"Chickens actually evolved as a jungle species"
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/tree-range-c...
I think I once saw something similar about cattle but I cannot find any reference.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/tree-range-c...
I think I once saw something similar about cattle but I cannot find any reference.
Though that might be true, and despite it working for a small community - the scale of meat production required to satisfy the world's demands today can't be achieved through forest-raised chickens or cattle.
The price of meat would have to skyrocket and/or the consumption of it would have to dramatically decrease. Both of those would be progress from a climate change and environmental perspective, but from the perspective of global meat consumer expectations, it would be a serious regression. Few people want to go back to pre-industrial diet (mostly grains, greens, and a very small amount of meat).
That's why plant based meat substitutes are such a big deal - they might be one of the few ways we can thread this needle.