Livestock and food industry is a vital part of our economy and existence and these two components are responsible for the entire human civilization. However, in a changing world of different dynamics, it would be logical to believe that the current position of Livestock or the food industry would surely change in approach, texture, or in some other form over the next 25 years. It has been a constant changing process and there is no doubt that it would continue to change. Certain elements would change positively and certain things would tend to follow as negative change. Logically, some elements would remain constant over the next 25 years too.
What is not going to change is that so long as mankind is around, food will be consumed. And with days of gathering and hunting being over and never to return, food, whether in the form of crops or livestock, will have to be farmed. Similarly, with land being limited and population growing there will continue to remain an increase in demand for food. It will take more than the next 25 years for mankind to free itself from the clutches of advertisement that advocates one specific type of food and this would be constant all across the globe. Behind this are profiteering mega food corporations. But man will have to learn the hard way that what suits man residing in the tropics is not for the resident of the temperate zones on a regular basis. In the long run, it will cause harm. But till that happens the scenario will remain unchanged with aggressive selling of branded edibles like coca-cola and McDonalds. Additionally, although there is awareness about the impact of agriculture and livestock rearing on the climate and environment it is not likely to change the industry in a big noticeable way for a minimum of 25 years. Last but not least – what will never change are the food habits of the poor.
There have been dramatic changes in the food and agriculture industry and more are in the offering. Farming has entered the high-tech zone with GM food and Agricultural Biotechnology. Agricultural machinery is going through dramatic changes. The controls are in the hands of computers and they are negating any possibilities of human errors. Technology has converted crop growing and animal rearing into mills of production. This trend would continue to grow over the next 25 years without any doubt. In animal rearing, more advances will be made in cross-breeding and cloning. The cloned sheep Dolly has set a trend that will pick up speed next 25 years. Slaughter methods are also sure to improve in the next 25 years. Similarly, there would be better facilities for advanced cold storage. The waste products too would be handled in a proper manner without polluting the environment. The most dramatic change will be the lives and lifestyles of the farmers that will in the next 25 years be the envy of urban folks.
But although change is a fact of life – all change is not good; some will have a negative impact. Concern for artificially grown crops and hybrid animals has been growing. In the next quarter of a century, the winds blowing in favor of organic food will become a storm. Fast food has taken over the globe but within the next two decades or so it will retreat – the branded fast food will be replaced by less harmful local varieties that are in tune with the soil and climate of the locality. The movement towards vegetarianism will gain further ground as health issues will dominate. But with the world in an economic tight spot, automatically the eating of meat and fish will decline as purses will become slimmer. Another blessing in disguise will be the slow return of eating together home-cooked meals. It is cheaper than gorging outside and once the habit returns so too will the blessing of family life. In America, since the recession, cookbooks are selling faster while restaurants are losing out on customers.