50% of land in USA & 50% of the global grain is used for livestock farming
The USDA estimates that 41% – 50% of the arable land in USA is used for livestock feeding [Bloomberg]. Perennial cropland could grow human-friendly grains like wheat, millet, sorghum, ryegrass, or cereal rye which can grow in arid, low fertility soil. It is currently used to grow grains that are being to fed to livestock, but we could use this land could be used to feed people.
The land area used to grow the food Americans actually eat is much smaller—this area when combined comes to about the size of Indiana, Illinois and half of Iowa.
More than a third of the entire corn crop is devoted to ethanol production. Most cropland is used for livestock feed, exports or is left idle to let the land recover. [Bloomberg]
The FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN) estimates that 1/3 to 1/2 of all the grain produced in the world is used to feed livestock.
