‘Deeds, not words, make us great.’
That is why I believe that Keith’s Odyssey is powerful. He is taking on a great deed and so he inspires us to take on smaller ones.
I am positive about the future. That might seem at odds considering I agree with yesterday’s article that our destruction of the natural world will have devastating consequences for future generation. The reason I am positive is because I believe society is changing and the rate of change will accelerate. We are too intelligent to make a blunder as colossal as causing a mass extinction of species.
I have spent the last 18 years working to prevent the mass extinction of species. If I were to condense all the information that I have come across into one killer fact it would be this: To stop the mass extinction of species we have to stop the expansion of the meat industry.
Let me present to you some information to support such a claim.
The major cause of the decline of more than 85% of threatened species is habitat destruction[1]. Consequently the only way to stop the mass extinction of species is to stop habitat destruction. How on Earth could we possibly stop the habitat destruction that is going on all over the planet?
Fortunately one industry alone is responsible for almost all of the habitat destruction so we just need to stop that industry. 92% of habitat destruction is carried out by the agricultural industry (74% for meat production and 18% for crop production)[2]. Furthermore the meat industry is growing at a rate of 2% per annum so the amount of land they need is also increasing[3].
So how could we stop the expansion of the meat industry? Here is one suggestion: join Richard Branson, Oprah, Paul McCartney and a host of other successful people by having one meat-free day a week. For more information you could go to the website of ‘Meatless Monday’[4].
Why would one meat-free day make any difference?
The amount of land required to grow the food for a vegetarian diet is approximately half of that for a meat diet. By having one meat free day per week you are effectively reducing the amount of land required to produce your food by 7%.
Gandhi said: ‘Be the change you want to see in the world.’ You are one amongst 7 billion but you are a trailblazer. Deeds not words make us great. If everyone had at least one meatless day a week, the agricultural industry would stop expanding, habitat destruction would reduce by 92% and Mother Nature would breath a sigh of relief.
Now admittedly as the world population climbs towards its summit of 10 billion, it might be necessary for us to adopt a second meat-free day. But that still leaves us 5 days on which we can eat meat. Isn’t that enough?
A Meatless Monday will not threaten the livelihood of farmers, with a growing population their future is secure. What I am suggesting is that we do not sponsor the people who cut down forests.
There are 4 other benefits of a Meatless Monday. Firstly it is great for your health. If you are eating the average Western diet, you are already eating more meat than is healthy for you. For more details go to http://www.meatlessmonday.com/why-meatless/
Secondly, plant-based protein is cheaper than animal-based protein so a Meatless Monday would save you money.
Thirdly, animals raised in the modern factory farms live in diabolical conditions and their slaughtered products are probably not as healthy as those from free-range farms. By eating less meat but selecting higher quality free-range meats, both you and the animals come out on top.
And finally by eating less meat you will be helping feed the hungry. A third of the world’s arable land is used to grow crops for the expanding feedlot industry[5]. Bizarrely, with our market-based system, when there is a shortage of grain, hungry animals get priority over hungry people. In 2008 the Food and Agriculture Organization’s Food Price Index more than doubled from its 2000 level. Consequently the number of people suffering from chronic under-nutrition jumped from 825 million to 1.02 billion[6].
There is more than enough food in the world for everyone to have a healthy diet, if we did not feed a third of the crops to livestock[7]. If you were to have one meat free day of week, you would be dampening demand for feedlot meats, which would dampen global grain prices, which would help make food more affordable for the hungry.
In summary, a Meatless Monday would be good for your health, good for the health of the planet, good for the health of future generations and good for the health of your hip pocket. It would also help improve the lot of both farm animals and the world’s hungry.
Albert Einstein was ahead of his day: ‘Nothing will benefit human health and increase the chances for survival of life on Earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.’
Eating a little less meat is pretty much good for everyone.
Go Keith, keep inspiring us.
Chris Darwin works fulltime on preventing the mass extinction of species. He has helped the charity Bush Heritage Australia create the 68,000 ha Charles Darwin Reserve in Western Australia. He is an ambassador of Bush Heritage. He gives speeches and media presentations on the topics of Charles Darwin and the extinction of species.
