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 animal source foods became possible over time, especially during the era of industrialization. It is within the post-industrial and urbanized West that a new paradigm is now unfolding. Whereas animal source foods were historically perceived as precious and desirable, 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, this trend can only be fully understood when taking a closer look at the underlying societal dynamics.

What is the traditional share of animal-sourced foods in diets?

Paleolithic diets: meat, animal fat, and hunter-gatherers

Paleolithic diets: meat, animal fat, and hunter-gatherers

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Historical diets: farming from the Neolithic to Modernity

Historical diets: farming from the Neolithic to Modernity

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Contemporary diets: the post-industrial West and the Global South

Contemporary diets: the post-industrial West and the Global South

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Why have we arrived at a moment of crisis and doubt?

The diet as belief system: dietary evangelism and religious beliefs

The diet as belief system: dietary evangelism and religious beliefs

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Dietary discourse: the animal/plant divide in the post-truth era

Dietary discourse: the animal/plant divide in the post-truth era

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The influence of anti-livestock agendas on society

The influence of anti-livestock agendas on society

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The future of diets: what has been planned for us?

The Great Food Transformation

The Great Food Transformation

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'Plant-based' dietary interventionism

'Plant-based' dietary interventionism

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'Food from factories'

'Food from factories'

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