Can a Good Gaian Eat Meat?

By Erik Assadourian, Gaianism

It is foolish to lose the knowledge of animal husbandry and butchering skills. It is only a matter of time when we (in consumer cultures) will need and rely directly on them again. In the meantime, if we choose to eat meat and animal products, we should support those who are caring for their animals humanely and sustainably, who are reintegrating these farming skills and services into our local economies, and who are helping to build or sustain a resilient local food system.

From Sheep to Shawl: Family Fun at UC Elkus Ranch

By Sasha Wirth, Fibershed

Around 300 visitors have come to UC Elkus Ranch in Half Moon Bay for its annual Sheep to Shawl event when the farm gates are opened wide to anyone interested in getting a glimpse of the agrarian life.

Tackling Drought in Kenya: Livestock Insurance Policy to Help Pastoralists Beat Climate Change

By Fiona Imball, Rapid Transition Alliance

Incorporating the views of communities that are often at the bottom of the pyramid, and whose voices are rarely heard in sustainability strategies is key to their success. One such inclusive technology in Kenya is the Index-Based Insurance (IBLI), an innovative tool against drought losses in Kenya that seeks to cushion pastoralist communities from the frequent spates of drought...

Inside the Shearing Shed with Kinkade Shearing

By Marie Hoff, Fibershed

Power dynamics between people, and between people and animals, can be a daunting challenge. But from that challenge emerges a goal: to shear a sheep so that it will be healthy, and so people can make use of the wool that the sheep no longer needs during the summer. 

Unravelling the Science of Agricultural Emissions

By Catherine Broomfield, Sustainable Food Trust

How have we allowed the public debate to conflate 100% plant-based diets with saving the planet? And in so doing, how on earth has the humble cow come to have taken 90% of the flak for global warming?

A Convenient Untruth

By Simon Fairlie, The Land Magazine

Virtually all of these papers and the FAO's figure of 14.5 percent are flawed because they employ a formula for equating the climate impact of methane emissions with that of carbon dioxide— through the unit known as "CO2 equivalent "— which is highly misleading.

Patrick Holden’s Thoughts on a Better Food and Farming System

By Patrick Holden, Sustainable Food Trust

We are causing irreparable damage to the planet: we need to use our food buying power to support producers who are not causing it. It’s an incredibly empowering thing to do as a citizen; to use your money to support a more sustainable food future.

Eating The Platter Clean

By Simon Fairlie, The Land Magazine

These so-called "default" livestock don't compete for food with humans: they are fed on matter that humans can't or won't eat, mostly grass, leaves and waste materials, which they turn into food for humans.

A Fixed Meat Ration is Not the Path to Sustainable Food Systems

By Gunnar Rundgren, Garden Earth

We should focus our interest into the transition to a sustainable and regenerative food and agriculture system. Such a system would exclude or substantially reduce those foods which are wasteful regardless if those are eggs from caged hens or asparagus flown from one side of the globe to the other.

Eating your Values: Five Questions to Ask your Butcher

By Steph Wetherell, Sustainable Food Trust

Many of us would like to shop ethically and in line with our values when it comes to buying meat. But while this might sound like a simple thing to do, in practice it can be a complicated web of labels, terminology and increasing confusion.