Few people think of the effect of wars on animals; until animals have a bill of rights we all suffer from war. I wrote a short poem on BlueSky recently about this.

Living in a rural area Rowan, the majority of fields lie empty or have crops for animals in them. The cruelty to animals through dairy produce and other means is unbearable to acknowledge my friend! #VeganWorld #Govegan

If you're worried about global warming, eat one less burger than you already do a week/month/year. It'll do way more good than taking a shower so short your pits still reek.

Ultimately, the point of this is to highlight current dairy-meat industry faults. If appeasing a moral compass won't work, perhaps a deep-dive on the global consequences of the cruel and unsustainable industrial practices will help align some of you to at least try and consume less animal products.

None of this means plant-based systems would eliminate conflict.

Wars are driven by politics, power, resources, and history.

But reducing resource intensity, lowering dependence on fragile supply chains, and feeding more people per acre all make food systems more resilient in a turbulent world.

A plant-food system could reduce some geopolitical pressure points.

Feed imports tie many countries to global trade routes & a small number of exporting regions.

When routes are disrupted, food systems become vulnerable.

Producing more food directly for people locally reduces that dependency.

There’s also the land.

Large areas of land around the world are dedicated to grazing or growing feed crops.

Shifting diets toward plants would free significant agricultural land that could be used more flexibly for food production or ecosystem restoration.

Flexibility matters in unstable times.

Livestock also concentrates risk.

Animals need continuous feed deliveries and stable infrastructure.

If supply chains break, animals cannot simply "pause" production - they must keep eating every day.

Crops stored for human consumption are far easier to stockpile and distribute during crises.

That matters during conflict.

Wars disrupt fertilizer, fuel, shipping, and trade routes.

A system that requires fewer inputs per calorie is naturally more stable when those systems are stressed.

Plant foods generally require far less feed, water, and energy than animal products.

A plant-based food system removes a major layer of inefficiency.

Today, huge amounts of crops aren’t eaten by people - they’re grown as animal feed.

When you remove the middle step (animals), the same land and grain can feed far more humans directly.

Plant-based food systems aren’t just about ethics for animals.

They’re also about resilience - feeding more people with fewer resources, fewer chokepoints, and fewer systems that break when the world shakes.

But moments like this also expose a deeper question.

If conflict on the other side of the world can ripple into milk prices and feed shortages… maybe our food system is more fragile than we want to admit.

So when war disrupts supply chains, governments often rush to stabilize industries like dairy and meat.

Public money flows toward keeping that system afloat rather than transforming it.

This is something vegans have been pointing out for years:

A food system built around animals is inherently vulnerable.

It multiplies the resources needed to feed people.

More land.
More grain.
More fuel.

Animal agriculture sits right in the center of that fragility.

Dairy especially depends on huge inputs: feed crops, fertilizer, water, transport, refrigeration, subsidies. It’s a very resource-heavy way to produce calories.

When global systems strain, dairy strains with them.