Choosing to eat less meat is one of the simplest and yet most powerful actions that we can take right now that will have positive, lasting impacts on our lives, world social equity and the natural environment. 

World meat production is one of the most damaging industries to the natural environment.  Indeed, accounting for all factors, livestock production is responsible for an incredible 18 percent of the world’s total greenhouse gases, reports the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization. That’s more than the emissions of all the world’s cars, buses, planes, and trains combined!

Why is this so?

Much of the world’s grain actually does not go to feeding people, but feeding cattle.  When we eat high on the food chain (eating meat), we eat not only the meat, but all of the grain that the animal consumed to stay alive.  This extra food took lots of land and resources to grow and could have otherwise been used as wildlife habitat or to feed more of the world’s hungry:  A vegetarian requires 1/6th of the land required to feed an average meat eater.

Further, as the global demand for meat continues to grow, more developing countries are encouraged to change natural land or farming land over to grazing, which has become one of the primary causes for the clearing of rainforest and the destruction of otherwise excellent farmland (by trampling and over grazing).  As much livestock production today is industrial, it is heavily dependant on resources such as fossil fuels, pesticides and antibiotics, grain and water.  Livestock farms are among the single most polluting sources for many of the world’s rivers.  In addition to all of this, livestock farts (which contain a high level of methane) are actually a major contributor to total green house gas emissions.

This is just a small snippet of the overall impacts of meat production; the list goes on and on.  Of course, we do not see this when we buy our meat from the store.  If beef was accurately labelled we could see that a single kilogram (2.2 pounds) actually represents:

• 13 – 26,000 gallons of water
• 5,900 joules of energy
• 319 lbs of top soil
• 88 lbs of manure
• 22 lbs of CO2
• 10kg (22 lbs) of grain
• 200 mg of antibiotics and pesticides

Even giving up meat for a few days a week can have a tremendous impact on the natural environment (not to mention your wallet and your health:  many meats are high in saturated fats and cholesterol as well as harmful chemicals).

Importantly… this need not to be seen as a sacrifice!!  On the contrary, reducing meat from your diet can be an opportunity to explore the literally thousands of fruits, vegetables, grains and herbs that exist and can satisfy the proteins, vitamins and minerals that you need to live a healthy lifestyle.  Combine this pledge with pledge number _____ (Eat (And Drink) As Local As Possible) for a truly powerful commitment for sustainability and resilience!