By: Robb Fritz, Homepage Editor
If you're a dedicated carnivore like myself, it's a difficult prospect to give up eating hamburger, steak, pork chops, etc. Trust me, speaking as a one-time vegetarian who caved one summer at the smell of a steak on the barbecue, I know. But the fact remains that probably nothing a person can do on an individual level has as much of a positive impact on the environment as cutting back on the amount of meat they consume.
Meat production puts an incredible strain on the world's land resources -- using up to 30% of the Earth's entire land mass either directly or indirectly -- and actually has more impact in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases it pumps into the air than even petroleum-fueled transportation. When major agri-business is clearing the rainforests (which is itself enormously damaging for the environment) they're doing it largely to make room for meat production. In terms of water use, it takes 2500 gallons of water to produce one pound of meat. And then of course there are the ethical issues -- not to mention dietary and quality considerations -- surrounding the conditions under which most livestock is raised and killed in order to provide the meat consumed worldwide.
You don't have to become a vegetarian to have a positive impact. Any reduction in meat consumption is a move in the right direction. The truth is that we need very little meat in our diets in order to reach our necessary nutritional marks for iron and protein. In fact, increasing the amount of green, leafy vegetables and decreasing meat consumption is guaranteed to have a positive effect not just on the environment but also, more personally, on your health.
Besides limiting the amount of meat you eat, another thing to consider is the source of the meat. Consider supporting farmers who raise animals on natural feed -- for example, grass-fed beef. It costs a bit more but pays back considerably in terms of taste, quality and nutritional value. Also, if it costs more, it becomes more of the occasional luxury it should probably be, as opposed to the commodity on demand that we've come to expect. And in any case, eating more vegetables and less meat is cost-beneficial not just for the planet and your well-being but for your wallet as well.
This just scratches the surface of probably the single most environmentally controversial and impactful factor in our modern lifestyles. There are a lot of resources out there to explore the issue more thoroughly. (Author Michael Pollan has a great page of links for resources: http://www.michaelpollan.com/link.htm). But the simple fact remains, if you want to make a single decision in your life that's good for the environment and good for you at the same time, eat less meat!
If you're a dedicated carnivore like myself, it's a difficult prospect to give up eating hamburger, steak, pork chops, etc. Trust me, speaking as a one-time vegetarian who caved one summer at the smell of a steak on the barbecue, I know. But the fact remains that probably nothing a person can do on an individual level has as much of a positive impact on the environment as cutting back on the amount of meat they consume.
Meat production puts an incredible strain on the world's land resources -- using up to 30% of the Earth's entire land mass either directly or indirectly -- and actually has more impact in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases it pumps into the air than even petroleum-fueled transportation. When major agri-business is clearing the rainforests (which is itself enormously damaging for the environment) they're doing it largely to make room for meat production. In terms of water use, it takes 2500 gallons of water to produce one pound of meat. And then of course there are the ethical issues -- not to mention dietary and quality considerations -- surrounding the conditions under which most livestock is raised and killed in order to provide the meat consumed worldwide.
You don't have to become a vegetarian to have a positive impact. Any reduction in meat consumption is a move in the right direction. The truth is that we need very little meat in our diets in order to reach our necessary nutritional marks for iron and protein. In fact, increasing the amount of green, leafy vegetables and decreasing meat consumption is guaranteed to have a positive effect not just on the environment but also, more personally, on your health.
Besides limiting the amount of meat you eat, another thing to consider is the source of the meat. Consider supporting farmers who raise animals on natural feed -- for example, grass-fed beef. It costs a bit more but pays back considerably in terms of taste, quality and nutritional value. Also, if it costs more, it becomes more of the occasional luxury it should probably be, as opposed to the commodity on demand that we've come to expect. And in any case, eating more vegetables and less meat is cost-beneficial not just for the planet and your well-being but for your wallet as well.
This just scratches the surface of probably the single most environmentally controversial and impactful factor in our modern lifestyles. There are a lot of resources out there to explore the issue more thoroughly. (Author Michael Pollan has a great page of links for resources: http://www.michaelpollan.com/link.htm). But the simple fact remains, if you want to make a single decision in your life that's good for the environment and good for you at the same time, eat less meat!