Meat Free Monday: Conserving Natural Resources by Going Vegan
- Ashini Modi
- Sep 13, 2020
- 3 min read
Author: Ashini Modi
Editor: Sarah Johnson
With our world’s population growing every day, our planet has witnessed a sizable increase in factory farming. Beef production has more than doubled since 1960 and the production of poultry has increased by a factor of 10. Not only is the scale of our meat industry growing, but the size of the animals produced within these factories is growing too. Due to breeding tactics, the weight of livestock has increased by 20%, and the amount of milk and chicken eggs produced has increased by nearly 30%.
These factory farms need power and the answer to that power is fossil fuels. We must keep in our minds the amount of natural resources/fossil fuels that factory farming depletes. We, the current generation, have a moral duty to make our planet a better place in the future. The more of these non-renewable resources we use today, the less there will be available for our future generations. The overarching concept here is that factory farming has a long production chain -- resources are poured into growing crops for animals, more resources are spilled into growing the animals big and meaty, and then even more resources are depleted in the processing of these animals. In contrast, the production chain for plants is much shorter.
Let’s get even more specific. A report from the Food and Agricultural Organization found that it takes 2.5, 4.7, and 6.3 units of fossil fuels to produce 1 kilogram of poultry, beef, and pork respectively. Factoring in the 70 billion animals that are slaughtered worldwide annually for meat, this is a pretty massive amount of energy. 4.3 trillion units of fossil fuels to be exact. Packaging this meat also takes up a lot of energy. According to a study from Sustainable Table, “Approximately 23 percent of the energy used in our food production system is allocated to processing and packaging food.”
So what can we do to reduce this depletion of our natural resources? Well, first we need to put things into perspective. Almost 50% of the grains produced in the world are fed to the livestock which we will eventually slaughter for meat. But, there are about 800 million people on our planet right now who are suffering from hunger because we don;t have enough food to give them. If we could give that grain to those people in the developing countries instead of shoving it down the stomachs of animals just so that they can go in ours, less people would go hungry every day. If we transition to a more plant-based diet we can save our natural resources from complete depletion and can also save the lives of millions around the world.
Other resources:
Grass-fed milk: https://maplehill.com
Organic/grass-fed yogurt: https://www.stonyfield.com/
Local farm suppliers: Mahaffey Farms, Cotton Street Farms, Sample Farm, Shady Grove, Shreveport Farmers Market
Find your carbon footprint: https://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx
Works Cited
Good, Kate. “Explain Like I'm 5: How Fossil Fuels Are Used to Produce Meat.” One Green Planet, One Green Planet, 29 Oct. 2018, www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/how-fossil-fuels-are-used-to-produce-meat/#:~:text=A report from the Food,for one kilogram of beef.
Grant LingelGrant is the co-founder of Sentient Media. He currently lives in Brazil and has traveled across dozens of countries on assignment. Follow him on Twitter at @grantlingel. “Veganism: 20 Powerful Reasons You Should Go Vegan.” Reporting on Animals, Animal Rights, and Human Choices, 17 Dec. 2019, sentientmedia.org/veganism/.
Newcastle, Jemima WebberContributing Writer |, et al. “How Your Vegan Diet Saves the Planet's Natural Resources.” LIVEKINDLY, 17 Mar. 2020, www.livekindly.co/this-is-why-a-vegan-diet-is-better-for-the-environment/.
Stuart, Ethan. “The Benefits of Veganism on Conservation.” Crimsonian, dovercrimsonian.com/4667/opinion/the-benefits-of-veganism-on-conservation/#:~:text=A vegan is defined as, the prevention of global warming.
Plant-Based Recipe of the Week:
Rigby Bowls (@rigby.bowls) by Sara Oberle
Makes 1 serving (can scale up or down depending on preference)
Salads are super simple and versatile dishes. They can be embellished to cater to any craving. You may have heard of the saying “eat the rainbow.” Well, salads are great ways to achieve this.
Ingredients:
Organic* spring mix
Tessemae’s Organic Green Goddess Dressing or make your own!
½ cup roasted sweet potato
¼ cup chopped mushroom
½ cup broccoli
¼ cup chopped bell pepper
¼ cup tomato
1 TBSP diced red onion
¼ cup sliced carrot
1 TBSP chopped shishito pepper
Avocado
Some sort of high-heat cooking oil (I love avocado oil!)
Cayenne
Cinnamon
Directions:
Set oven to 350°, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss chopped sweet potato with cayenne, cinnamon, and avocado oil. Distribute on a baking sheet, and cook in the oven until desired crispiness. While the sweet potato pieces are roasting, chop other ingredients. Fill a bowl with salad greens and top with veggies, as well as sliced avocado. Drizzle your choice of dressing over the salad. Eat, and enjoy!!
*I recommend using organic ingredients if this is feasible for you. If not, consuming vegetables is still a great aspect of healthy and intuitive eating.
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