Herbivores Eating Herbivores: Food Crisis Fixed

This is a very short interesting article from a popular BBC news program, Newsnight. It doesn't offer much in the way of conclusions, but I like that its encouraging the talk.

"'The best solution would be for us all to become vegetarians'.
So suggested the head of the UN climate agency, Yvo de Boer, who is attending UN-led climate talks in Germany this week. He was responding to criticism that measures to tackle climate change are partly to blame for the rise in food and energy costs. Carbon-cutting biofuels, for example, use food crops to make alternatives to gasoline.

Meanwhile, Patrick Wall, chairman of the European Food Safety Authority, has questioned whether it is 'morally or ethically correct' to be feeding grain to animals while people starve. Speaking to the Times, he argued that it's time to end the EU ban on the use of animal remains to feed pigs and chickens. Lifting the ban would allow grain to be diverted to millions of starving people.

And the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation, hosting a much publicised summit in Rome this week, has warned of global catastrophe unless food reaches parts of the world where it is needed most.

So, does the global food crisis demand a radical rethink of how we distribute food? Should we worry less about feeding our animals and prioritise getting grain to people suffering food shortages - even if that affects the availability of meat?"

I posted a little while ago about my thoughts on universal vegetarianism, and now I've had a new thought. If there was some kind of global vegetarian campaign, it shouldn't be in the countries that are suffering the most from the food shortages. They should be able to eat whatever they want because their nutritional concerns are more immediate. If anyone should have to sacrifice meat consumption, it us. And by us I mean, America. I'm talking about meat reduction.

But what if we stop feeding the animals actual food, and start feeding them left over dead animals like that guy in the article suggests? Um, ew. That just causes all kinds of health concerns and ah...EW!

You can't have your pig-fed chicken and eat it too, I'm afraid. (Ba-dum ching!) Its just not that easy. The answer isn't going vegetarian completely. Just going vegetarian more.

Additionally, check out the Compassion in World Farming website and their "Eat Less Meat" Campaign.

The Inevitable

It was bound to happen wasn't it? Delving into the whole green life thing, it was almost certain I'd start experimenting with vegetarianism. Lori, I blame you for introducing me to the wikipedia article on environmental vegetarianism.

Basically, I've developed a personal conviction against the modern meat industry. I don't have a moral issue with consuming the dead flesh of other sentient beings because animals eat other animals. So being carnivorous is a part of the natural world and the natural order. How humans fit into it is up for debate, but I don't think there's anything immoral about killing animals for food. Of course, if I had to kill animals myself and clean their carcasses, I would absolutely be a strict vegetarian. I'm the product of a modern urban environment and consequently spoiled that way.

No, my "beef" (ha ha, did you see that? its a pun. applaud me.) with the meat industry is that the way in which it is produced is harmful to all parties involved.

This is a well cited wikipedia article on the effects of modern meat production on people and the environment.

I don't think vegetarianism is the answer to all these problems, but meat reduction obviously is. By practicing vegetarianism, I'm at least contributing to lessen the demand. I want to at least try this out for a week or two, and then make a decision on how I will conduct my meat consumption in the future.

What I may very well do is just make sure that when I do eat meat, it has been produced in a way that I approve of.

I wonder when I'll be able to apply for my tree hugging liberal hippy certification. Probably around the time I start evangelizing about all this stuff to people on the bus.

Puns About Green Money and the Green Lifestyle

A few days ago, I was on the bus and this guy sitting next to me noticed the cat hair all over my black pants and decided to strike up a conversation about animals and vegetarianism. He said he had been vegan for ten years, and asked me if I was vegetarian. I said I had thought about it, and I do limit my meat consumption. If I was going to "go veg" I'd have a lot more experimentation to do in order to make sure I'm still getting the nutrition I need. The guy was really nice, but seemed more interested in talking at me about why I should go veg than actually having a discussion with me. What struck me most is he seemed to believe that veg was the only way to be.

Vegetarianism is a luxury for a great deal of the world right now. Its for people who can substitute the meat in their diet. But with global poverty and hunger being such an issue, many people do not have that luxury.

Which brings me to what I really want to talk about: sustainability. Anyone who tells you that environmentalism and socially responsible consumerism demands a bigger price tag is bad. An expensive lifestyle is not a sustainable lifestyle and that is the greatest threat to the movement in my opinion: the impracticality.

Now that being green is becoming more and more popular, the market is evolving and more things are becoming affordable. Whenever I need to buy something, I think about it. Where its coming from, what its made of, how it got here, etc. If the price is slightly higher, but the quality and safety/health/durability of the item is better, it's worth the price increase. The long run is more important.

The cartoon above is French, obviously, but I find it to be very accurate to the current economic conditions in most of the Western world. Carrefour is basically a French European version of Wal-Mart. I also saw a few when I was in Jordan. I stoled the cartoon from a fellow AU student who posted it on facebook.

Translation- Man: You see, you're not boycotting Chinese products. Woman: Obviously not, I can't afford anything else.

That's wrong, and it needs to change. Please also note that I link social responsibility with environmentalism. Generally it goes that what's best for people is also best for the earth.

Here's a nifty little interview Jeffrey Sachs did with Treehugger about his new book and the economic benefits of going green.

Also, when looking for new items, check out second hand shops. This probably won't work for electronics, but it will for most other things. is also a great resource. Second hand really is the greenest way to go!

Edit: I cleaned up the HTML, sorry for the confusions!