Tens of millions of people — and millions of acres of farmland — rely on the Colorado River’s water. But as its supply shrinks, these farmers get more water from the river than entire states.
These farms produce alfalfa for animal feed, almost exclusively. We just don’t need the amount of meat that we currently consume, it’s just about the least efficient way to turn water into food. We could just lose these farms entirely and it would just make steak and dairy products a bit more expensive, which they probably should be given the massive environmental impact from producing them.
All valid points in my opinion, I’m just trying to think of what we need to set as goals for California’s farming operations long term. I’m a resident here and I want this place to succeed.
Success could certainly look like cheaper fruits and veggies vs meat and byproducts if the land were guided to being food producing vs feedcrops.
These farms produce alfalfa for animal feed, almost exclusively. We just don’t need the amount of meat that we currently consume, it’s just about the least efficient way to turn water into food. We could just lose these farms entirely and it would just make steak and dairy products a bit more expensive, which they probably should be given the massive environmental impact from producing them.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/sep/12/colorado-drought-water-alfalfa-farmers-conservation
All valid points in my opinion, I’m just trying to think of what we need to set as goals for California’s farming operations long term. I’m a resident here and I want this place to succeed.
Success could certainly look like cheaper fruits and veggies vs meat and byproducts if the land were guided to being food producing vs feedcrops.