Reduce greenhouse gases

By Rebecca Libauskas

Today: Rose enjoying her morning java – with French vanilla non-dairy creamer.

Save our planet – go vegan!! photos: PETA.ORG

Investments in meat made from plants have a more profound impact on the reduction of greenhouse-gas emissions than other green initiatives, according to a recent report from the Boston Consulting Group.

The report found that investing in the production of vegan meat and dairy reduces greenhouse-gas emissions three times more per dollar then investing in eco-friendly cement technology, seven times more than in green buildings and 11 times more than in emission-free vehicles.

As consumers, we can “invest” every time we go grocery shopping, as well as urging lawmakers to use our tax dollars to develop and expand vegan food production. Doing so will not only help mitigate the climate catastrophe but also prevent animals from suffering on factory farms.

So many cookbooks to learn from …

But let’s not delay: A recent UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report says the effects of the changing climate are worse than experts initially thought, and they advise that we take immediate action. The good news is that interest in vegan food is skyrocketing — even meat-eaters are filling their plates with animal-free cuisine.

There are tons of ready-made vegan meals and desserts you can get at any Worcester supermarket and TRADER JOE’S in Shrewsbury! Deelish!

According to Bloomberg, the market for vegan foods will reach $162 billion by 2030. And the investment bank Credit Suisse expects the vegan food industry to grow to $1.4 trillion by 2050. The search term “vegan food near me” increased by 5,000% in 2021 and was categorized as a “breakout search” by Google. But more than just searching, people are opening their wallets at the grocery store.

So who is driving this shift toward planet-friendly food? Here’s a hint: Avocado toast is vegan. Zoomers (members of Gen Z) and millennials drive the demand for vegan food because they tend to value health, mitigating the climate catastrophe, and ethics. Nearly 90% of zoomers, for example, are worried about the environment, and 41% feel that the changing climate is the planet’s most important issue. Millennials are also more health-conscious than the generations that raised them and more likely to seek out nutritious vegan food. Young people also care more about animals — some even choose to adopt animal companions rather than starting a human family.

Imagine a world in which we don’t exploit animals for food. …

Suffering and a brutal death on American factory farms!

The science is getting close, and clean meat, dairy and egg innovations are being developed. One company is producing dairy protein through fermentation, eliminating the need for cows. Another makes cultivated meat from animal cells, creating cruelty-free chicken breasts and beef. The facility is the largest cultivated meat factory in the world, and the company intends for its products to be available for purchase sometime this year.

Try an IMPOSSIBLE BURGER or make “impossible” meatballs for your next spaghetti dinner. Rose has made these meatballs and they’re so tasty!

A comparison study shows that by 2030 — when large-scale commercial production of lab-grown meat may be possible — pound for pound, lab-grown meat could potentially contribute 92% less in greenhouse gases and use 95% less land and 78% less water than conventional beef.

But we don’t have to wait for new products to hit supermarket shelves. Many grocery stores, restaurants and fast-food establishments carry meatless and dairy-free options. There is even a new vegan hard-boiled egg that looks and tastes like the real deal.

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Our current food system is hungry for change, so let’s feed it — by going vegan.

Try one of these “subs” next time you bake!

From PETA.ORG:

In the past, eating green foods for St. Patrick’s Day meant eating green-colored mashed potatoes and cabbage alongside a hunk of ham or corned beef—and a bottomless mug of green beer. Now, there’s more to eating green than just using food coloring. If you want to eat “green”—on St. Paddy’s Day and all year round—you should choose “green” vegan foods. I’m not just talking about spinach, broccoli, and lima beans, either. I’m talking about veggie burgers, pasta primavera, hummus wraps, potato croquettes, vegetable curry, and other tasty vegan foods. Not only are they humane and healthy, they’re also easier on the environment.

Consider the following 17 reasons to ditch the smoked neck and opt for smoky vegan sausage instead:

A Worldwatch Institute report shows that a staggering 51 percent or more of global greenhouse-gas emissions are caused by animal agriculture.

According to National Geographic, the average vegan indirectly consumes nearly 600 gallons of water a day less than someone who eats the typical American diet.

Overall, it takes about 11 times as much fossil fuel to produce a calorie of animal protein as it does to produce a calorie of plant protein.

An Oxford University study suggests that meat-eaters are responsible for almost twice as many dietary greenhouse-gas emissions per day as vegetarians and about two-and-a-half times as many as vegans.

According to the Pew Environment Group, the 523 million chickens raised and killed each year in Delaware and Maryland alone generate enough waste to fill the dome of the U.S. Capitol about 50 times, or almost once a week. The manure is sprayed on fields and often seeps into our waterways.

The 10 million hogs in North Carolina alone produce as much fecal waste in a day as 100 million humans.

A Duke University Medical Center study shows that people living downwind of pig farms are more likely to suffer from mood disturbances, nausea, headaches, respiratory problems, and other health problems.

Farmed animals — and not humans — are fed more than half of the crops grown in the world. It takes 4.5 pounds of grain to make 1 pound of chicken meat, 7.3 pounds of grain to produce 1 pound of pork, and 20 pounds of grain to produce 1 pound of beef.

Vegfam estimates that a 10-acre farm could support 60 people by growing soy, 24 people by growing wheat, or 10 people by growing corn—but only two by raising cattle.

Researchers from UC-Riverside say that cooking just one charbroiled burger causes as much pollution as driving an 18-wheeler for 143 miles.

An Environment America report indicates that Tyson Foods and other chicken producers pollute our waterways more than ExxonMobil, DuPont, and U.S. Steel Corporation combined.

It takes about 85,000 gallons of water to produce a ton of vegetables, but roughly 4 million gallons of water are needed to produce a ton of beef.

Animals raised for food consume the majority of the water in the U.S. Just one pig consumes 21 gallons of drinking water per day, while each cow on a dairy farm drinks as much as 50 gallons a day.

The Environmental Working Group says that every 2.2 pounds of canned tuna produces 13.4 pounds of greenhouse gases.

Scientists at the Smithsonian Institution estimate that seven football fields’ worth of land is bulldozed every minute to create more room for farmed animals and the crops that feed them.

The sheer number of farmed animals killed for food in the U.S. alone—approximately 9 billion cows, pigs, chickens, and turkeys a year—makes it impossible to raise them all on small organic farms.

The United Nations has said that a global shift toward a vegan diet is vital if we’re to alleviate world hunger, conserve fossil fuels, stop forest destruction, and combat climate change.

If you haven’t already stopped eating animal-based foods, why not celebrate St. Patrick’s Day by going truly green? It’s easy. PETA offers free recipes and tips on how to go vegan.

By going vegan, you’ll help save not only the environment but also the lives of many animals. Oh, and if you want to enjoy some green beer on St. Patrick’s Day, there are countless vegan options. It’s fine to get out the food coloring for those.

Happy St. Paddy’s Day!