Cows to Trees Please!

​Emissions from 13 dairy farms match the entire UK emissions...

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The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) report (USA), says: 

• Emissions from 13 dairy firms match the entire UK emissions
• The growth of giant dairy companies has helped force milk prices below the cost of production for the last decade, causing a crisis in rural livelihoods and requiring taxpayer subsidies to keep farmers afloat.

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Consolidation in the dairy industry saw four out of five dairy farms close in the EU from 1981-2013, and 93% of family farms in dairy closing in the US since the 1970s. “low prices […] creates demand, and it has marketing power, which creates demand. Demand doesn’t just happen by accident.”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/15/emissions-from-13-dairy-firms-match-those-of-entire-uk-says-report

In other words, we are subsidising farmers, to add to the climate crisis. The cows - often locked indoors, don’t look too happy either,  with their giant droopy udders, why must they be given a “prison sentence” ?

The dairy firms' argument is that they are providing cheap protein, but the UN recommends protein from pulses to help with food security.

Yes, we must sometimes subsidise farmers, but surely, we should think about climate impact when we do? Often in the UK cows graze in the UK on poorer soil, so if there were no subsidies for this - then this land would be available for tree cover.

Cows  - subsidies ->  trees + subsidies

My biggest milk guilt is cheese - can anyone recommend what they use in sandwiches instead of cheese, please.