Animal Agriculture Alliance

Background

The Animal Agriculture Alliance (AAA) is a US-based non-profit organisation that โ€œbrings together farmers, ranchers, veterinarians, animal feed companies, animal health companies, processors, allied associations and others involved in getting food from the farm to our forksโ€, according to its website.1โ€œAbout Page,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/hdfcoย 

Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, and founded in 1987, the Animal Agriculture Alliance works to โ€œconnect key food industry stakeholders to arm them with responses to emerging issuesโ€ and โ€œpromote consumer choice by helping them better understand modern animal agriculture.โ€2โ€œAbout Page,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/hdfcoย 

The AAA monitors consumer, environmental and animal advocacy groups,3โ€œMONITORING ACTIVISM,โ€ Animal Agriculture Alliance. Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/JcReoย  including Greenpeace, Food and Water Watch, Friends of the Earth, and the Natural Resources Defense Council,4โ€œGROUP PROFILE: KEY ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/91kr4 totalling 170 profiles on groups as of 2020.5โ€œANIMAL AGRICULTURE ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/QaZLNย  The organisationโ€™s monitoring activities include sending briefings and alerts to members about critics of the livestock industry6Glenn Greenwald. โ€œNew Documents Reveal How the Animal Agriculture Industry Surveils and Punishes Critics,โ€ย The Intercept, October 10, 2020.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/j3U5mย  and โ€œbooks, movies or television showsโ€ the organisation believes promote animal rights messaging.7โ€œANIMAL AGRICULTURE ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/QaZLN

Stance on Climate Change

At the AAAโ€™s 2021 Virtual Stakeholders Summit, the organisation announced plans to โ€œchange the narrative and position animal agriculture as a solution to reducing our environmental footprint and improving our planet for generations to come.โ€8โ€œRethink methane and change the narrative around animal agriculture and the environment at 2021 Virtual Summit,โ€ย The Fence Post,ย March 29, 2021.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/4AfbGย 

In the AAAโ€™s 2020 Sustainability Impact report, the organisation states: โ€œSome critics claim meat, milk, poultry and eggs can be removed from the diet to save the planet and our health. Claiming a seemingly simple solution as the cure for human and planet health is not only misguided, but irresponsible. […] Mitigating climate change or improving overall human health are complex issues and thus require a robust, multi-faceted approach […].โ€9โ€œSUSTAINABILITY IMPACT REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/9LML3ย 

Livestock emissions

The AAA states that โ€œanimal agriculture is often villainized as a climate change culprit.โ€10โ€œChanging the Narrative: Animal Agriculture as a Path Forward to Climate Neutrality,โ€ย Whova,ย May 5, 2021.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/XwOeZย  The organisation cites figures from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), claiming that โ€œagriculture accounts for a total of 9 percent of U.S. GHG [greenhouse gas] emissions while livestock production is 3.9 percent.โ€ It says that beef production accounts for โ€œ6 percent of global GHG emissions, but approximately 2 percent of U.S. GHG emissions because of the industryโ€™s unparalled [sic] efficiency and dedication to stewardship.โ€11โ€œSUSTAINABILITY IMPACT REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/9LML3ย 

According to a 2021 New York University study, however, the US meat industry โ€œtakes advantage of large overall US emissions and frames emissions as a relative percentage rather than absolute termsโ€ to downplay the industryโ€™s climate footprint.12Oliver Lazarus, Sonali McDermid & Jennifer Jacquet. โ€œThe climate responsibilities of industrial meat and dairy producers,โ€ย Springer Link,ย March 25, 2021.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/j0n9aย  The EPAโ€™s estimate does not factor in land use when calculating agricultureโ€™s share of GHG emissions, which accounts for a large proportion of meat emissions.13โ€œInventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2016 โ€“ Agriculture,โ€ย EPA GOV.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/TsSwKย 

Key Narratives

The Animal Agriculture Alliance promotes a number of narratives to justify the meat industryโ€™s business model. Find out more about how the meat industry is climate-washing its activities in our investigation. And you can read counter-arguments and criticisms of these narratives in our factsheet.

