Linea Directa 200 LEFT COL CAR INSURANCE

PROPERTY SEARCH

DomusVi Ciudad de Murcia residential cross content 1200

Date Published: 13/01/2022

ARCHIVED - The devastating environmental impact of macro-farms in Spain

ARCHIVED ARTICLE

Could manufactured meat be the answer to the problems generated by intensive farming?

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - The devastating environmental impact of macro-farms in Spain

The industrial livestock sector in Spain has created controversy for many years due to its fierce environmental impact, and giant pig farms are once again in the spotlight following comments from the Minister of Consumption, Alberto Garzón, that Spain exports “poor quality” meat that comes from “ill-treated” animals. With widespread claims of animal abuse, contamination of underground water and excessive CO2 generation, many experts point out that this intensive farming is the direct opposite of what traditional, sustainable and environmentally friendly livestock represents.

Pig farms with more than 2,000 head or more than 750 breeding sows with piglets have to be catalogued in the State Register of Pollutant Emissions and Sources (PRTR). There are currently around 3,000 of these facilities in Spain and so-called macro-farms emitted 96,158 tonnes of methane in 2019 alone – that’s 45% of the total emissions from all pig farming in the country.

These set-ups are designed to fatten up the animals until they reach the appropriate weight to be sent to the slaughterhouse, but they leave a wave of destruction in their wake, not least of which is the often cruel treatment and poor living condition of the animals.

The slurry (organic waste produced by the pigs) seeps into the subsoil and consequently gets washed into the aquifers. The material typically contains a high level of nitrates that pollutes the water.

Despite numerous protests throughout Spain last year and the support of Greenpeace, the industry continues to grow. Spain is the world’s third largest pork exporter behind China and the United States and is number one in the EU, and between 2013 and 2019, factory farms were increasing at an unbelievable rate of 20,000 pigs a week.

These macro-farms have also been blamed for the destruction of a huge amount of forest land due to the amount of space needed to grow crops to feed the animals, and deforestation increases CO2 emissions significantly.

It comes as no surprise that the union representing livestock farmers has greatly played down the impact of macro-farms, concluding that in Spain the sector only generates 8% of greenhouse gas emissions, compared to 27% from transport, 19% from industry and 17% from energy generation.

Moreover, the union claims that it “is hypocritical to put the overall emphasis on 2,800 Spanish intensive livestock farms and not on the six million air conditioners that we have operating in Spain in August.”

The unavoidable fact, according to many experts, is that, at a climactic level, food that comes from animals accounts for 45% of the carbon footprint of this country; each person generates 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per year by consuming meat.

To combat this environmental impact, companies like Future Meats are developing a revolutionary meat product that is artificially manufactured without using actual animals. Their meat is made up of natural animal cells without genetic modifications and, unlike plant-based imitation products, it has exactly the same composition as animal meat.

While the company is still a long way off from being able to replicate world-famous Galician beef steaks or a Guijuelo jamón, its overall aim is to reduce our dependency on the kind of intensive farming that is such a cause for concern in Spain.

“Our mission is to create a more sustainable future for generations. Our technology can produce meat on a fraction of the land that is currently used for meat production,” Future Meats claims.

Image 1: Archive

Image 2: Wikimedia commons

Linea Directa Bottom Article M-Z CAR INSURANCE

Sign up for the Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin and get an email with all the week’s news straight to your inbox

Special offer: Subscribe now for 25% off (36.95 euros for 48 Bulletins)