pls read my ecomodernist manifesto—we could make a massive dent in our planetary crises by reducing our dependence on the two great efficiency sinks in American life: meat and cars. And we can do so in a way that's consistent with growth and democratic principles www.vox.com/future-perfe...

It's not all bad!

What do you think were the biggest wins for animals (on any issue) in 2025?

NEW: Public records show Florida licenses capture of thousands of wild sharks and rays to major aquarium corporations around the world. >2/3 of animals permitted for capture were IUCN-redlisted. 95% of licenses list one contractor — remember this name — Dynasty Marine 🧵

@kennytorrella.bsky.social is the only one covering this very important story! I know Americans really like to eat meat but allowing the meat industry to contribute to the ruin of miracle antibiotics really strikes me as an irrational trade.

What does animal ag use all those antibiotics for? The dairy industry, for ex, uses them to treat mastitis, a terrible condition that arises frequently b/c dairy production is brutal & pushes their bodies to the point of collapse. For that, we're willing to risk the effectiveness of modern medicine?

Antibiotic use on farms rose 16% last year, after having dropped significantly from 2015-2017. This matters. Antibiotics in livestock help drive antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which are a threat to human (and animal) health. @kennytorrella.bsky.social reports. www.vox.com/future-perfe...

At the end of each year, FDA releases data on antibiotics sold for use in livestock. It usually changes a few %. This year, it went up 15.8%. I was shocked & emailed experts/industry groups. Likeliest explanation per a source: industry is not "being good stewards of antibiotics"

"Interventions in the sex lives of animals are so intrusive and ubiquitous that..bestiality laws had to be rewritten to include explicit exceptions for farmers." love this piece by @jandutkiewicz.bsky.social & Gabe newrepublic.com/article/2036...

Protein is a euphemism for meat and dairy. That's why it's people's #1 diet concern - it gives us license to eat more of foods we like. www.numerator.com/resources/bl...

Big news: Poland, the world's second biggest fur producer, banned fur farming this week. www.vox.com/future-perfe...

I wrote about the race to stop octopus farming before it starts. This issue has been covered a fair amount, so I wanted to look at one under-covered aspect of it -- why do so many people who study octopuses, and are fascinated by them, support farming them?

until quite recently, I had never thought much about fish, but now they're all I think about Please read my piece about FISH MINDS! the great fish pain debate, and what it tells us about science and ourselves. gift link in reply!

The meat industry is finally being pushed to answer for years of misleading climate claims. New settlements against Tyson and JBS show that real accountability is possible. @kennytorrella.bsky.social for @vox.com: www.vox.com/future-perfe...

Whoa, JBS buying up a big US cage-free egg producer (that was hit really bad with bird flu earlier this year).

I set out to write a story about the practical ills of salmon farming (and I did), but also found an even bigger story kinda hidden in plain sight: How humanity is speedrunning the domestication of hundreds of aquatic species, and what it means for them.

Bird flu has been a costly disease. The government has spent billions to manage it, including compensating egg and dairy producers for their losses, while consumers have spent an additional $14.5 billion on eggs in 2024 & 2025 alone, according to one estimate. So will we ever get it under control?

Myths about our ancestors' meaty diets animate modern politics and culture wars about food and identity. But the history of human diets tells a different story about food's past and lets us be more rational about its future. @gnrosenberg.bsky.social & I for @vox.com www.vox.com/future-perfe...

Bird flu is back, and outbreaks have already led to the culling of 7.3M farmed birds. The US has effective vaccines, and I wrote about why we don't use them (and why we should): www.vox.com/future-perfe...

Great to see @washingtonpost.com cover cancer rates in the Corn Belt but nitrate pollution is mentioned as an aside while glyphosate is the "center of the controversy." This ignores reporting from @sentientmedia.org @investigatemidwest.bsky.social & others and research from... wapo.st/3Le1yXo

Terrific explanation by @jandutkiewicz.bsky.social in @vox.com of why you don't have to worry about lead in your protein powder. Setting unrealistic target levels for contaminants and then testing stuff and claiming it's unsafe has a long and storied history.

You may have read that your protein supplements are giving you lead poisoning. That's not the case. If you want to have protein shakes, that's fine. But whether you need to and whether they're safely regulated is a different story. My latest for @vox.com. www.vox.com/future-perfe...

There's increasing awareness of the role the animal ag industry plays in climate obstruction, but this new book brings all the peer-reviewed research on the subject together in one place and it's 🤯. drilled.media/podcasts/dri...