โ€˜Animal agriculture isnโ€™t a serious driver of climate changeโ€™

โ€˜Animal agricultureโ€™s climate impact is exaggeratedโ€™

At the Animal Agriculture Allianceโ€™s 2021 Virtual Stakeholders Summit, the organisation hosted a presentation by air quality scientist Dr Frank Mitloehner from the Department of Animal Science at the University of California, Davis (UCD). According to a description of the event: โ€œBy rethinking methane, UC-Davisโ€™ Frank Mitloehner, PhD, will show that animal agricultureโ€™s impact on global warming has not only been exaggerated, but its ability to capture carbon from the atmosphere is underappreciated.โ€14โ€œChanging the Narrative: Animal Agriculture as a Path Forward to Climate Neutrality,โ€ย Whova,ย May 5, 2021.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/XwOeZ

Prior to the summit, AAAโ€™s president and CEO Kay Johnson Smith stated in an interview with the agricultural newspaper The Fence Post: โ€œDr. Mitloehnerโ€™s research on the relationship between animal agriculture and climate change is truly fascinating. For years, livestock have been targeted and demonized for their methane emissions, and now we have the opportunity to change the narrative and position animal agriculture as a solution to reducing our environmental footprint and improving our planet for generations to come.โ€15โ€œRethink methane and change the narrative around animal agriculture and the environment at 2021 Virtual Summit,โ€ย The Fence Post,ย March 29, 2021.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/4AfbGย 

Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future have criticised Mitloehnerโ€™s research for using โ€œincomplete greenhouse gas emissions statistics to downplay the environmental impacts of animal agricultureโ€ by focusing on enteric fermentation, a digestive process that causes ruminant animals to emit methane, and manure management, while excluding other livestock emissions, such as the production of animal feed and forage and land-use changes.16โ€œA Response to Dr. Frank Mitloehnerโ€™s White Paper, โ€œLivestockโ€™s Contributions to Climate Change: Facts and Fictionโ€,โ€ย Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/UtL4lย 

Matthew Hayek, environmental scientist at New York University, argues the claim that methane can be climate neutral is a case of โ€œcreative accounting.โ€17Jenny Splitter. โ€œCan You Trust a Pro-Beef Professor? Itโ€™s Complicated,โ€ย Undark, March 2, 2021.ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/e4RpWย 

โ€˜US meat is environmentally friendlyโ€™

The organisation states that โ€œanimal agriculture is responsible for just 4% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions.โ€18โ€œCLIMATE, FOOD, FACTS,โ€ย ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/LmMzmย  According to the organisation, โ€œlivestock production in the U.S. is a model for the rest of the world,โ€ asserting that โ€œeach industry has made tremendous improvements in all areas of farming, including environmental sustainability.โ€19โ€œSUSTAINABILITY IMPACT REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/9LML3ย  In 2019, Kay Johnson Smith, president and CEO of the AAA, stated that US farmers are reducing GHG emissions โ€œto record lows.โ€20Alex Matthews-King. โ€œInternational treaty needed to stop โ€˜Big Foodโ€™ industry driving obesity and climate change, report says,โ€ย The Independent,ย January 28, 2019.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/bSwIGย 

A 2021 NYU study argued that the US meat industry โ€œtakes advantage of large overall US emissions and frames emissions as a relative percentage rather than absolute termsโ€ to downplay the industryโ€™s climate footprint.21Oliver Lazarus, Sonali McDermid & Jennifer Jacquet. โ€œThe climate responsibilities of industrial meat and dairy producers,โ€ย Springer Link,ย March 25, 2021.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/j0n9aย  The EPAโ€™s estimate, from which the 4 percent figure is taken, does not factor in land use and land-use change when calculating agricultureโ€™s share of GHG emissions, which account for a large proportion of meat emissions.22โ€œInventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2016 โ€“ Agriculture,โ€ย EPA GOV.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/TsSwKย 

โ€˜Grazing supports biodiversityโ€™

According to the organisation, โ€œsheep grazing is a promising tool for enhancing wildlife habitatsโ€ and โ€œsheep foraging habits help create and maintain biological diversity.โ€23โ€œSUSTAINABILITY IMPACT REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/9LML3ย  The organisation claims that grazing cattle โ€œcan be an important part of regenerating native grasslands in desertified land areasโ€ and โ€œincreases soil richness and encourages plant growth.โ€24โ€œCELL-BASED MEAT, PART 3: ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/VH6g0ย 

