05.06.2024
Sydney – To mark World Environment Day (5 June), People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has launched calling on the Australian government to channel the hundreds of millions of dollars it spends annually on supporting farmers who breed and slaughter animals into funding crop farming and helping those in animal agriculture transition to sustainable and cruelty-free plant farming instead.
Over 700 million animals are slaughtered every year to meet Australia’s appetite for animal flesh – at significant cost to the environment. Over half (54%) of the country’s land is used for raising animals for food, making animal agriculture the leading driver of deforestation in Australia, but animal-derived foods are an extremely inefficient protein source. It takes around 25 calories of grain to produce one calorie of beef, and animal-derived foods provide only 32% of calories consumed by humans. Despite this, Australian state and federal governments continue to spend taxpayer money on promoting meat – like the $6 million spent on Beef Australia’s 2024 event or the funding the government awards .
“This isn’t about opposing farms – it’s about moving beyond harm,” says PETA Campaigns Advisor Mimi Bekhechi. “PETA loves farmers – they grow our grains, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. But humans don’t need animal-derived foods to survive, which means farmers don’t need to kill animals. We encourage all Australians to sign this action alert urging the government to help farmers transition to growing plants, which will spare animals violence and help Australia to avoid the worst effects of the climate catastrophe.”
Contact:
Sascha Camilli Media@peta.org.au
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