Animal Ag’s Climate Denial and Bizarre PR Tactics | Rising Anxieties

This week on Rising Anxieties, Mariann Sullivan dives headfirst into the media’s convenient climate amnesia, where apparently animal agriculture’s massive emissions are just too spicy for mainstream coverage. A mere 3.8% of climate articles dare mention meat production—shocking absolutely no one who’s been paying attention. Meanwhile, the agricultural industry clutches its pearls at being called out, with one writer genuinely suggesting farmers are being unfairly “scapegoated.” Yes, really. The episode rounds out with a peek into the dairy industry’s labor woes (turns out people don’t want to work in dangerous conditions for terrible pay—who knew?) and a listeria outbreak mysteriously attributed to “pasta” despite chicken being the obvious culprit. The mental gymnastics are truly Olympic-level.

• New analysis reveals less than 4% of climate news stories mention animal agriculture despite it contributing approximately 60% of food sector emissions
• Agricultural industry pushback claims farming is unfairly scapegoated for environmental issues while downplaying its significant climate impact
• Dairy industry faces labor shortages as workers reject demanding conditions, leading to increased push for immigrant labor solutions
• Deadly listeria outbreak linked to prepared pasta meals containing chicken has caused 20 illnesses, 19 hospitalizations, 4 deaths, and 1 fetal loss

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