Unsustainable Livestock

Industrial livestock production is one of the biggest drivers of climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and water pollution, and it continues to receive massive financial and political support. Governments, development banks, and international institutions pour billions into factory farming, often branding it as “green” or “sustainable” despite its devastating impacts on people and the planet.

The global meat and dairy industry already occupies vast areas of land and consumes the majority of agricultural resources, mostly to grow feed crops like soy and corn, while small-scale, sustainable producers are sidelined. This model drives environmental destruction, undermines food sovereignty, and perpetuates human rights violations, particularly for Indigenous Peoples, rural communities, and women, who often bear the greatest burdens yet receive the least support or recognition.

In the Global South, factory farming is expanding rapidly, often encouraged by foreign investment and trade agreements that prioritise exports over local food security. In Latin America, it is a leading cause of deforestation, while in Africa and Asia, pastoralist and smallholder systems, vital for local resilience, are being displaced. These shifts deepen gender inequalities, as women in agriculture face unequal access to land, resources, and decision-making, and are disproportionately engaged in low-paid or unpaid work.

Despite mounting evidence of its harms, industrial livestock production is still promoted as a path to economic growth and even food security. In reality, it depletes soil, water, and biodiversity, exacerbates climate change, and fuels corporate control of the food system. If current trends continue, emissions from the global food system alone could exceed the limits needed to keep global warming below 1.5°C.

The Global Forest Coalition’s Unsustainable Livestock Campaign works with members and allies worldwide to:

• End harmful subsidies and incentives for factory farming and related feed crop production.
• Redirect public resources toward agroecology, small-scale peasant farming, and pastoralist systems that protect forests, respect animal welfare, and strengthen community rights.
• Expose and challenge the corporate and policy influence that entrenches industrial livestock production.
• Support gender justice by recognising and addressing the specific impacts of industrial livestock on women in all their diversity.
• Promote public awareness and policy change towards healthier, more sustainable, and plant-rich diets.

By confronting the industrial livestock model, we are protecting forests and biodiversity and defending the rights, livelihoods, and food sovereignty of communities around the world.