Aug 20, 2026 Economic Growth, Animal Welfare and the Future of Farming
Marius Gilbert, a geospatial analyst at the University of Brussels, and ten colleagues from around the world have published a paper that tracks how the raising of farmed animals shifts from extensive husbandry to intensive systems as a country’s per capita GDP rises. A summary of the findings, along with several graphs, has recently appeared in a Works In Progress Newsletter that asks, “Will Farm Animals Always Suffer?”
The Works in Progress newsletter article describes a new kind of pig ‘farm’ in China, consisting of a 26-story high-rise tower in Ezhou. Pigs are kept in the tens of thousands on each floor where they are monitored by cameras and fed, watered and moved with mechanical precision. More than a million pigs are born, raised and slaughtered every year without ever setting foot outside. While the pig high-rises being constructed in China are unusual, in countries with average per capita incomes above $30,000, almost all pigs are raised in warehouses.
Rising Prosperity Increases the Demand for Animal Products
Meat consumption also rises as countries get wealthier. In 1961, South Koreans ate an average of 4 kilograms of meat per person per year. By 1979, meat consumption had quintupled, and by 2000 it had increased 10-fold. Today, the average South Korean eats more than 120 kilograms of meat and fish per year. This increase in animal protein has also led to a rise in stature. In 1961, the average South Korean male was five feet three inches tall, whereas today, he is around five feet nine inches tall.
Not all of the developments in agricultural technology and food production have been bad for the planet. Improvements in crop yields have halved the amount of land needed to feed one person, and the rate of global deforestation peaked in 1980 (it has since declined). National forest loss typically reverses when the average country’s per capita GDP falls within the range of $5,000 to $15,000.
Consumer Attitudes and Behavior
Modern consumer behavior and public attitudes also affect animal farming. In wealthy countries, consumers and companies have been shifting away from intensive systems. For example, in egg production, 45% of American, 62% of European and 82% of British laying hens are now housed in cage-free systems thanks to consumer demand. Those changes amount to 100s of millions of hens not confined to battery cages each year. Voters in rich communities (e.g., Switzerland, Massachusetts and California) have elected with resounding majorities to ban battery cages. Sweden did not even need legislation. By 2025, nearly all laying hens in Sweden will be living cage-free.
Challenges Remain
There are still many challenges in how farmed animals are raised and treated. The weight of wild fish caught and consumed annually has plateaued at around 100 million tonnes since the turn of the century. In contrast, intensive rearing of aquatic fish, shrimp and other species has grown to 140 million tonnes per annum and shows no sign of slowing down. Aquaculture systems are not kind to the organisms they raise, and they also negatively impact the environment and wild fish populations.
In addition, concerns have been raised about the food provided to around one billion pet cats and dogs. The environmental pawprint of our pets is considerable. While pet food contains parts of slaughtered animals (animal byproducts) that do not enter the human food system, pet food also contains substantial human-edible animal protein.
The Future
The positive developments in animal agriculture are not yet leading to a decrease in farmed animal suffering. Still, they, along with other new technologies (e.g., in ovo sexing of fertilized eggs), are reducing some animal suffering. It has been noted that Henry Ford helped reduce considerable animal suffering (and overall urban pollution) by developing mass production of motor cars, thereby replacing millions of horses on urban streets. New technologies are leading to major declines (around 70%) in the use of laboratory animals in Western economies. It stands to reason that new technologies, including cultivated meat and alternative plant proteins, will eventually reduce the total suffering experienced by farmed animals. Consumers are already hastening the implementation of those technologies and could, via their buying habits, still do more.