However, a 2014 study on the concept of โ€œgrazed ecosystemsโ€, also known as โ€œholistic managementโ€, found that โ€œthe application of HM [holistic management] principles of trampling and intensive foraging are as detrimental to plants, soils, water storage, and plant productivity as are conventional grazing systems.โ€25John Carter et al. โ€œHolistic Management: Misinformation on the Science of Grazed Ecosystems,โ€ย Hindawi,ย April 23, 2014.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/OWeNOย 

โ€˜Livestock convert inedible material into food for human consumptionโ€™

According to the organisation, โ€œ89% of cattle diets are inedible to humansโ€ and โ€œlivestock bring value to sustainable food systems by upcycling plant proteins into higher quality proteins.โ€26โ€œ2020 Virtual Stakeholders Summit Highlights Report,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/fLRClย 

A 2018 Science study estimates that the production of animal-based foods requires 83 percent of the worldโ€™s farmland, yet provides only 37 percent of global protein and 18 percent of global calories.27J. Poore and T. Nemecek. โ€œReducing foodโ€™s environmental impacts through producers and consumers,โ€ย Science, June 1ย  2018.ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/O6jDBย  According to a 2019 study by environmental scientists from Harvard University, transitioning to a more plant-based food production system in the UK has the potential to free up large areas of land currently used for grazing and animal feed production while improving the countryโ€™s carbon footprint and still meeting the populationโ€™s nutrition requirements.28Helen Harwatt and Matthew N. Hayek. โ€œEating Away at Climate Change with Negative Emissions,โ€ย Harvard Law School, April 11, 2019.ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/8aWUrย 

‘Plant-based diets do not solve the problem of climate change’

โ€˜Dietary change is an ineffective climate strategyโ€™

In 2019, the organisation criticised the EAT-Lancet Commission Report on Food, Planet, Health for ignoring โ€œevidence of meat and dairyโ€™s contributions to healthy, sustainable dietsโ€ and claiming that โ€œthe Commissionโ€™s radical recommendations to drastically limit meat and dairy consumption would have serious, negative consequences for the health of people and the planet.โ€29โ€œSTATEMENT ON EAT-LANCET,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/qaIgbย 

In 2018, AAA criticised commercial real estate company WeWork for no longer serving dishes containing meat, claiming that โ€œWeWork could have a much larger impact focusing on using energy-efficient lighting, reducing food waste, recycling and encouraging employees to drive less by using public transportation and carpooling when possible.โ€30โ€œWEWORK GOING VEGETARIAN DOESNโ€™T WORK,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/aciykย 

A 2018 study published in Nature, however, found that reducing meat consumption is crucial to lowering the food systemโ€™s emissions and that โ€œ[i]f socioeconomic changes towards [meat-heavy] Western consumption patterns continue, the environmental pressures of the food system are likely to intensify, and humanity might soon approach the planetary boundaries for global freshwater use, change in land use, and ocean acidification.โ€31Marco Springmann, Michael Clark, Daniel Mason-Dโ€™Croz et al. โ€œOptions for keeping the food system within environmental limits,โ€ย Nature, October 10, 2018.ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/dCJgxย 

โ€˜Less meat and dairy are wasted than fruit and vegetablesโ€™

The organisation states that โ€œglobally, fruits and vegetables are two to three times more likely to be wasted than meat and dairy.โ€32โ€œCLIMATE, FOOD, FACTS,โ€ย ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/LmMzmย 

Studies have found โ€œplant-based diets are also more climate friendly when they are wasted,โ€ however. Researchers from the University of Michigan showed that โ€œfruits and vegetables which comprise 33 percent of food waste [in the U.S.], account for only 8 percent of carbon dioxide emissions,โ€ while animal products โ€œaccount for 33 percent of food waste by mass and 74 percent of carbon dioxide emissions.โ€33Bingli Chai. โ€œWhich Diet Has the Least Environmental Impact on Our Planet? A Systematic Review of Vegan, Vegetarian and Omnivorous Diets,โ€ย Research Gate.ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/GAqJtย 

