We are often told to ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ or ‘conserve water’ or change to solar power. And all these things are excellent for our planet, of course, BUT the single biggest way to make a positive impact on this world is to change our diets to one that is plant based.
Plant based (vegan or vegetarian) diets have a hugely beneficial impact on the environment. They are also good for your health, and your body might be quite relieved to experience a change from all the rich food we enjoy over the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
Diets that include meat and dairy products contribute to one-third of all global emissions (methane from livestock, mostly). Vegan diets produce 93% less methane and vegans are responsible for 75 percent less in greenhouse gases than meat-eaters:
Currently, 68 per cent of farmland is used for livestock. Planting a fifth of this with crops would produce the same amount of food as all the animals. This would leave 26 million square kilometres spare – an area 1.5 times the size of Russia – that could be planted with meadow or forest, to improve biodiversity.
Some people think ‘I could never go without bacon!’ or ‘vegan cheese tastes so bad!’ But how about introducing one or two vegan days a week – or try a plant-based milk instead of cow’s milk? It is true that there are concerns about milk substitutes, such as pesticides used to maximise production of almond milk which impacts local biodiversity and pollinators. You could switch beef mince to plant based in your recipes or try a vegan diet for advent or lent.
It doesn’t need to be all or nothing – every little change makes a tiny difference.
Give it a go and have a happy and healthy New Year!