Poultry To Plant-Based: Animal Farmers Are Now Working With Vegans To Get Out Of The Meat Business
Mercy For Animals’ new initiative, a project called Transfarmation, aims to help farmers looking to transition from livestock production to crops used for plant-based products.
JENNY SPLITTER: ‘There is a small but growing movement of farmers looking to get out of meat to take advantage of the new plant-based economy, an industry some experts say could be worth $85 billion by the year 2030… The movement is still quite small, admits Leah Garcés, president of the animal advocacy group Mercy For Animals, but she is hoping to attract more livestock producers soon with the launch of Mercy’s new initiative, a project called Transfarmation. The aim, according to the project’s website, is to help farmers looking to transition from livestock production to “crops used for plant-based products”…
There are other farmers growing crops like mushrooms and hydroponic lettuce, for example, crops that are well-suited for the giant warehouses these farmers once used to grow poultry. Transfarmation is also planning a conference in the next few months aimed at bringing together the experts and farmers working in this area… There are similar efforts underway in other parts of the animal protein business, too. Miyoko’s Creamery, a vegan dairy company based in Fairfax, California, is partnering with the non-profit organization Farm Sanctuary to help California dairy farmers looking to transition to a plant-based operation…
Garcés, a longtime animal rights activist who previously worked as a journalist exposing abuses in the poultry industry, says “Underpinning all of this is changing the narrative about what it means to end factory farming,” a term some farmers say has unfair negative connotations. “It’s not about taking away choices,” argues Garcés in defense of the efforts underway at Transfarmation. “It’s about actually giving freedom back to farmers to create a truly compassionate food system”.’ SOURCE…
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