โ€˜Meat is needed for a healthy diet and to feed the worldโ€™

โ€˜Meat is needed to feed a growing global populationโ€™

The organisation states that โ€œfeeding the world is no easy task, but the animal agriculture industry is up for the challengeโ€ and to โ€œfeed a growing population safely and efficiently […] the entire animal agriculture industry has worked tirelessly to identify areas for improvement.โ€34โ€œSUSTAINABILITY IMPACT REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/9LML3ย 

The AAAโ€™s 2021 annual summit included a talk by Alison Van Eenennaam from the Department of Animal Genomics and Biotechnology at the University of California, Davis. According to the event description, Van Eenennaam would โ€œshare ways to tell the story about how both cell-based and conventional meat producers are working to use science and innovation to address the global protein demand challenge.โ€35โ€œ2021 Virtual Stakeholders Summit,โ€ย Whova.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/jyubtย 

According to the World Resources Institute (WRI), a sustainable development organisation, feeding 10 billion people by 2050 without transitioning to a more plant-based global diet36Tim Searchinger et al. โ€œCREATING A SUSTAINABLE FOOD FUTURE,โ€ย World Resource Institute.ย ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/awSZeย ย  would necessitate the destruction of the worldโ€™s remaining forests and โ€œagriculture alone would produce almost twice the emissions allowable from all human activities.37Damian Carrington. โ€œBeef-eating โ€˜must fall drasticallyโ€™ as world population grows,โ€ย The Guardian, December 5, 2018.ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/Ltffuย 

โ€˜Meat is a vital part of a healthy, balanced dietโ€™

The organisation states that โ€œmeat, poultry, dairy and eggs ARE sustainable food choices that have a role to play in a healthy, balanced diet,โ€38โ€œNEVER FEAR, MEAT WILL STILL BE HERE,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/ZEg09ย  concluding in an internal analysis that meat and dairy provide โ€œunmatched nutrition for healthy bodies, brains and bones.โ€39ALLISON AUBREY. โ€œIf We All Ate Enough Fruits And Vegetables, Thereโ€™d Be Big Shortages,โ€ย Delaware Public Media,ย July 17, 2019.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/f177Tย  In an article celebrating National Nutrition Month, the organisation warned against transitioning to a meat-free diet, noting that โ€œB12 is only found naturally in animal-based products.โ€40โ€œWHY YOU CANโ€™T BEAT MEAT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/t1V8Tย 

Nutrition associations, including the British Nutrition Foundation, approve of meat-free diets.41โ€œPlant-based diets,โ€ย British Nutrition Foundation.ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/Afaf1ย  According to the American Dietetic Association, โ€œappropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases.โ€42Winston J Craig, Ann Reed Mangels and American Dietetic Association.ย โ€œPosition of the American Dietetic Association: vegetarian diets,โ€ย PubMed.Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/JLA9Tย 

โ€˜Innovations in animal agriculture will tackle climate changeโ€™

โ€˜Emissions intensity reduction is a climate solutionโ€™

The organisation asserts that the US livestock industry is โ€œcommitted to continuous improvement and doing more with less.โ€ It says US chicken farmers โ€œdecreased greenhouse gas emissions by 36 percentโ€ from 1965-2010, cattle ranchers โ€œhave reduced their overall carbon footprint by 16 percentโ€ since 1977, and โ€œpig farmers decreased their overall carbon footprint by 7.7 percentโ€ from 1960-2015.43โ€œSUSTAINABILITY IMPACT REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/9LML3ย 

Sustainability non-profits GRAIN and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) argue โ€œthat the large gains in โ€˜efficiencyโ€™ realised by industrial farming in the twentieth century will be hard to repeat without major ecological, social and health impacts.โ€44GRAIN and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP).โ€œEmissions impossible: How big meat and dairy are heating up the planet,โ€ย GRAIN,ย July 18, 2018.ย Archived July 14, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/v0grwย 

โ€˜Technological innovations will cut emissionsโ€™

In its 2020 annual report, the Animal Agriculture Alliance states: โ€œThe topic of responsible and sustainable animal agriculture has received a lot of attention in recent years […]. We help the industry share about how animal agriculture is committed to innovation and advancing sustainable farming methods.โ€45โ€œANIMAL AGRICULTURE ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/QaZLNย  The organisation names anaerobic digesters, improved nutrition and genetics, manure management technologies, precision feed management46โ€œSUSTAINABILITY IMPACT REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/9LML3ย  and feeding seaweed to cows as methods to reduce the environmental impact of livestock production.47โ€œWHAT DO METHANE DIGESTERS, SEAWEED AND FEED ADDITIVES HAVE IN COMMON?,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance,ย March 29, 2021.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/tetgmย 

