July 15, 2008 – Help the environment by eating less meat

This is not a concept that we hear about every day, but those who are well informed about environmental issues already know what I am talking about. You can help to significantly reduce the pressures on the environment by putting less meat on your plate.

How is this possible? It’s a well know fact that agriculture put many pressures on the planet’s environment.

The most important are: (1) destruction of wet lands and forests (shrinking of living environments for many animal species and loss of biodiversity, loss of natural filters for air and water, loss of carbon dioxide sinks) and (2) pollution of rivers and water tables with fertilisers (blue algae) and pesticides.

When it comes to meat, figures vary with the sources, but it takes from 5 to 10 kilograms of grain to produce 1 kilogram of meat. So, to produce that same kilogram of meat, we must use at least 5 to 10 times more cultivation land than to produce one kilogram of wheat or corn.

Therefore, when I choose a healthy diet containing less meat, I am helping to reduce the pressures of agriculture on the environment, because the food I eat requires much less cultivation land.

No need to become a vegetarian to reduce your consumption of meat. It’s important to fix rational objectives and durable habits. For myself, without being radical with it in any circumstances, I chose many months ago to stop eating meat at lunch. This solution works well for me. Some people choose not to eat meat for dinner or for one day in the week.

Think about it. After all, we all share the same planet (and the same global agriculture production system).

Denis Verret