Why shift to a plant-based diet? Planet edition!

Did you know shifting to a plant based diet is not only good for our health and nutritional goals, but also the environment and the planet? The benefits of a plant-based dietare plentiful: People who closely follow a plant-based pattern are less likely to develop cardiovascular diseases and these foods are also generally lower in saturated fat and cholesterol. Turning plant-based doesn’t necessarily mean giving up meat or animal products completely, but it means concentrating more on plant-based foods, including grains, nuts, lentils and beans. Transitioning to a plant-based diet is also good for the planet in innumerable ways, some of them being:

Wildlife 

The drive towards lower-cost meat and milk is leading to intensive and cruel methods of farming. To maintain low running costs, some farming practices restrict animal behaviour and compromise their health and welfare.

Animals suffer not only the damage of meat-related deforestation, drought, pollution and climate change but also direct nuisances from the meat industry. Species are killed to earn meat-production profits and to reserve more feed for cattle. In fact, cows must consume 16 pounds of vegetation in order to convert into 1 pound of flesh. 

To sustain a global rise in meat-eating, livestock farming continues to grow- causing disruption to the ecosystem in the process. Raising livestock demands a lot of grazing land and intensive grazing can lead to exhausted soil, which is then often lost due to wind or rain. As a consequence, fertile land often becomes barren, and waterways get clogged, leading to an increased risk of flooding.

Climate Change

According to the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organisation, the meat and dairy industry accounts for roughly 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Animal agriculture is responsible for at least 14.5 per cent of human-induced global greenhouse gas emissions. A 2020 report from IDTechEx found that the meat industry is unsustainable since livestock utilises a disproportionately enormous part of the land. Despite using 77% of agricultural land, only 17% of global caloric consumption comes from animals. A typical pig factory generates the same amount of raw waste as a city of 12,000 people.

In addition to the enlarged levels of emissions that come from raising livestock, the amount of land used for grazing crops increases the carbon footprint of meat consumption. Livestock production processes are considered one of the main drivers of environmental damage, including climate change and biodiversity loss. Animal agriculture, deforestation, and other modifications that decline soil, or soil quality, have been the second-largest contributors to CO2 emissions globally. 

Water Use and Pollution

It takes a lot of water to produce meat, and beef is the most water-intensive one. Beef needs two times more water than pork and four times more than many alternative protein bases (like pulses). It takes 2,500 gallons of water to produce a pound of meat but only 25 gallons to produce a pound of wheat. Cattle ruin vegetation, damage soils, and contaminate waterways with fecal matter. The vast water bodies are therefore being degraded, causing soil erosion, stream sedimentation and elimination of many aquatic habitats.

When land is used to raise animals instead of crops, the limited resources of water and soil are lost, trees are cut down to make the land for grazing or sheds, and untreated animal waste pollutes rivers and streams. In fact, it has such a devastating effect on all aspects of our environment that the Union of Concerned Scientists lists meat-eating as one of the biggest environmental hazards facing the Earth. 

It’s safe to say the reasons to add more plant based foods to your diet are many. What’s your reason?

Download the Your Beet app to start off your plant-based food journey!