Raising animals is not taking food away from humans.   Ottawa—Media attacks on livestock production demonstrate a woeful lack of understanding of modern farming and the role of cattle and others animals in it, says a new study from the Canadian Agri-Food Policy Institute (CAPI). “Those who argue that reducing livestock production would lead to more crops for human consumption do not understand how little of what livestock actually eat could be consumed by humans,” says the study prepared by Al Mussell of the Agri-Food Economic System and Ted Bilyea and Margaret Zafiriou of CAPI. “This is because ruminants convert a much broader range of feeds into milk and meat than any other animal group. For example, grasses provide more than half of all livestock feed, while food industry by-products, such as Dried Distillers Grains (DDGs) from ethanol production and other food production by-products, that would simply be disposed of, are an important source of livestock feed.” Claiming that “meat, especially beef, is an energy inefficient, pollution-causing food product that is worsening global warming due to its GHG emissions,” is rather simplistic, the study said. Such comments demonstrate “a lack of understanding of the role livestock plays in agricultural production systems, such as providing nutrients for the soil, sequestering carbon and protecting wildlife habitat.” Ever since a 2006 report that said meat production was responsible for 18 per cent of GHG emissions globally, a statement since retracted, agriculture has faced a battle setting the record straight, the study said. Doing so “has triggered much needed research with an increasing number of studies beginning to take a more nuanced and less sinister view of meat's role in climate change,” the CAPI study said. Agriculture Canada research showed Canada was among the most efficient producers, the study said. The ability of Canadian and American farmers to produce meat with reduced GHGs is a skill that could be exported to other continents, the study said. A recent analysis of grazing grasslands worldwide found heavy grazing reduced GHG emissions while light or moderate grazing had no effect, the study said. “Grazing lands are generally areas that cannot sustainably support higher agricultural uses such as increased fruit and vegetable production (for reasons such as climate, soils, drainage, slopes, etc.); otherwise they would previously have been converted,” the study said. “In the face of a growing population, a reduction in meat consumption will reduce the use of pasture and grasslands but will add little to the stock of highly productive cropland that can be used for plant-based foods.” On other hand, Canada's commitment to international efforts to reduce GHG emissions when the U.S. isn't in that initiative creates a competitiveness gap that places our beef and other producers “in a precarious position,” the study said. “As price-takers on international markets, producers will not be compensated for the increased costs of Canada's climate change targets through price increases. “Farm groups have been organizing to communicate their concerns about the costs and opposition to certain climate change policies. Hence, a further challenge will be to illustrate and make the benefits of climate change initiatives more tangible to the sector,” the study said. The Canadian beef sector “has made significant efficiency gains and has become one of the lowest emission-intensive producers in the world as a result of research, new breeds, feeding efficiencies and manure management,” the study said. “This is why it is essential that comparable metrics and data are developed to accurately measure agriculture's contribution and role in climate change. This will become particularly important as Canadian producers attempt to market their products with quality attributes that reflect our comparative advantage in GHG emissions efficiency. Industry cooperation at precompetitive levels will be essential for measuring and marketing these attributes.” Alex Binkley is a freelance journalist and writes for domestic and international publications about agriculture, food and transportation issues. He's also the author of two science fiction novels with more in the works.