Minecraft wiki entry for Tips_and_tricks, associated text: Passive mobs will spawn very seldom after they have been killed, which means that meat will eventually run short if the player keeps killing animals without breeding them. The same is true for plants. A solution to this is to make farms. The general rule in Minecraft, not just for food but for a variety of other resources, is that a small investment in time and/or resources can get a modest supply, but a larger investment (usually a larger or more automated farm) can get a much more generous supply. Once you have surplus crops, you can also sell them to villagers to earn emeralds.