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A bite for the tongue, a bite for the soul. Food is an integral, rather irreplaceable part of our lives. But do our food habits jeopardize the very world we live in? Can the humble-looking steak, a grilled hamburger, or even a steaming hot cup of coffee be detrimental in deciding the fate of our Green Planet? In this article, I’ll focus on the key points relevant to food habits that are changing the course of the world in a colossal way. I will follow a primarily non-statistical perspective (because who wants to read those numbers, huh? :) )

Food is the tool through which living beings grow, repair themselves and maintain the fitness of their mind and body. Almost all vital life processes run on nutrients obtained from food. Apart from these essential roles played by food, it also holds cultural significance in communities across the globe.

Considering these facts, people normally resort to following a diet that has traditionally been a part of their household for a long duration of time. In doing so, one rarely questions or even pays attention to what their diet consists of. The question of the large-scale impacts of that diet is hugely overshadowed by taste, tradition and culture, taking us on a downhill path that might eventually spell our doom.

To (m)eat or not to (m)eat?

‘He crouched low behind the rocks. The mammoth was drinking peacefully. He knew that it was either now or never. His family would die hungry if he didn’t kill now. With that thought, he shot out like a bolt of lightning, piercing his spear through the thick skin of the gargantuan beast.’

Humans evolved as hunter-gatherers. When gathering was not an option, hunting provided them with meat which could be used as an invaluable source of nourishment. But the noteworthy points here are the size of the human population then and the lack of agricultural practices as compared to present times.

The current scenario of animal agriculture is concerning and depressing. Animals have been reduced to nothing more than mere commodities on supermarket shelves. Slaughter, bloodshed and abuse have become synonymous with the meat and dairy industries.

Do we need meat? More importantly, does our ‘need’ for meat overpower our sanity so much that the lives of millions of animals are lost every day, and the climate faces a severe backlash just because of this lifestyle?

Meat production comes with its drawbacks, both ethical and environmental.

Kant care, won’t care

Since our childhood, we have been raised in a way that has never exposed us to the cruelty of the meat and dairy industries. Singer Paul McCartney of The Beatles once said, “if slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be a vegetarian”. This inherent problem with the society causes children to grow up with the perspective of objectifying meat and dairy, failing to pay heed to the fact that sentient beings are involved in the production of these ‘commodities’.

Some simple facts about prevalent practices in the meat and dairy industries might just provoke the question of ethics in your mind:

  • Confinement of animals: Having read Maya Angelou’s ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’, it felt strangely hypocritical to continue eating meat. On the one hand, when such liberal ideas are taught in educational curricula, why is the concept of ethical treatment of animals in our day-to-day lives conveniently slipped under the carpet?
  • Torture and abuse: When such treatment of humans is considered illegal, why is such a treatment of animals normalized? How is artificial insemination of dairy cows any different from rape? How is the systematic slaughter of millions any different from genocide?
  • ‘Efficiency’ in ‘farming’: Practices like chopping off the beaks of chickens and horns of cattle are aimed at reducing injuries (obviously due to stressful conditions that the animals are exposed to). They are injected with antibiotics and medications to counter the large number of diseases that the animals may contract (courtesy of unhealthy living conditions).

These were just a few instances where the fact that animals are living, breathing sentient creatures just like humans was completely ignored.

Animals. Feel. Pain.

They feel emotions and are a part of social circles, just like humans. They possess maternal instincts to protect their offspring. Notwithstanding these facts, dairy cows are treated as mere milk machines that are terminated once their productive age has passed.

Did you know that a cow must give birth in order to produce milk? An average dairy cow must give birth to one calf per year in order to continue producing milk. Typically they are artificially inseminated within three months of giving birth. Also, have you ever noticed the severely skewed sex ratio on cattle farms? People rather choose to ignore the fact that the male calves are conveniently slaughtered, eradicating the very problem of raising and feeding them without any profits in return.

In spite of all of this, the awareness regarding such systematic cruelty is very low. Any awareness that is present is also masked by the veil of ignorance. I do not blame you, the reader, in any way. This is an inherent problem that persists, one generation after another. The best that we can do is educate our youth about these facts and fortify them with this essential knowledge, making them better equipped to make well-informed choices about their food habits.

