General News
Cattle flatulence featured on TV tonight
By Janie Gabbett on 5/14/2008 for Meatingplace.com
Allegations that beef is bad for the environment have been around for a long time. Tonight, ABC's World News with Charles Gibson will wave that flag as part of a series on steps ordinary citizens can take to fight climate change.
In a promotion for the show on its Web site, ABC News quoted Woodshole Research Center economist Frank Merry taking aim at the fossil fuels used to make the fertilizer that grows the grain that feeds the cows, particularly in South America where he says beef production accounts for 60 to 80 percent of the deforestation of the Amazon.
Meat processors are not exempt. The story points to the fossil fuel burned to transport livestock to slaughterhouses, process the meat and transport it to the supermarket.
Beyond all of that, the oft-quoted concern about cattle flatulence also is featured. The methane gas passed by cattle is 23 times more potent than carbon dioxide, according to the report.
The feature airs at 6:30 p.m. EDT tonight.