An Essay on The Consumption of Human

Beings as an Ethical and Practical Means

of Sustainability and Preservation
By Elliot Kryger, in collaboration with Jenkins and the National Society for Human Consumption (NSHC)

Throughout time mankind has struggled to find a sustainable way of securing food. In
ancient times, man hunted animals and gathered plants. Later, we learned how to grow plants
and breed animals. Next, we traded and bartered with other civilizations to get different varieties
of food. Finally, we mass-produced animals and plants, shipping them all over the world to be
butchered. But there is a problem in finding ways to sustain ourselves, we have inadvertently
caused our downfall. The amount of feed and water needed to take care of livestock far
outweighs the amount we could have for ourselves. Roughly 8 billion gallons of water and 21
billion pounds of food are used by humans daily. While 45 billion gallons of water and 135 billion
pounds of feed are used by livestock. This then brings up the question, what is sustainable?
What can we eat to fill our seemingly endless stomachs? These are the questions I hope to
answer in the following essay.

Several options are available to those wishing to not only sustain us as a species but
also help save the planet. One of the most prominent and seemingly logical plans is to become
a purely herbivore species. The idea of veganism is a smart and alluring concept. Not only are
there several researches proving the effectiveness and wise decision of going vegan but also it
helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions into our atmosphere. However researches on the
importance of going vegan generally do not include their stance on a larger issue: Humans are
very resistant to change and somewhat dependant to meat.

Even if we somehow found a way to sustainably provide food for every person on the
planet we would not be able to exponentially increase this number until the ends of time, much
like our population. About 360,000 people are born every day to the 151,600 deaths. These
numbers mean that by 2050 our population will be over 9 billion. If that number keeps increasing
then eventually we will not have enough room to grow food for everyone. This doesnt seem to
pose a problem as of yet but problems have a way of sneaking up and causing issues before
we know it. I propose a simple, and (if done right) method of food development that would
please both meat eaters, environmentalists, and our planet.

We eat Humans. As shocking as this sounds it has several immediate results that are
beneficial and long-term ones that are even more so. A logical person might question the health
aspect of eating human meat, stating that it could cause a dangerous brain disease caused by
deadly prions (called Kuru) there are several easy ways around this. The easiest way to avoid
Kuru is by not consuming neural tissue around the spinal cord and brain. Also, cooking meat
thoroughly would eliminate almost any chance of getting a foodborne illness.

On the topic of ethics, some people are opposed to eating their fellow man. However, we
eat other animals without much thought until we see them slaughtered and penned up. I do not
propose a slaughter and survival-of-the-fittest world. I propose a world where the consumption
of other humans is controlled and heavily regulated. For example, the criteria for devourment
would be very strict, and could look something like the following:
 Code of Devourment:
Volunteers are accepted as long as they are of mental wellness and
have no ulterior motives (escaping prison time, suicide, escaping
debt, etc.)
Death Row inmates and life sentence inmates are eligible based
upon health and crime severity
Terminally ill and elderly peoples are considered not eligible unless
further examined
A person under the age of 18 cannot volunteer or be considered
eligible for consumption.
Note: This is purely an example of what the criteria could state

The math for consuming humans as a source of food boils down to this: The
global average weight for a human is 136.68 pounds. Depending on the weight, fat, and
muscle on a human, the carcass for butchering could be around 50% of a human's base
weight. Theoretically this means one human = 68.34 pounds of meat, whether that be in
organ meat, boneless meat, or other trims. The average american eats around 0.36
pounds of meat a day, which means one person could feed around 190 others for one
day. If we start consuming human meat once the population reaches 9 billion then on
average per year, we would need to butcher many million, if not billion, people every
single year.

This is not sustainable, however the plan is not to survive solely on people. The
vegan lifestyle would still be dominant, But humans would still make it into the food
pyramid. Not only would they make relatively cheap and easy to maintain livestock (Yes,
I suggest people farms) they use significantly less water and food than cattle. Every year
people would be butchered for the meat industry to be maintained which would satisfy
the industry and governments, while keeping population down and allowing for a more
veganized lifestyle. Due to less land being needed to provide for cattle and more land
used to grow sustainable food. This would also satisfy meat-eaters, for they would still
get to fulfill their cravings, albeit on a rather different meat.

In conclusion, the vegan diet is a clever idea, although lacking in practicality. The
concept of cannibalism may seem shocking to some at first but would help wean people
off of meat and reduce our population. It would also open up land for growth of healthy
fruits, grains and vegetables. Cannibalism, when paired with a more plant-focused diet,
provides adequate meat and environmental bonuses, and should be seriously
considered as an alternate method for food production.