minimizes waste and helps prevent competition for land that could be used for crops to feed humans directly.”
