What will happen with dairy farmers if everyone goes vegan?

Upton Sinclair, the famous American author, once said: “It is difficult to get a man to understand something, when his salary depends on his not understanding it.”

Those words deeply resonate with farmers for whom rearing animals provides their livelihood, but also takes a toll on the environment and animals’ welfare.

The question “What will happen with all the farmers if everyone stopped eating meat?” is commonly asked as a counter argument against veganism. According to a recent Oxford study, world’s food-related emissions would drop by 70% by 2050 if we all went vegan. But we’ve been farming and eating livestock for around 10,000 years, so everyone adopting a plant-based diet overnight is a scenario almost impossible to imagine, because meat is more than just protein – it is related to our cultural identity, traditions and livelihoods.

However, if more and more people start reducing their meat and dairy consumption farmers will have to think of ways to adapt their business. Truth be told, farmers can only move away from animal farming if they are offered another viable income. One such option is managing the farmland differently and transitioning to growing crops.

In the radio package below, you will hear the story of Jay and Katja Wilde, two dairy farmers from Derbyshire who could no longer stand the thought of sending their animals to slaughter and contributing to global warming. Jay is the first farmer in the UK to trade beef farming for sustainable organic vegan farming. He sent his herd to the Norfolk Hillside Animal Sanctuary and is now producing oat milk on his farm. His extraordinary story was featured in a documentary short called 73 Cows which won BAFTA in 2019 for British Short Film.

Ethel is getting a good hug from Jay, PHOTO CREDIT: FACEBOOK

In the following radio package, you will also find out more about the misleading labelling on animal foods in supermarket such as “humane farming” , “mindful killing” or “ethical butchery”, which are often used as a marketing trick to make consumers feel guilty-free when buying those products.

Click on the play button to listen to the radio package.