Some news items that have recently caught my attention including articles on Climate, environmental, animal welfare and health issues.
The case for plant-based diets and the case for a vegan lifestyle gets stronger every day.
And a question, What can we expect from Prime Minister Liz Truss and King Charles III?
Climate
The first thing to note is the speed and extent of the present climate emergency. It is not decades into the future. It is now.
The Guardian reports that The World is on the brink of five ‘disastrous’ climate tipping points [1]. “Giant ice sheets, ocean currents and permafrost regions may already have passed point of irreversible change”
“To maintain liveable conditions on Earth and enable stable societies, we must do everything possible to prevent crossing tipping points”
This year we have seen record summer temperatures in Europe, continuing drought in China and across the Horn of Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia), massive floods in Pakistan. And more recently floods in Nigeria and Italy, Typhoon Nanmadol in Japan, Hurricane Fiona in Puerto Rico, an unprecedented Greenland ice melt, and a long-lasting heat dome over western US. The climate is flickering, the sign of a stable system about to switch into a new state for which we are not adapted. We should not wait to see how close we are to the edge, but be taking steps now to move away from it.
Carbon dioxide levels are now 50% higher than during the pre-industrial era [2]
If anyone thinks we are getting to grips with Global warming they are sadly mistaken. Carbon Dioxide concentration in the atmosphere continues to grow. Certainly the problem is being tackled, but far too little is being done. Governments and individuals need to do more. Every kilogram counts. Another reason for taking up a plant-based diet.
The UK urgently needs to cut its methane emissions by 2030: cows and sheep hold the key to success [3]
Emitting one tonne of methane is equivalent to emitting approximately 28 tonnes of CO₂ in terms of its contribution to global warming. Reducing these emissions by reducing both the number of methane-producing animals and the demand for their products will be a huge help in achieving the 2030 methane target.
Renewable Energy – Part of the Solution
Switching The World To Renewable Energy Will Cost $62 Trillion, But The Payback Would Take Just 6 Years [4]
The study from Stanford University recommends the world make the switchover by 2035, but in no event later than 2050. Their goal is to have 80% operating on renewable energy by 2030
“We do not need miracle technologies to solve these problems”
Meanwhile too many governments still support increasing fossil fuel output. Insanity is not too strong a word
Livestock Farming wrecking the Environment
How a Tesco chicken deal may have helped pollute one of the UK’s favourite rivers [5].
A major deal to supply chicken to Tesco from nearly a decade ago may be linked to the ecological demise of the River Wye in Herefordshire, one of the UK’s favourite rivers
And not just the river, but the health of nearby communities are also affected,The True Cost of Cheap Chicken [6]
The most damaging farm products? Organic, pasture-fed beef and lamb [7]
George Monbiot explains why popular pasture-fed livestock are so damaging to the environment because it requires so much land for each unit of protein produced which could otherwise be used to support wild life or more effective carbon sequestration. This and some alternative traditional and radical sources of nutrition are discussed in more detail in his latest book:
Regenesis : Feeding the World without Devouring the Planet [8]
UK has more than 1,000 livestock mega-farms [9]
Contrary to the bucolic images of small country farms, these factory farms are where much of the UK’s meat really comes from, driving climate change, water and air pollution, biodiversity loss and negatively affecting local communities.
UK Gov Taken To Court For Concealing Public Health Risks Of Factory Farming [10]
The UK government stands accused of failing to inform its citizens of the known effects of factory farming
‘Like a giant sewage plant’: how Germany’s ‘pig belt’ got too big [11]
The sheer density of pigs in Lower Saxony is at the heart of the problem. While animal manure is a source of agricultural fertiliser, overuse can lead to excess nitrates seeping into groundwater, where it can damage rivers, lakes and oceans.
Animal Welfare
Food producer warns of ‘price shock’ as carbon dioxide price quadruples [12]
Indirectly driven by the rising price of gas, producers have been hit by the increase in the cost of CO2, which is used to “stun” animals before slaughter. How many people are aware that gassing livestock is a regular part of the process? A stage that meat producers would prefer to hide from us. Supposedly ‘humane’, this shows that livestock farming does not respect the welfare, and certainly not the life of the animals.
UK retailers blocking moves to end the killing of day-old male chicks [13]
While France and Germany have introduced bans, Britain continues to slaughter 29 million unwanted chicks every year. The cost of cheap chicken. A price worth paying?
A girl wanted to keep the goat she raised for a county fair. They chose to kill it [14]
A 10 year old girl had bonded with a pet goat, but law enforcement officers allegedly travelled hundreds of miles to confiscate the pet, who was eventually slaughtered. How much of this lack of compassion finds its root in a society that believes it is right to kill sentient life for food?
