Center for Food Safety's Rebuttal to Impossible Foods' Statement on Regenerative Ag
Yesterday, Impossible Foods, maker of the plant-based Impossible Burger, issued a statement that regenerative grazing is not a sustainable alternative to factory farming, even going as far as to say that grazing ultimately harms the environment. The company claimed that "whatever the branding—regenerative grazing, holistic grass-fed beef, 'carbon positive grazing'—none are sustainable at scale," despite ample evidence that managed grazing can increase soil organic carbon and improve biodiversity within the ecosystem.
Despite Impossible Foods' baseless claims, it is clear that regenerative grazing is a necessary and healthy alternative to factory farms, especially when it comes to fighting climate change. Well-managed grazing allows for improved soil health, a key component to combating climate change. On-farm grazing also reduces the need for tillage, herbicides, and fertilizers, making our farmlands healthier and more productive in the long term.
"Grasslands and grazing animals have co-evolved together, creating a symbiotic relationship between the animals, ecosystem, and soil microbes," said Rebecca Spector, west coast director at Center for Food Safety. "Well-managed grazing serves as a way to mimic this relationship, which stimulates plant growth, fertilizes the ground, and increases carbon stocks."
CFS has long advocated for policies that establish baseline standards for food safety, animal welfare, and waste management and has employed legal, grassroots, and policy strategies to hold producers accountable for failing to meet those standards. CFS launched the educational website soilsolution.org to highlight farming practices that sequester carbon and help mitigate climate change, in addition to the website EndIndustrialMeat.org which features ways to support eco-friendly, plant-based sources of protein and highlights alternative producers of meat who practice high standards of animal welfare and environmental stewardship in their ranching systems.
