Eat Like You Drive a Prius

I’ve struggled for a while with my role in the food chain. I like meat, and that’s something that I take issue with. I once dated a guy who wrote entire book about meat and how awesome it is. I’ve read tons of books on vegetarian and vegan lifestyles, and I’d say 2/3rds of my cookbooks are vegetarian, yet I still find enjoyment in sinking my teeth into a nice juicy steak or perfectly marinated pork tenderloin. Gosh darn it, I’m conflicted. I’ve gone through copious bouts of vegetarian phases, but they never seem to stick. But, what I’ve gotten from my research and my conflict is that I am happy to live in compromise. The values that pilot me toward a vegetarian diet are those that believe that all creatures deserve to be treated humanly and that our current agriculture practices are destroying our planet. So, to appease my meat eating demons, I try to only buy locally farm raised/free-range/organically fed meat. That way I know that the animal that I’m eating had a life before it was killed, that the life it had could possibly have been easier on it than the life it may have had if we lived in a society where animals roamed free. Free of predators and the stressors of finding food. And that I’m supporting the farmers that fight the good fight and farm on a small scale. Perhaps that’s just my conscious trying to alleviate itself of guilt, but that’s the way I come to terms with my constant struggle between my values and my appetite. Also, the type of meat I buy is crazy-expensive which means I eat meat once maybe twice a week.

Okay, so where am I going with this, right? Well last week I read an article by Mark Bittman (author of How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, who also happens to not be a vegetarian, like me!) which spoke of the global impact of rising meat consumption globally(hmm, that was a bit redundant). According to Bittman, global meat consumption per year has gone from 71 million tons in 1961 to 284 tons in 2007; it is expected to double again by 2050. This raise in meat consumption did not come without cost. Raising more and more livestock for the food supply has turned our agriculture system into an assembly line. Old McDonald’s farm is more likely to look like a warehouse with animals crowded into stalls being forced to eat grain (Grain is not naturally digested by cows. It causes major health problems for them, often resulting in death Because of these health problems “ranchers” chock their cattle full of antibiotics, which are then passed on to you the consumer via their meat, effecting your immune system.)

Large quantities of livestock mean large quantities of feed are needed. Since it’s not possible to have a bazillion cows, pigs and chickens all grazing on lushes green grass, grain crops of soy and corn are in constant demand. Unfortunately, the soil on the earth is meant to rotate crops, that’s how it keeps itself nitrogen rich and ready to grow, grow, grow. Because of the constant need of grain, land is very, very rarely rotated and soil becomes arid and useless after prolonged use. Soil that isn’t growing crops is not adding oxygen back into the environment.

Large quantities of livestock also create large quantities of excrement (poop in laymen’s terms). So, isn’t animal poop fertilizer? Well, not in the quantities in which it’s being produced. Large amounts of excrement create noxious gasses that add to the greenhouse effect. Animal poop is ruining our ozone! In fact, “livestock production generates nearly a fifth of the world’s greenhouse gases—more than transportation.” Also, it seeps into the soil and then into our water supply. Yum!

According to Bittman’s article “Agriculture in the United States—much of which now serves the demand for meat—contributes to nearly three quarters of all water-quality problems in the nation’s rivers and streams.”

There’s a lot more I’m not going to get into, but I suggest that you click the link attached to Bittman’s name above and read the article for yourself. I also suggest reading Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan, it’s goes into a lot of depth about this exact subject. In the meantime, let me leave you with some of the positives from this article. Small changes in your eating habits can make a big difference in the environment. “If Americans were to reduce mean consumption by just 20 percent it would be as if we all switched from a standard sedan—a Camry, say—to the ultra-efficient Prius.” Also, scientists in Israel and Korea are currently working on technology that would convert animal waist (poop!) into electricity. Can you imagine a world powered by poop? There are currently farmers in the US that use pig manure as fuel (see American’s aren’t so bad, we’ve got some pretty creative farmers.) Also, what Bittmman call’s “meat without feet” which is meat created in a laboratory using cultured animal cells. It’s like growing your own steak, hold the cow. Okay, I find that creepy, but I could perhaps be persuaded. It also sounds like it would super-duper expensive, but possibly a good alternative to mass breeding and slaughtering. In the meantime, I will continue to support my local farmers and battle my meat eating demons.