> Raising them in a minimally harsh and 'humane' environment can be an ethical good but that their lives are shortened by our 'harvesting' process is irrelevant, since they exist only due to that need to begin with.
are you saying it's always preferable to create a life, as long as its conditions pass some threshold of being humane?
many would disagree. you might value minimising suffering above maximising happiness, for example.
I'm saying when a species exists in its current form and cannot exist except for the support of its creator species, there is no ethical dilemma in harvesting the results of raising it.
Unless and until we reach 'uplift' level sentience of client species the death of a husbandry animal creates no more ethical conflict than cutting down wheat.
are you saying it's always preferable to create a life, as long as its conditions pass some threshold of being humane?
many would disagree. you might value minimising suffering above maximising happiness, for example.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antinatalism