A Tax on Beef // An Understanding of Beef

Black Angus cow grazes on pasture grass in Southeast Idaho.

According to the case presented from the Ethics Bowl Archives, the beef industry causes more greenhouse gases than all transportation combined. This then proposes the question and even demand from some people, places, and organizations that there be a high tax put on all beef and then carry over on all red meat. But in a stark contrast by a study done in 2019 by UC Davis, it reported that cows and other ruminants account for just four percent of greenhouse gases overall with beef cattle making up about two percent of that. The Meat Institute and Texas A&M University reported that transportation accounts for twenty seven percent of all greenhouse gases. This information is the exact opposite of that is being used to persuade the general public to put a tax on beef. So, the real question to be raised as a consumer is who do you trust?

There is constantly varying stories and opinions and news articles circulating the internet at any given time. This makes it very difficult for consumers to know what to believe, what is fact and what is fiction. It also makes it very easy for organizations to play on fear. Consumers can ask themselves if they trust the social media post from a famous celebrity they look up to who is encouraging them to make the transition to a plant-based diet…or…do they trust the cattle rancher that writes a blog about the personal struggles that come from raising beef and showcases the initiatives they are taking to become more sustainable in producing that beef product?. It can be difficult for consumers to sort through this type of propaganda and constant noise from all media outlets. This then leads to another question to ask surrounding this topic; how can information be regulated so that it states facts for the general public to read regarding the agricultural industry?

A quote was used to describe this type of fear marketing and it said “it is easier to sell fear than science”. The topic of climate change, global warming and greenhouse gases all play on human’s fears and especially emotions. Human beings naturally look forward to the future with the hope of it being better and brighter than in years past. They also want to do something that makes them feel like they are doing something to do their part of helping the community and world around them. This is something very admirable about our species. It shows they have a tender and caring side on what they have the opportunity to influence and leave behind in their children’s hands. This then causes very high tensions and emotions when someone feels particularly passionate about something. Facts and truths can be thrown to the wind if it upsets or goes against a person’s very emotional opinion on a specific topic. A way to combat or help influence for truth with this type of behavior is by showcasing the facts and truth in a relatable and easy to connect way, with stories. So, for example, with this topic of a tax on beef a perfect scenario to teach consumers about how beef is produced would be to have the researches and scientists who worked on the study from UC Davis to join forces with real life beef ranchers to share the study’s finding as well as their personal agricultural story about raising beef.

A podcast done by Ag News Daily recently talked about the unique way advertisements are targeted nowadays to show up in social media feeds that are for very specific audiences. On this podcast they were talking about the Beef Quality Assurance ads and how if a person normally eats beef than those type of ads wouldn’t show up in their feeds but if another person doesn’t eat beef or chooses to follow more of the trendy plant-based diet than they would be seeing a high number of these type of ads. This then is another question of how effective are these types of ads and how are consumers able to tell the truth within them?

To answer the questions purposed to this specific topic would be very controversial and vary depending on which kind of opinion a person had about this specific topic.

Overall the important takeaway from this is to always do personal research, don’t rely on people who are not experts on the topic at hand. Another way to help combat the confusion and such different information is to encourage consumers to ask their own questions but point them in the direction of people, places, and organizations that have the facts, not a personal agenda themselves. It is becoming increasingly more important that the human race care about and have a firm knowledge on where and how their food is produced. Agriculturalists and scientists will play a vital role in answering the questions in this specific paper as well as many other questions that always seem to surround the agriculture industry.

*tips ball cap from the tractor seat*