Antibiotic Use: Feed Additives vs. Human Medicine
Externalitie
s• Not included in retail price or in
analyses of productivity
• Externalities include:
– Depletion of resources—e.g., fossil fuel, water, soil, and biodiversity
– Pollution of resources by the products of fuel combustion, pesticides and fertilizers
– Economic, social and health costs to communities—e.g., lost property values, lost QALYs
• External costs seldom accounted for in the food’s price
Horizontal gene transfer
from Fuyura, Nature
Reviews Microbiology,
2006
Why do processed foods cost less than healthy foods?
Global Hunger &
Malnutrition
GHG Emissions from Food
Antibiotic Use: Feed
Additives vs. Human
Medicine
Produce Contamination and Human Illness
• 76 million cases of foodborne illness in
the U.S. per year (Mead et al., 1999)
• Foodborne illness associated with
produce is increasing over time
Environmental
Impacts• Water consumed at unsustainable rates
• Synthetic chemical pesticides and fertilizers pollute soil, water, and air
• Soil eroding much faster than it can be replenished
• Monocultures erode biodiversity among both plants and animals
Plant-Based Diets vs. Diets
with Animal Protein
A grain-based diet could feed
…
… 6.2 billion
people
An ―American-style‖ diet high in
animal protein could feed …
… 2.5 billion
people… 3.5–4 billion
people
… 9.5–10 billion
people
Global Meat Consumption
82% Increase Since 1961
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
U.S. Meat
Consumption Growth
Continues
*Data for 2005 is an estimate; data for 2006-2007 are
projections
^Excluding veal
Source: USDA, Economic Research Service
Meat Consumption in AmericaMeat consumption comparison
(pounds per person per year)
The link between diet and health
Diets high in meat and saturated fat increase our risk for heart disease, stroke, cancer and
diabetes.
Diets high in
fruit, vegetables, whole
grains, beans and low-fat dairy
foods help prevent these same
diseases.
Typical American meal
high in fat and saturated
fat
Healthy, low-fat meal
Produce Contamination and Human Illness
• Approx. 48 million cases of foodborne
illness in the U.S. per year (CDC
estimates)
• Foodborne illness associated with
produce is increasing over time
0
75
150
225
300
1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2002 2004 2006*
U.S. Per Capita Meat Consumption 1950 - 2007*
Reta
il cu
t equiv
./lb
. per
pers
on
*Data for 2005 is an estimate; data for 2006-2007 are projections^Excluding vealSource: USDA, Economic Research Service
Meat Consumption Continues to Increase in US
Total
ChickenBeef^PorkTurkey
Veal