Animal Agriculture and Welfare Footprints

Synonyms

Agriculture; Animal rights; Animal welfare; Consumer ethics; Food ethics; Labor rights; Meat; Omnivorism; Vegetarianism

Introduction

Agriculture and wild food harvesting impact the welfare of humans and other animals in many ways. The total impact on welfare varies according to the foodstuffs in question as well as the methods of production or harvesting used. Just as different lifestyles have different sized carbon footprints, different diets have different sized welfare footprints or total negative consequences to the welfare of sentient humans and nonhuman animals. Because every diet has a welfare footprint, the salient questions concern the size and moral salience of welfare footprints. This entry surveys the connections between human dietary choices, agriculture and other forms of food procurement, and welfare footprints, particularly as they pertain to nonhuman animals.

The Concept of a Welfare Footprint

In an increasingly globalized, industrialized, and urbanized world,...