Questions regarding (3.2.3) The carbon footprint of beef (and other foods)
The video introduction
Around 2008 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considered taxing beef producers
$88 for each cow the owned but hog producers only $22 for each hog they owned. The pigtax is lower than the cow-tax because
a) Cows emit greenhouse gases while pigs do not
b) One pig emits less greenhouse gases than one cow
c) Consumers value a pound of pork more than a pound of beef
If cattle emit 100 tons of methane and 300 tons of carbon dioxide, the carbon footprint is
_____ tons of carbon-dioxide-equivalent.
a) 400
b) 1,800
c) 2,400
d) 3,800
e) 8,900
[True or False?] A carbon tax is an effective policy because it ensures an animal is only
raised if consumers value the food it produces more than the costs of global warming it
causes.
At one point, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a carbon tax of $____
per ton of carbon-dioxide-equivalent emissions.
a) 23
b) 34
c) 38
d) 39
e) 44
What were animal science researchers doing with this cow?
a)
b)
c)
d)
Measuring greenhouse gas emissions from the cow’s mouth
Studying how differences in air quality impact methane emissions due to flatulence
Determining how animal stress impacts greenhouse gas emissions from the cow
Counting the number of times the cow burped
The Article
The report titled Livestock’s Long Shadow suggested that the greenhouse gas emissions from
livestock production was greater than the emissions from ….
a) Building of homes
b) Energy use in homes and business
c) The transportation sector
d) Fossil fuel extraction and processing
e) Vegetable production
After observing errors in Livestock’s Long Shadow animal scientists concluded that, at least for
the U.S., livestock production accounts for ____ of all the man-made greenhouse gas
emissions.
a) 0%
b) 3%
c) 10%
d) 25%
e) 38%
Los Angeles Councilmember Ed Reyes argues that the objective of Meatless Mondays is to
better
a) the environment
b) our health
c) the well-being of animals
d) a and c
e) a, b, and c
Research on the eating habits of UK citizens found that vegan diets were associated with
_____ carbon footprint than / as omnivorous diets.
a) a lower
b) a higher
c) the same
d) None of the above. The study could not reach a conclusion.
[True or False?] Other research found that diets excluding beef usually had a lower carbon
footprint than diets including beef.
[True or False?] Other research found that diets including including pork, chicken, and
turkey—but not beef—don’t necessarily have a higher carbon footprint than vegan diets.
[True or False?] Cows expel methane whenever they flatulate (i.e., fart), and they flatuate
about once a minute.
[Ranking] Below are four different foods. Rank them according to the amount of
greenhouse gases they emit (per pound of retail product), where 1 = most emissions and 4 =
least emissions.
Asparagus
Beef
Chicken
Pork
________
________
________
________
4
1
3
2
[True or False?] The carbon footprint of eggs and milk are lower than that of pork and
chicken.
[True or False?] When environmentalists debate the role of beef in climate change, they tend
to focus on beef’s higher carbon footprint, and on the total amount of carbon the beef
industry is responsible for.
[True or False?] When the beef industry debates the role of beef in climate change, they
tend to focus on how beef’s carbon footprint has declined over time, as well as the fact that
beef production can utilize land ill-suited for crop production.
[True or False?] Gustavus Swift benefitted the environment by paying (out of his personal
income) for creeks and rivers to be cleaned, so in many ways, he was the first
environmentalist.
In the self-interested pursuit of greater efficiency, the beef industry managed to reduce the
carbon footprint of cattle production by ____ between 1977 and 2007.
a) 2%
b) 4%
c) 9%
d) 12%
e) 16%
f) 18%
Cattle production today uses ____ less feed, ____ less land, ____ less water, ____ less fossil
fuels than in 1977.
a) 5%; 15%; 3%; 12%
b) 19%; 33%; 12%; 9%
c) 33%; 33%; 29%; 28%
d) 44%; 39%; 46%; 51%
e) 18%; 30%; 13%; 4%
Researchers believe that, in the future, the carbon footprint of cattle production can be
reduced by ____ through different feed formulations and selective breeding.
a) 25%
b) 50%
c) 3%
d) 58%
e) 12%
[True or False?] At CarbonFund.org, for $240 the average American can purchase enough
offsets to make their entire life for one year carbon-neutral.
The documentary Carbon Nation argues that agriculture can reduce greenhouse gas emissions
substantially by
a) Grazing pigs on pasture instead of cattle
b) Raise chickens for meat in cages instead of pastures
c) Converting cropland to grassland / pasture
d) Converting corn acres to soybean acres
e) Planting perennial instead of annual wheat
The term “grass-fed” beef is misleading because
a) In reality, all beef cattle spend a majority of their life on pasture
b) Cattle cannot really eat grass, but must consume it in the form of hay instead
c) Cattle cannot really eat grass, but instead consume a legume that looks like grass
d) Cattle do not consume nutrients from grass, but only eat grass because it helps their
stomachs digest corn better
According to Jude Capper, unless pastures can sequester considerable amounts of carbon,
grass-fed beef has a higher carbon footprint than conventional beef because
a) Grass-fed cattle take longer to reach slaughter weight
b) Grass-fed cattle require more feed, water, and land to reach slaughter weight
c) Grass-fed cattle utilize breeds of cattle that expel more greenhouse gases
d) a and b
e) a, b, and c
[True or False?] Organic food has a lower carbon footprint.