A new report by Compassion in World Farming has labeled animal farming as the "world's biggest cause of food waste." The report found that if animal farms stopped feeding grain to farmed animals, the global food system could feed an extra two billion people, freeing up land the size of Mexico for further food production. In the UK alone, more than 50 percent of grain is used to feed farmed animals, wasting 8.3 million tonnes of food annually.

In addition to its inefficiency, animal farming is contributing to the climate crisis, pollution, animal welfare violations, humanitarian issues, antibiotic resistance, disease outbreaks, and high taxes. The report highlights the need for reducing food waste and shifting towards more sustainable and plant-forward diets to prevent unnecessary deaths and create a more just and sustainable food system. Factory farming, in particular, is singled out as a major contributor to these issues and the wasteful use of food resources on a colossal scale.