They were either used by the animal to produce energy or to make some part of its own body that cannot be eaten, such as hair. Milk production by cows is much more efficient. In fact, less than one pound of grain is fed for every pint of milk produced. Imagine yourself sitting in a restaurant in front of an eight- ounce steak and then imagine the room filled with 45 to 50 people with empty bowls in front of them. The unpaid ecological price of that meat is so hefty that Americans, if they aren't careful, could end up eating themselves out of planetary house or home.
Animal farms use mountains of grain.
Nearly 40 percent of the world's total, and more than 70 percent of U.S. production, is fed to livestock, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data. Millions of tons of protein-rich soybean meal rounded out the diet. No other country in the world can afford to feed so much grain to animals. Even if feed grains were given as food aid, hunger might persist because handouts can flood agricultural markets and discourage Third World farmers from planting crops. Jim Oltjen, professor of animal science at the University of California, Davis, estimates that half of the grain and hay fed to American livestock grows on irrigated land.