Checkmate climate

Global warming, rising temperatures, rising sea levels, depleting freshwater, sudden changes in weather patterns: We have definitely heard all of this in our not-so-distant past. Vehicular emissions, deforestation, and fossil fuel usage have all been put on trial to account for these severe changes. But have we ever wondered what role the food on our plates might have played in this grand tragedy?

Meat and dairy production involves the unholy trifecta that perfects the cocktail spelling disaster for the environment: feed sourcing, manure processing, and climate change.

  • With people raising concerns about the conversion of forests and grasslands to agricultural lands, they fail to realize that a substantial part of this agricultural output is used to feed cattle and poultry. Depletion of prairies and grasslands due to overgrazing is a direct consequence of cattle farming, but excessive deforestation of forests for agricultural land is an indirect impact of the enormous demand for cattle and poultry feed. One-third of all cropland is used just to produce feed for livestock.
  • Manure processing is a seriously ignored aspect of animal rearing. Livestock contributes to seven per cent of the total greenhouse gas emissions through enteric fermentation (in the intestines) and manure. You might just consider ignoring cattle burps and farts altogether, but substantial amounts of methane, ammonia and carbon dioxide are released as a consequence of the decomposition of manure. Further emissions are released during the transportation of animals, their feed and their outputs (meat/dairy). Meat and dairy account for 14.5% of global emissions, whereas cars account for 14%, the former being blatantly overshadowed by the latter in popular climate change discussions.
  • The supply chain of the meat industry causes a plethora of environmental issues that affect our climate and water quality. The release of harmful substances like antibiotics, bacteria, pesticides, microplastics, and fertilizers (used to meet the growing demand for cattle feed) is just one way in which water quality is affected. Producing a kilogram of beef takes about 15,000 litres of water, and a kilo of chicken isn’t too far, taking up about 4,000 litres of water. Agriculture uses about 70% of all available freshwater. With severe droughts plaguing the planet, we are doing nothing but digging our own graves. Also, these calculations were done considering the fact that the animals were placed in enclosures throughout their lives. Free-range cattle and poultry (that is much more ‘inefficient’ for the industry) have a much larger water footprint!

Hence, meat is contributing not only to global warming and change in climatic conditions but also to direct environmental pollution.

Ve-gain-ism?

Image by Konstantin Kolosov from Pixabay

The mass of animals raised for slaughter on Earth now outweighs wildlife by a factor of 15-to-1, an extremely shocking ratio. There are approximately three chickens for every human on the planet. According to multiple studies, meat has become more of a luxury, with meat consumption increasing with an increase in the average GDP per capita. This a simple indicator of the fact that as a country grows richer, its meat consumption keeps spiking, and so does its carbon and water footprint.

Considering all of these facts, veganism (elimination of all animal and dairy products from a person’s diet and lifestyle in general) comes forth as a radical option in tackling both ethical and environmental issues that are currently plaguing the planet. One must keep in mind that this revolution cannot occur overnight. Meat and dairy have become such integral components of our lifestyles that phasing them out is agreeably a pretty difficult job.

I do understand that people may be reluctant to give up their lifestyles, but every change must begin somewhere. Gradually switching to flexitarianism and vegetarianism before making the switch to veganism will definitely ease one’s journey in acquainting oneself with a new lifestyle. Starting off with easy strategies like ‘Meatless Mondays’ – an easily accomplished request – will definitely reduce the impact that a person has on the environment. I definitely agree that people prioritize the taste and texture of food in life, making it one of the many day-to-day joys a person experiences. But just peeking behind the curtain of our plate to know the true story of our food will definitely help us make better-informed choices about what is good for us as well as the planet. Educating our youth about these facts and inculcating this into nationwide curricula is another crucial aspect that must be taken into consideration so that coming generations are much more educated when it comes to the environment.

Balancing the nutritional requirements of a vegan diet is also easy if a variety of foods ranging from legumes to fruits and vegetables are incorporated efficiently. Finally, this is a personal choice that an individual makes, which can never be enforced upon another. Keeping this in mind, it is only when more and more people start gradually switching that we will see significant changes from stakeholders in these industries. Instead of subsidizing dairy, the government might just end up subsidizing climate-friendlier options.

The day is visible on the not-so-distant horizon when we live in a healthier, happier and more humane world where each species can rightfully claim its place on this grand and enigmatic planet. On that note, I’d like to sign off, leaving you with food for thought in its literal sense.

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