Animal agriculture contributes significantly to climate change, which in turn threatens both wild animal welfare and the ability to maintain farm animal welfare standards.
The relationship between animal agriculture and climate change creates a complex welfare loop. Current animal agriculture contributes to climate change through methane and land-use change. Climate change, in turn, threatens the welfare of billions of wild animals through habitat loss, extreme weather events, and disrupted food availability. It also creates conditions (extreme heat, drought, flooding) that challenge the ability to maintain farm animal welfare standards. The warming planet increases heat stress mortality in farm animals, threatens the wild habitats that support billions of birds and mammals, and creates the conditions for more frequent and severe wildlife welfare crises. Reducing animal agriculture through dietary change addresses both the welfare harms of current production and the long-term welfare threats that climate change poses to all animals.