Michael Pollan, in His Landmark Book the Omnivore's Dilemma, Investigates

Essay

Michael Pollan, in his landmark book The Omnivore's Dilemma, investigates and discusses the practices of meat production in modern, industrialized agriculture in the United States. After his extensive study, he writes that he believes hunting for meat may be the more humane and wise choice. He cites the fact that game animals at least live their lives in a free, uncaged environment, compared with beef cattle that spend much of their lives confined in feedlots, standing in manure and eating grain they are not designed to digest. Additionally, the game animal typically has a relatively quick and painless death.
Discuss this issue. Include in your discussion aspects of feedlots, energy consumed in meat production, and the relative impacts of farming versus hunting on biodiversity.