Norway was right to put down Freya the walrus, prime minister says [15]
Freya had become a popular tourist attraction and was killed “based on an overall assessment of the threat to human safety” after the public ignored warnings not to get too close to her.
A symbol of how humanity, encroaching on wildlife, often destroys it when it becomes inconvenient rather than respect the fact that it was there first.
Health
Charcuterie’s link to colon cancer confirmed by French authorities [16]
French health authorities say they have confirmed a link between nitrates added to processed meat and colon cancer
This agrees with a finding reported some time ago: Yes, bacon really is killing us [17]
Highly antibiotic-resistant MRSA in pigs ‘can jump to humans’ [18]
Fears are growing over a strain of MRSA common among farm animals that scientists say is capable of “rapidly adapting to human hosts”.
The World Health Organisation lists the superbug as one of the biggest global threats to human health due to its resistance to antibiotic medicines.
Is it too obvious that the best solution to this problem might be to stop farming pigs?
Business
Dutch City Becomes First In The World To Ban Meat Adverts In Public [19]
Haarlem has banned all public advertising for meat due to their impact on the planet
Haywards Heath is the first European town to sign up for the plant-based treaty [20]
‘The first step in a long journey’: The pioneering British town which has committed to veganism
Vegan KitKat finally relaunches across 15 European countries [21]
Nestlé’s KitKat V is set to launch across Europe following its successful UK trial in 2021. Originally, the popular four-finger treat was available in Sainsbury’s for £1 during its UK test launch.
Politics
Prime Minister Liz Truss
In November 2018, The Guardian reported research that shows that Taxing red meat would save many lives [22].
It pointed out that governments already tax harmful products to reduce their consumption, such as sugar, alcohol and tobacco. The healthcare costs incurred by eating red meat are often paid by all taxpayers
Liz Truss responded, “What claptrap. Bacon is an important contributor to my wellbeing” [23]
There is no attempt here to respond to the science.
This post has mentioned earlier that Bacon is killing us. Liz Truss is happy that it should continue to do so.
More recently George Eustice, the environment secretary suggested the Government may introduce a tax on meat and dairy in the future to reduce the public’s impact on the climate.
Liz Truss was quick to rule out any meat tax [24].
George Eustice lost his job last week.
King Charles III
King Charles has championed environmental causes for many years. In 1970, as Prince of Wales, he warned of the dangers of pollution, and said society must deal urgently with the cost of cleaning it up, and preventing it in the first place.
He has spoken about tropical rainforests and deforestation, sustainable agriculture and farming, water, food security and climate change
More recently at COP26 he said,
COVID-19 pandemic has shown us just how devastating a global cross border threat can be. Climate change and biodiversity loss are no different. In fact, they pose an even greater existential threat to the extent that we have to put ourselves on what might be called a war like footing. [25]
It is certainly good to see that King Charles, is among the large number in the UK who are concerned for the environment, and has been for many years.
However, the concern for the environment appears to stop short of action that affects his extensive grouse shooting moors. In an article, Prince Charles and conservation in the Cairngorms National Park, the author reports that King Charles’ estates contain little woodland, widespread burnt heather, animal traps, an absence of biodiversity, damaged peat bogs, and large Scottish government grants. [26]
So, a mixture of expectations from our two unelected leaders. Much work to be done to see that the science and sense of plant-based principles are taken up in government policies.
References
[3] https://phys.org/news/2022-07-uk-urgently-methane-emissions-cows.html
[6] https://veganpieces.org/vegan/the-true-cost-of-cheap-chicken/
[10] https://plantbasednews.org/culture/law-and-politics/factory-farming-risks-uk-government/
[11] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jul/26/how-germany-pig-belt-got-too-big-lower-saxony
[14] https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/sep/02/goat-cedar-county-fair-auction-california
[17] https://www.theguardian.com/news/2018/mar/01/bacon-cancer-processed-meats-nitrates-nitrites-sausages
[18] https://www.independent.co.uk/climate-change/news/mrsa-pigs-humans-antibiotics-disease-b2111366.html
[19] https://plantbasednews.org/news/environment/haarlem-bans-meat-adverts/
[21] https://www.veganfoodandliving.com/news/vegan-kitkat-launch-in-the-uk-sainsburys/
[23] https://twitter.com/trussliz/status/1060096961603424256
[24] https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/liz-truss-rules-out-meat-tax-government-climate-progress-1278270
[25] https://www.rev.com/blog/transcripts/prince-charles-cop26-climate-summit-glasgow-speech-transcript
