Do You Know?

• Average and Total Numbers of Animals Killed to Feed Americans in 2006
  The following information comes from the Farm Animal Reform Movement (FARM):
  
  Chickens
  Total number killed for food: 8,449,959,000
  (8,034,880,000 for meat, 415,080,000 for eggs)
  Average number killed per American meat-eater: 29.0 (27.6 for meat,
  1.4 for eggs)
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 2,258 (2,148 for meat ,
  110 for eggs)
  
  Turkeys
  Total number killed for food: 273,462,000
  Average number consumed per American meat-eater: 0.94
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 73
  
  Pigs
  Total number killed for food: 115,139,000
  Average number consumed per American meat-eater: 0.40
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 31
  
  Steers and Calves
  Total number killed for food: 42,394,000
  Average number consumed per American meat-eater: 0.15
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 11.3
  
  Rabbits
  Total number killed for food: 2.4 million
  Average number consumed per American meat-eater: 0.008
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 0.65
  
  Finfish
  Total number killed for food: 6.6 billion
  Average number consumed per American: 23
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 1,800
  
  Shellfish
  Total number killed for food: 67 billion
  Average number consumed per American: 230
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 18,000
  
  All Animals (Excluding Sea Animals)
  Total number killed for food: 8.9 billion
  Average number consumed per American: 30.5
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 2,374
  
  All Animals (Including Sea Animals)
  Total number killed for food: 83 billion
  Average number consumed per American: 280
  Average number consumed per American lifetime: 22,000
  
  
• Environmental footprint per person (US)

                               Average   Saved by
                        Vegan  American  Going Veg*
  Land (acres)           0.6     3.7       3.1
  Erosion (tons/yr)      3.6     6.3       2.7
  Water (kgal/yr)         73     168        95
  Polluted rivers (ft)   2.6      12       9.4
  Polluted lakes (sq ft) 230    1100       850
  Manure (tons/yr)         0     5.5       5.5
  Feed Grain (lbs/yr)      0    1900      1900
  Energy (gal gas/yr)     24     111        87=20
  Greenhouse gases       0.2     1.9       1.6=20
       (US tons CO2-equivalent/yr)
  
   * Subtractions may appear off due to independent rounding
  
  U.S. Animal Agriculture is responsible for:
  
  LAND USE: 1 billion acres of land. That's 43% of all U.S. land, and 83% 
  of U.S. agricultural land.
  CROPS: 560 billion pounds of grain a year fed to U.S. livestock, enough 
  to feed 840 million people.
  SOIL EROSION: 2 trillion pounds a year.
  ENERGY: The energy equivalent of burning 26 billion gallons of gas a 
  year.
  GREENHOUSE GAS: Emissions equivalent to 1 trillion pounds of CO2 a year.
  EXCREMENT: 9 billion pounds a year, or as much in 3 days as produced by 
  the U.S. human population in a year.
  WATER USE: 35 trillion gallons a year, more than half of all US water 
  use, enough for every American to take 26 showers a day.
  WATER POLLUTION: 570,000 miles of U.S. streams and rivers and 6 million 
  acres of U.S. lakes and reservoirs are polluted due to animal 
  agriculture, comprising 15% of all streams, rivers, lakes, and 
  reservoirs.  

• Origin of the Word "Vegetarian"
  The word vegetarian, coined by the founders of the British Vegetarian Society in 1842, comes from the Latin word vegetus, meaning "whole, sound, fresh, or lively," as in homo vegetus-a mentally and physically vigorous person. The original meaning of the word implies a balanced philosophical and moral sense of life, a lot more than just a diet of vegetables and fruits.
  
  
• Origin of the Word "Vegan"
  The word vegan pronounced /ˈviːgən/ [vee-gun], was originally derived from vegetarian in 1944 when Elsie Shrigley and Donald Watson, frustrated that the term "vegetarianism" had come to include the eating of dairy products, founded the UK Vegan Society. "Vegan", which they saw as "the beginning and end of vegetarian", started and ended with the first three and last two letters of vegetarian.
  
  
• Estate Planning For Pets
  Summary from the site: This web site is devoted to providing a broad-based information resource for pet owners, and the professionals who assist them, in estate planning for their pets. All too often, pet owners encounter professionals who are directly or indirectly dismissive of their desires to make sure their pets receive adequate care. The underlying assumption behind this web site is that the reader takes the issue of estate planning for pets seriously.
  
  
• How to Write an Effective Letter
  A well-thought out and polite letter will carry much more weight than an hastily written, angry letter. When writing letters to the media or court offices, here are some guidelines to keep in mind...
  
  
• Hitler Was Not A Vegetarian
  New York Times corrects article on Hitler and refutes longstanding myth that Hitler was a vegetarian.
  
  

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