Intensive livestock farming could raise the risk of new pandemics, researchers have warned.
Intensive livestock farming could raise the risk of new pandemics, researchers have warned.
Industrialised farming is often thought to reduce the risk of zoonotic diseases (those transmitted from animals to humans) because of better control, biosecurity and separation of livestock.
The new study, led by the University of Exeter, examines the effect of social and economic factors – which are often overlooked in traditional assessments.
It finds that the effects of intensifying agriculture “are at best uncertain and at worst may contribute to EID (emerging infectious disease) risk”.
Read more at University of Exeter
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