Animal-Sourced Foods and Livestock

The consumption of animal-sourced foods goes back to humankind's earliest beginnings and has been a vital part of its evolutionary diets. Ancestral intake levels were high in most cases, even if this must have been a function of the ecological context. After consumption dropped dramatically during the agricultural transition to cereal staples, a renewed access to foods from animal origin became possible over time, especially during the era of industrialization. 

Within the post-industrial and urbanized West a new paradigm is unfolding. Whereas meat, dairy, poultry, eggs, fish, and seafood were perceived as precious and desirable in the past, they are now shunned by a small yet increasing number of people as unethical or harmful for health or the planet. Although some concerns are legitimate and need to be addressed, the recent hyping of vegan diets can only be fully understood when taking a closer look at the underlying societal dynamics.