Environmental campaigners have criticised manure management technologies such as biogas digesters for โ€œsupporting and helping to perpetuate large-scale factory farmingโ€”and in some cases, causing farms to grow in sizeโ€”under the guise of mitigating climate change.โ€48Gosia Wozniacka. โ€œAre Dairy Digesters the Renewable Energy Answer or a โ€˜False Solutionโ€™ to Climate Change?,โ€ย Sentient Media,ย April 24, 2020.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/6oDlDย  And researchers at NYU Department of Environmental Studies and Concordia University regard the benefits of feeding seaweed to cows as limited โ€œboth in its capacity to reduce cowsโ€™ methane emissions and its potential to scale up to the size of the problemโ€, referring to the size and environmental impact of the livestock industry.49JAN DUTKIEWICZ & MATTHEW HAYEKIDEAS. โ€œWant Carbon-Neutral Cows? Algae Isnโ€™t the Answer,โ€ย Wired,ย March 17, 2021.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/KDdUHย 

Funding

In 2020, the organisation declared it received the following proportions of funding from different sectors:50โ€œANIMAL AGRICULTURE ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 15, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/QaZLNย 

  • 27 percent from poultry producers
  • 15 percent from pork producers
  • 14 percent from PR and publishing
  • 11 percent from dairy producers
  • 11 percent from the animal health and nutrition sector
  • 5 percent from the crop and feed sector
  • 5 percent from beef producers
  • 4 percent from multi-species associations
  • 2 percent from individual funders
  • 6 percent from other sources.

During the same year, the organisation launched a programme titled โ€œAnimal Ag Alliesโ€ to โ€œempower farmers, ranchers and practising veterinarians to be outspoken advocates for agriculture online and within their communities.โ€ The programme was sponsored by the Animal Health Institute, Seaboard Foods, the National Turkey Federation, Merck Animal Health, the Institute for Feed Education and Research, the Professional Dairy Producers Foundation, and Zoetis, the worldโ€™s leading producer of animal medicine and vaccinations.51โ€œAnimal Agricultural Alliance launches Animal Ag Allies program,โ€ย National Hog Farmer,ย July 14, 2020.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/H4Vyeย 

The organisationโ€™s 2021 summitโ€™s principal sponsors were the North Carolina Farm Bureau and Mountaire Foods.52โ€œ2021 Virtual Stakeholders Summit,โ€ย Whova.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/jyubtย 

Other sponsors included:

  • The U.S. Poultry & Egg Association
  • Farm Journal
  • WATT Global Media
  • Meatingplace
  • National Pork Producers Council
  • Zoetis
  • Iowa Soybean Association
  • National Cattlemenโ€™s Beef Association (NCBA)
  • Tyson Foods
  • United Soybean Board
  • Merck Animal Health
  • National Turkey Federation
  • Nutrien
  • Boehringer Ingelheim
  • Seaboard Foods
  • Aviagen
  • Hy-Line North America
  • Dairy Farmers of America (DFA)
  • Genus
  • Hendrix Genetics BV
  • C.O.nxt, Inc.
  • Smithfield Foods
  • American Feed Industry Association (AFIA)
  • Pork Checkoff
  • Cargill
  • Diamond V
  • Provimi
  • Midwest Dairy
  • Country Folks
  • Elanco
  • Farm Credit Council
  • National Biodiesel Board
  • Dairymax
  • United Egg Producers
  • American Farm Bureau Federation
  • National Chicken Council
  • Progressive Dairy
  • The National Provisioner
  • Kemin Industries
  • Cobb
  • Protect the Harvest
  • American Veal Association (AVA)
  • Vivayic
  • Trans Ova Genetics53โ€œ2021 Virtual Stakeholders Summit,โ€ย Whova.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/jyubtย 

