Ethics in meat production

The question of whether animal farming is morally acceptable has been one of the most hotly debated topics in recent decades, among both academics and the public. Animal-sourced foods (ASFs) represent a special case within the food ethics debate as recent positions of environmental movements, based on the growing literature on the impacts (real or presumed) of farmed animals, have merged with long-standing animal rights activists' concerns about whether it is morally correct to raise (and kill) animals for human purposes. In the search for common ethical values (at least in perspective), since ethical rules are the result of a convention, it is preferable to adhere to some general principles (or fixed points), recognizable to all: the value of the human being, his/her right to a healthy diet that must include ASFs, but without neglecting the so-called \“rights\” of the animal to a dignified life, and the need for the planet to survive. This chapter is concerned with answering the following questions: (1) Is meat consumption morally justified? (2) How do beliefs, especially religious beliefs, influence moral attitudes toward meat consumption? (3) Is it morally justified to sacrifice animal life for human needs? (4) Is welfare the right response to animal rights claims? (5) Is meat production environmentally sustainable?