Animals farmed: an egg a day for everyone, avian flu vaccines and dairy cruelty

Welcome to our monthly roundup of the biggest issues in farming and food production, with must-read reports from around the webClimate scientists have issued a warning on the dangers of heat stress for animals and farm workers. Increasing levels of exposure will be harmful for animal health and reduce meat and dairy production in many parts of the world, according to the latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, made up of the world's leading climate scientists. The world's first octopus farm looks set to open in the Canary Islands as government officials carry out an environmental assessment on plans for a facility starting in 2023. Animal rights activists have protested against the plans, with octopuses known to be intelligent and inquisitive as seen in the Netflix film My Octopus Teacher.One egg a day for everyone on the planet is the aim of an initiative to double global egg consumption over the next decade. Mexico and Japan lead the way at present with a per capita consumption of more than 300 eggs a year. Almost all of Japan's egg producers use battery cages as it continues to resist international pressure to improve welfare conditions for chickens.I fully agree that there is a very strong case against factory farming of all animals (not just ruminants) ... that we must find a much more ethical way of slaughtering our animals ... that there is too much meat (and waste) in the modern American diet. However, the evidence suggests that without livestock, our soils will continue to deteriorate. We must be careful not to ban the good ways, just because we want to eliminate the bad ways. Continue reading...