The Single Best Thing That YOU can do for the environment

The Climate Emergency

The climate emergency is real. With all these wildfires, hurricanes, droughts, and heatwaves, we can no longer deny this fact. We have to act now and fast. It might feel like this is all out of our hands now. That we as individuals can’t do anything meaningful to try and repair the damage that was already done. But you have more power than you can imagine, and you have the power to do something good. And eating less meat is the single best thing you can do for the environment to help save the planet!

And What’s so bad about animal agriculture?

Animal agriculture is the largest contributor to human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. More than the entire transportation sector in the world according to a UN research report (more information on that here). That includes all the cars, boats, trucks, and airplanes in the WORLD! Not only that, but the cattle industry is responsible for 37% of all human-caused methane. Just to give your some perspective, methane is about 26 times more damaging for the environment than carbon dioxide.

Many politicians and farmers like to say that raising livestock isn’t that bad for the environment. But, according to new research, raising animals for food is responsible for 30% of the world’s water consumption and 80% of the Brazilian rainforest destruction. It also occupies up to 45% of the earth’s land, and is the leading cause of habitat destruction and species extinction.

This may feel like it’s out of your hands, trust me, I felt this way too. But, did you know that it takes about 2,500 gallons of water to produce ONE pound of beef? That includes all the water used to irrigate the crops that were fed to the cattle and the water they use to keep them hydrated. Just to put things into perspective for you, the amount of water required to produce a pound of beef is about the equivalent of someone taking a 19-hour long shower. That’s insane, especially when it takes an average of 39 gallons to produce a pound of vegetables.

brown cow side view in low angle photography

Why is this important?

Reducing the amount of livestock raised across the world has the potential to immediately repair some of the damage caused by global warming. First of all, all those fields used to raise crops to feed the animals or used for livestock grazing could go back to being forests. That land could be used so much more efficiently by either raising crops for direct human consumption or simply returning to the wilderness.

tree with brunch and green leaves during sunset

Second of all, decreasing human-caused methane emissions, about 35% of which are caused by the cattle industry, can immediately benefit the environment and reduce temperatures worldwide. On the other hand, if we were to reduce the number of carbon emissions, the level of carbon in the atmosphere wouldn’t even begin to change for another 100 years and it would take many decades for the temperatures to even start to drop. While reducing carbon emissions is important, our main priority should be addressing the methane in our atmosphere.

Third of all, all those crops raised to just be fed to animals could go feed the people that are forced to go hungry every day. If all the grains, soy, and other crops that went to feed animals went to people that are starving, the world hunger crisis would be resolved and all those people that have to go hungry would have twice as much food as they would need to survive.

Why you most likely haven’t heard of this before

Now you may be wondering that if this were true, wouldn’t you have heard of it before? Wouldn’t all the environmental organizations be preaching about eating less meat? Wouldn’t our governments do something about it? Well, that’s what I thought too, but then I learned some more about the laws protecting livestock farmers and about the farmer lobbyists in government.

In the US, the farming industry can legally sue anyone for spreading any real information and facts that affect their profits. It’s sad, but true, that most people care more about making money than taking care of the earth and preventing massive destruction. It’s easy to ignore a problem that doesn’t have direct and immediate consequences, but all this damage has been catching up to us, and we can’t ignore it anymore.

The best thing that YOU can do for the environment, planet, and yourself

No, I’m not asking you to go vegetarian or vegan, but if you do or already are, that’s great for you and the planet! But, to simply commit to eating less meat or going vegetarian once per week can make a big impact. In fact, according to this article, if everyone in the US didn’t eat meat one day per week for a year, the US would save 100 billion gallons of water, 1.5 billion pounds of crops, 3 million acres of land, and prevent 1.2 million tons of CO2 from being released! That’s more than the total carbon emissions per year in France!

And, contrary to popular belief, eating less meat or going vegetarian/vegan doesn’t immediately translate into spending more money. New studies are showing that vegan and vegetarian diets can be cheaper than the typical American meat-filled diet. Some inexpensive vegan food items include oats, bananas, dried beans, whole grains, and frozen vegetables. You can read more about how you can save money by going vegan here. Not only are you doing the environment and you’re wallet a favor, but your health too!

Struggling to find new, easy, and healthy meatless recipes?

Try out my tofu taco recipe that is not only delicious, but comes together in less than 30 minutes. Meatless cooking does not have to be hard! Nowadays, there are so many recipes and ingredient alternatives that vegetarian cooking is no different from ordinary cooking. Just search up plant-based recipes with whatever ingredients you’ve got on hand! I am nearly 100% sure you’ll find some great recipes. Experiment in the kitchen, try new foods, and explore! And, remember, that every day you skip on meat, you’re doing your part to save the planet.