Pastures grown to feed livestock actually take carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, tying it up in plant material, just as forests do. True, eating too much animal product may increase the risk of heart disease-but this is a problem of the developed world, not the developing world. People in the developing world generally eat less meat than those in the developed world, and the meat they eat is less fatty. Most people in the developing world cannot afford the range of foods and supplements that allow vegetarians in the developed world to create a balanced diet for themselves and their children. Indeed, recent studies from Kenya, Egypt and Mexico show that children who do not get enough meat and milk in their diets may end up physically and mentally compromised.
Livestock play a vital role in the agricultural and rural economies of the developing world.
Not only do they produce food directly, they provide key inputs to crop agriculture. Most farms in the developing world are too small to justify owning or using a tractor, and the alternatives are animal power or human labour. For many smallholder farmers, livestock are the only ready source of cash to buy the inputs they need to increase their crop production-seeds, fertilisers and pesticides. Livestock income also goes towards buying things the farmers cannot make for themselves. And that includes paying for school fees.