Cockburn, Harry. (2021, August 15). Can Going Vegan Save the World? Retrieved August 15, 2021, from www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/veganism-meat-environmental-impact-diet-b1901628.html.
Can going vegan save the world? Improvements in farming techniques have increased emissions, threatening our world’s environment more everyday. This air pollution and release of toxins is not only directly causing diseases in humans, but also in animals, which are then being eaten. Transitioning to a vegan or overall more plant-based diet would reduce diet-related diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease, certain cancers, and strokes. Meat production alone produces 60 percent of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. The world’s environmental health and human’s health would both benefit greatly from vegan diets.
This article puts a stress on the relationship between meat and dairy consumption and the health of humans and the environment. It can give people a new perspective on their food consumption as it is explained that cutting meat and dairy products out of your own diet can reduce up to 73 percent of your individual carbon footprint from food. The reader can only imagine the impact if everyone took on this diet. I found this article very interesting and found a new perspective on my own food consumption. In a way, we are making ourselves suffer as our own technology and lifestyle is creating the diseases so many of us suffer from. After reading this article, I feel a big responsibility to help reduce our destruction of the environment and reduce diseases our food production is creating and spreading. Although it would be a sacrifice to give up meat and dairy, I understand the impact that it could make. The article also brings up the idea of a vegetarian or pescatarian diet and how much these could save our planet too. It makes me question is my own enjoyment of food worth the destruction of our planet and animals?
Jessica- I’m glad you are questioning your diet. As you pointed it out, eating meat has clear environmental connections, not to mention health considerations. I think veganism is going to be a hard sell for most people, but even just cutting our meat consumption in half would be transformative. There are so many externalized costs that are not included in the price of meat, making it artificially cheap. All that being said, how do we get people to be more mindful of their diets?
Great post… and I can tell you’re taking it personally.
Thank you for your comments and for reading my post. I think that social media is a great way to spread information about diets and even by telling your friends and family, who can go tell their friends and family, we can help spread awareness and get people to be more mindful about their diets.
This post is very interesting. It is common to hear about how being vegan is better for yourself and the environment, but I did not know many actually facts about it. It is interesting how you connect it to yourself.
Thank you for reading my reading my post and being so interested!