At #COP30 next month in Brazil, the animal ag (and broader ag) industry is likely to be as active as the fossil fuel guys obstructing commitments to emissions reductions. I got a crash course on how they work from the great @profsecchi.bsky.social and Kathrin Lauber and terrific new @cssn.org book

Excellent soy primer by @mbolotnikova.bsky.social for @vox.com. "Humans use too much soy, a magnificently productive crop, for perilously unproductive purposes." Soy is an amazing crop! But it's a symptom of our meat addiction. www.vox.com/future-perfe...

"How much soy we produce shouldn’t be a barometer for how well our agriculture sector is doing, but for how unsustainable it is." I wrote for @newrepublic.com that the trade war with China shows we grow too many crops to feed not people but factory-farmed animals. newrepublic.com/article/2014...

USDA enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act just keeps getting worse. According to a new analysis, the (recent) blame could lie with SCOTUS and the Trump admin:

Important reporting from @kennytorrella.bsky.social on how the meat lobby has infiltrated NYC climate week, including sponsoring Regen House and Food Tank events. Full story here: www.vox.com/future-perfe...

The most effective way to avert a climate change catastrophe: People in wealthier countries have to eat more plant-based foods and less red meat, poultry, and dairy.

“For the past 2 decades, scientists have…landed on the same takeaways—esp. that rich countries must shift their diets to be more plant-based. But that message has, with few exceptions, failed to incite action by governments and food companies, or even the environmental movement itself.” #EatLancet

This really hits home, particularly after attending the FAO Sustainable Livestock Transformation conference this week which - over 3 days - remained silent on the issue of overconsumption…

The new EAT-Lancet report is out and I wrote about it -- and also what I saw at Climate Week NYC: An environmental movement still cozying up to Big Meat, and still unafraid to confront scientific consensus on food, agriculture, and livestock.

RIP Jane Goodall. As someone who learned about her work in elementary school, it was pretty cool as an adult to see her in her 80s on stage at the Global Climate Action Summit in 2018, talking about the advantages of eating more plants/less meat for animals, our health, nature, and the climate. 💚

Meat is a leading emissions source – but few outlets report on it, analysis finds

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins gave a glimpse inside the upcoming Dietary Guidelines for Americans, saying the recommendations will boost demand for U.S. beef and whole milk.

Uh, so EDF is now republishing op-eds from a dairy industry publication:

New from me -- the cheapest way to prevent animal cruelty. Gift link here: www.vox.com/future-perfe...

EPA already caved - multiple times - on similar issues in regards to confined livestock production: kicking down the can for air and water (via studies that take forever), and withholding CAFO data that states share by law... What's the lesson? I'd say 1) we need states to pick up the slack...

JBS is the largest meat processor in the United States; its workforce is also highly dependent on refugees and asylum seekers.

In which Jasmine, Mariann, and I talk about that awful NYT article about animal rights activism in Sonoma. Have a listen.

This is a great piece by @kennytorrella.bsky.social - and not just because I am quoted and my work is mentioned! It’s critical to dismantle the false narratives that big ag puts out with great fanfare to hide the reality of consolidation. The “small farm” is a central deception in that narrative.

The ag lobby -- and even govt. regulators! -- argue against farm pollution limits on the basis that the US has "2 million farms" and that it's infeasible to regulate so many farms. But there's a big problem with this talking point: It's just not true. www.vox.com/future-perfe...

This sounds insane to speak out loud, but is a real statistic: The global seafood industry kills at least 1 trillion wild fish every year to supply 1% of the world’s food. www.cambridge.org/core/journal... www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Dairy farms are often portrayed as quaint and bucolic, but they're some of the most dangerous workplaces. This is a heartbreaking story, not uncommon, and also preventable -- if Congress is willing to strengthen labor laws and fund OSHA.

New story from me: FarmKind, a new-ish nonprofit, encourages people to donate to effective animal charities to offset their meat consumption. In other words, it's a "meat offset." The idea makes me a little uncomfortable, but I also think it’s necessary.

Beyond Meat is simplifying and shortening its ingredient lists and launching more "natural" veggie products. Meanwhile, Impossible is leaning into its meatiness. Which approach will win over consumers?

I don't get to write about a lot of good news, but this is a really big deal — the global fur industry has collapsed over the last decade. My rundown on the numbers and how it unfolded: www.vox.com/future-perfe...

Fantastic piece by @kennytorrella.bsky.social on the extensive animal abuse and humanewashing at Fairlife. www.vox.com/future-perfe...

Fairlife, a brand that didn't exist before 2012, is now the 2nd most popular milk in the US. It's a reflection of how dairy manages to continually rebrand & reinvent itself. But the reality behind Fairlife, like all dairy, is an unmitigated horror show www.vox.com/future-perfe...