Livestock beneficial for developing nations, harmful for developed countries

Washington, December 12 (ANI): A new study has determined that livestock leads to better health in developing countries, but leads to diseases in developed nations.

The study emphasizes that livestock production in developing and developed countries are very different animals.

While rising consumption of meat, milk and eggs is one of the factors in epidemics of obesity and heart disease in developed countries, consumption of meat and milk in developing countries is associated with good rather than bad health.

In poor countries, where most people subsist on poor starchy diets, the study highlights the fact that modest amounts of these foods improve people's nutrition and health, lower mortality rates, and enhance child development.

Furthermore, the new analysis by researchers at the Nairobi-based International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the Center for Collaborative Conservation at Colorado State University, finds that the current environmental risks posed by livestock are driven mainly by the impacts of over-consumption of livestock foods in wealthy countries and rapidly growing demand in emerging economies, particularly in China, Southeast Asia, and Brazil.

"Livestock are a lifeline for hundreds of millions of people, for whom livestock represent one of few options available to improve their incomes and nutrition," said Carlos Sere, director general of ILRI. (ANI)