Monday, April 23 was “Meatless Monday” at Victor’s in Ondine. The event, part of campus-wide Earth Week activities, was meant to highlight how simply cutting meat out of your diet for one day a week greatly reduces the production impact on our environment.
Monday, April 23 was “Meatless Monday” at Victor’s in Ondine. The event, part of campus-wide Earth Week activities, was meant to highlight how simply cutting meat out of your diet for one day a week greatly reduces the production impact on our environment.
Factory farms and the industrialization of animal slaughter have been identified as major players in environmental pollution, the destruction of ecosystems and climate change in the U.S. and across the world.
Feeding massive amounts of grain and water to factory farm animals and then killing them and processing, transporting and storing their flesh is both extremely energy-intensive and produces devastating amounts of harmful waste. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, this incredibly unsustainable meat industry is “one of the most significant contributors to today’s most serious environmental problems.”
Carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide emissions together cause the vast majority of dramatic global climate change effects. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals reports that “raising animals for food is one of the largest sources of carbon dioxide and the single largest source of both methane and nitrous oxide emissions.”
According to the Environmental Defense Fund, a nonprofit environmental advocacy group, if every American skipped one meal of chicken per week and substituted vegetarian foods instead, the reduction of carbon dioxide released would be the same as taking more than 500,000 cars off U.S. roads.
Similarly, a University of Chicago study found that a single American eases the environmental burden of greenhouse gas emissions 50 percent more by adhering to a vegan diet for a year than by driving a hybrid car for a year (one and a half tons versus one ton, respectively).
An enormous amount of feed is required to raise the massive herds of livestock on factory farms that support our primarily meat-based diet. A study sponsored by the EDF found that it takes up to 16 pounds of grain to produce just one pound of meat. Cornell University researchers calculated that the U.S. could feed 800 million people with the amount of grain that our livestock currently eat. The unsustainable farming practices used to meet this demand, as well as the destruction of vast acres of forests to make space to grow the crops, are the largest causes of agricultural land degradation in the U.S.
Exorbitant amounts of water are also needed to grow the crops used to feed these animals as well as what the animals need for drinking. The EDF found that it takes more than 2,400 gallons of water to produce one pound of meat, while growing one pound of wheat for human consumption requires only 25 gallons.
It’s clear that industrial factory farms are now a major environmental concern. They contribute on a massive scale to air pollution, climate change, land degradation, energy use, deforestation and biodiversity decline. But what can we do about it?
Environmental vegetarianism is the practice of vegetarianism or veganism based on the idea that industrial meat production is a primary factor in worldwide pollution and is eviscerating our natural resources.
It is a relatively simple way for an individual to take part in the effort to preserve our planet for future generations. The official handbook for Live Earth, the program of benefit concerts aimed at raising environmental awareness (developed in partnership with Al Gore), states that not eating meat is the “single most effective thing you can do to reduce your impact on climate change.”
While adopting a vegetarian or vegan diet is best, it is not entirely necessary. As “Meatless Monday” demonstrated, even a modest reduction in meat consumption in industrialized societies would substantially reduce pollution and the burden on Earth’s natural resources. I would encourage everyone uncomfortable with the idea of a major dietary shift to at least maintain their own ongoing versions of “Meatless Monday,” perhaps by setting aside a single day of the week—every week—to not eat meat.
I’ve personally been following a vegetarian diet for a few months now (due to both environmental and health concerns), and it is nowhere near as hard as I imagined it would be. At first I thought I’d miss meat and fish, which made up the bulk of the food that I normally ate, but I’ve since learned to love other things.
Remember that being vegetarian or vegan doesn’t mean that one only eats vegetables. Breads, pasta, potatoes, etc. are all still on the table, although maintaining a balanced diet is important. In the end, it doesn’t matter what food items you actually eat as long as you’re getting enough of the good things (nutrients) your body needs, and not too much of the bad stuff. Luckily there’s nothing good in beef, pork, chicken, fish, or any other meat that can’t also be found in a non-meat counterpart.
We’re far past the point where those in a position to do anything—even on the individual level—about the state of the planet’s ecosystems and the depletion of natural resources can easily shirk responsibility and concern. The Earth is our home, and whether it’s cutting out meat for one day a week, seven days a week or doing something entirely different, everyone should be contributing, somehow, to cleaning it up.
