I'm pro veggie

Well it’s the single best thing you can do for the environment says Victoria Watts.

I’m not saying everyone should be vegetarian, I certainly think people should eat less meat, but what annoys me is when people question the benefits. And contrary to popular myth it’s not all mung beans and salad leaves. Wild mushroom risotto, goats cheese tart – there are endless lush veggie meals on offer.

I find the argument against vegetarianism infuriating. There are no two ways about it: being vegetarian is better than being a meat-eater. It’s better for your health, it’s better for the animals and above all it’s better for the environment and therefore the world you’re living in. I’m not saying everyone should be vegetarian, I certainly think people should eat less meat, but what annoys me is when people question the benefits.

Farmed animals produce more greenhouse gas emissions (18%) than the world’s entire transport system (13.5%). So why on earth, with the whole hoohaa over flying at the moment, does going vegetarian not even get a mention? I think it’s because people see eating meat as a basic right – foreign travel is a luxury but meat is a must. This is crazy talk.

Yes, I know we have sharp teeth and have evolved to be meat eaters, but along the way we’ve also eaten people and lived in caves – do you see the masses doing that now? We don’t have to eat meat, we just want to.

And yes a meaty diet does provide many essential vitamins, but guess what, you can get those from many vegetarian foodstuffs as well. All it takes is a little creativity at the start and then a balanced diet becomes habit. And contrary to popular myth it’s not all mung beans and salad leaves. Wild mushroom risotto, goats cheese tart – there are endless lush veggie meals on offer.

Now many people reading this will think, ah another vegetarian ranting on about their moral superiority. But that’s not it. In truth, I went vegetarian because I’m squeamish – I can’t face the idea of eating something that was alive. But along the way I’ve learnt about the benefits, I’ve felt better, and I feel lucky that I find not eating meat easy. I know it’s not for everyone, but I really wish people would consider eating less of the stuff. Especially if they’re ethically/environmentally conscious.

Here are some of the facts:

- Nitrous oxide is almost 300 times as damaging to the climate as carbon dioxide (CO2) and 65% of the quantity generated by human activity comes from livestock.

- The animals we rear for meat account for 64% of all the ammonia that humans impose on our atmosphere, contributing significantly to acid rain.

- Farmed animal production accounts for 70% of all agricultural land use (30% of the earth’s entire land surface).

- It takes far less water to grow vegetarian food than it does to produce meat.

- Livestock production is responsible for 70% of the Amazon deforestation in Latin America.

Now although there are many more elements to this debate, I think I’ve provided enough food for thought for the time being. Eating vegetarian has been quoted as the single best thing you can do for the environment, so if you’re worrying about your holidays, I suggest you look a little closer to home and start re-considering your level of meat-consumption. Go veggie for a month, eat meat just once a week – do whatever suits you to make a difference. But just don’t start with the ‘meat is my right’ argument. It’s a luxury and should be treated as such.