Meat vs. Veggies:

re-posted from
http://www.bodytweaking.com/2006/04/18/meat-vs-veggies-facts-and-figures/
all prices 2006 US$, so figure at least double now if the supermarkets around here are any indication

Meat vs. Veggies:

1. Amount of potatoes that can be grown on 1 acre (over 4,000 square meters): 20,000 lbs. (over 9,000 kg)
2. Amount of beef that can be grown on one acre: 165 lbs. (75 kg)
3. The same land to feed 1 “meat-eater” could feed from 20 to up to 150 vegetarians!
4. Amount of protein fed to chicken to produce 1 lbs of chicken: 5 lbs. (1 to 5 ratio!)
5. Amount of protein fed to hogs to produce 1 lbs of hog flesh: 7,5 lbs!
6. Number of people who starve to death yearly: 60 million!
7. Number of people who could be saved if Americans reduced their meat intake by just 10% percent: 60 million! World hunger could be solved by just introducing a meat-free day.

Water:

1. Water needed to make 1 lbs of wheat: 25 gallons (95 liters)
2. Water needed for 1 lbs of meat: 2,500 gallons (9465 liters)
3. Cost of 1 lbs of wheat: $1.50
4. Cost of 1 lbs of beefsteak: $15.40
5. Cost of 1 lbs of beefsteak if the water that is needed for its production wasn’t subsidized: $89

Energy and materials:

1. Time that petroleum reserves would last if everyone ate meat only: 13 years.
2. If everyone was vegetarian: 260 years.
3. Percentage of energy return (1 unit of food energy compared to 1 unit of energy used to produce it) from meat: 34.5% (over 65% of energy loss).
4. Percentage of energy return from plant food: 328%!
5. Raw materials consumed for all purposes for a meat-centered diet: 33%.
6. Raw materials consumed for all purposes for a pure vegetarian diet: 2%.

Health:

1. Frequency of heart attack in US: every 25 seconds.
2. Frequency of death from heart attack in us: every 45 seconds.
3. Heart attack death risk by average American man: 50%
4. Same risk for a pure vegetarian: 4%
5. Same risk for a raw-foodist: 0%
6. By reducing your meat intake by 10% you wouldn’t only help fighting world hunger, but reduce the risk of heart attack by: 9%.
7. By consuming 1 egg a day your blood cholesterol rises by: 12%
8. Increased cholesterol by 12% rises the heart attack risk by: 24%
9. Risk of dying from a disease caused by clogged arteries if you don’t consume saturated fat: only 5%
10. Breast cancer risk of a woman who eats meat daily compared to a woman who eats meat less than once a week: 4 times higher.
11. Ovarian cancer risk of a woman who eats eggs over 3 times a week compared to a woman who eats eggs less than once a week: 3 times higher.
12. Percentage of total pesticides in our diet supplied by meat: 55%
13. By dairy products: 23%
14. By fruits: 4%
15. By grains: 1%
16. Pesticide contamination in breast milk of meat-eating mother compared to a vegetarian mother: 35 times higher.
17. The Meat Board says you don’t have to be concerned about dioxin pesticide in your diet. What they don’t tell is that dioxin is a incredibly potent pesticide: an ounce (28 grams) could kill 10,000,000 people!