Lobbying

The AAAโ€™s 2021 annual summit included a presentation by Christian Richter, from The Policy Group, a Washington, DC-based consulting firm, and Elizabeth Rumley, a senior staff attorney from the federally funded National Agricultural Law Center โ€œon how animal agriculture has fared since President Biden took office, challenges to come and how we can take advantage of opportunities to represent animal agriculture in the nationโ€™s capital, at statehouses and during policy discussions at every level.โ€54โ€œ2021 Virtual Stakeholders Summit,โ€ย Whova.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/jyubtย 

In 2020, the organisation signed an open letter urging authorities to refute โ€œmisinformation that tries to manufacture a link between livestock and the spread of Covid-19.โ€ Other signatories of the letter included:55โ€œOpen letter stresses value of animal agriculture,โ€ย Beef Central,ย June 9, 2020.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/jsuGtย 

According to OpenSecrets.org, the Animal Agriculture Alliance financially supported Republican Agriculture Commissioners, a statewide office overseeing animal agriculture, meat inspection, and food safety issues in several US states, in 201656โ€œRepublican Agriculture Commissioners,โ€Open Secrets,August 15, 2016.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/4bBPNย  and the American Farm Bureau in 2013.57โ€œGrants: American Farm Bureau,โ€ย Open Secrets.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/K6YyXย 

Affiliations

As of 2020, the organisationโ€™s Board was composed of the following organisations:58โ€œBoard,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/aSMLWย 

  • American Feed Industry Association – Sarah Novak, Chairman of the Board
  • Cooper Farms – Rerry Wehrkamp, Immediate Past Chairman
  • National Turkey Federation – Joel Brandenberger, Treasurer
  • Alltech – Claire Boudwin
  • American Farm Bureau Federation – Scott Bennett
  • American National CattleWomen, Inc. – Pamela Griffin
  • American Sheep Industry Association – Chase Adams
  • American Veal Association – David Grant
  • C.O.nxt – Laura Moser
  • Dairy Farmers of America – David Darr
  • Dairy Management Inc. – Lisa McComb
  • Elanco Animal Health – Colleen Parr Decker
  • Farm Journal Media – Cliff Becker
  • Genus PIC – Narender Nehra, Ph.d
  • Hy-Line North America – Pete Block
  • Iowa Soybean Association – Aaron Putze
  • Merck Animal Health – Jessica Meisinger, PhD
  • Morning Fresh Farms – Derek Yancey
  • National Cattlemenโ€™s Beef Association – Allison Rivera
  • National Chicken Council – Tom Super
  • National Corn Growers Association – Mike Lefever
  • National Pork Board – Brett Kaysen, PhD
  • National Pork Producers Council – Dallas Hockman
  • New Mexico State University – Robert Hagevoort, PhD
  • North American Meat Institute – Eric Mittenthal
  • Nutrien – Adam Proctor
  • Smithfield – Andy Curliss
  • Texas Cattle Feeders Association – Josh Winegardner
  • United Egg Producers – Chad Gregory
  • United Soybean Board – Charles Cannatella
  • U.S. Poultry and Egg Association – Rafael Rivera
  • Zoetis – Christina Lood

The organisationโ€™s 2021 annual summit featured representatives from a number of organisations and companies, including:59โ€œ2021 Virtual Stakeholders Summit,โ€ย Whova.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/jyubtย 

The organisationโ€™s 2020 summit featured representatives from a number of organisations and companies, including:60โ€œ2020 VIRTUAL STAKEHOLDERS SUMMIT AGENDA,โ€ย Animal Agriculture Alliance.ย Archived July 16, 2021. Archive.ph URL:ย https://archive.ph/jFhJtย 

Other Resources

Resources

Related Profiles

Frank Mitloehner Credentials Postdoctoral Fellow, Texas Tech University, 2000 - 2001โ€œFRANK MITLOEHNER, PHDโ€. CLEAR Center, UC Davis, April 14, 2021. Archived July 1, 2022. Archived version...
Background The Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture (GACSA) was launched in 2014 by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). GACSA describes itself as an โ€œinclusive, voluntary a...
Background Syngenta is an agrochemical company that manufactures pesticides and seeds. It is headquartered in Basel, Switzerland. The company invests US$1.3 billion in research and development ...
Background The National Cattlemenโ€™s Beef Association (NCBA) is a U.S.-based 501(c)(6) trade association which exists โ€œto work to increase profit opportunities for cattle and beef producers by e...