Here are some articles that have recently caught my attention. Every month the news presents further reasons to take up plant based diets.
FRESH WATER
“We need to talk about water – and the fact that the world is running out of it” [1].
George Monbiot describes how the water required to meet growing food demand simply does not exist. “This is yet another reason to switch to an animal-free diet, which reduces both total crop demand and, in most cases, water use”
The water demand of certain plant products, especially almonds and pistachios in California has been heavily criticised. But more than twice as much irrigation water is used in California to grow forage plants to feed livestock, especially dairy cows. Dairy milk has much higher water demand even than the worst alternative (almond milk), and is astronomically higher than the best alternatives, such as oat or soya milk.
BIRD FLU
“The next pandemic? It’s already here for Earth’s wildlife” [2]
The seriousness of the highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza H5N1 (HPAI H5N1), otherwise known as bird flu, cannot be underestimated. No longer confined to birds, scientists have reported at least 48 mammal species that have died from the virus since 2020.
Between 2003 and 2023, 882 cases of human infection with the H5N1 virus were reported from 23 countries, of which 461 (52%) were fatal.
How can we stem this tsunami of H5N1 and other avian influenzas?
“The trend towards megafarms containing over a million birds must be stopped in its tracks”
DEFORESTATION
New analysis in Australia shows two million hectares of Queensland forest were destroyed in five years, almost all in areas where threatened species habitat ‘likely to occur’. The land clearing was driven by beef production [3]
Once again confirming that biodiversity and livestock farming cannot live together. Go Vegan to save wildlife.
CLIMATE CHANGE
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has omitted meat-eating reduction in proposals in a UN roadmap to tackle the climate crisis and end hunger [4].
Academic experts have noted that “the FAO roadmap neglects one of the most obvious and urgent interventions to reduce emissions from the food system”
Let’s be clear about this. A report by a food organisation on the climate crisis and hunger has failed to mention the most effective and scientifically validated method to tackle both problems.
It looks like the FAO has been captured by the meat industry who prefer to lose the planet rather than lose meat.
ANIMAL WELFARE
Calls for legal action after ‘unimaginable suffering’ filmed at Devon pig farm [5]
Pigs were being kept in filthy, cramped conditions – featuring instances of cannibalism and malnourishment, as well as animals with untreated, bleeding wounds and hernias.
The farm is part of the Red Tractor scheme, used to mark food produced to a “high standard”.
A spokesperson responded, “The farm is compliant with all requirements”
The logical conclusion then is that the Red Tractor requirements are wholly inadequate
In practice the best way to end these abuses is to end livestock farming
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Artificial Intelligence is already a powerful tool in science and for business. Proxy Foods has raised $2.3M to fund an AI Recipe Formulation Platform to address the demand for tasty, nutritious, cruelty -free and sustainable food [6]
CHOCOLATE
With cocoa’s endemic reliance on child labour, child trafficking and widespread deforestation, finding affordable ethical chocolate is difficult [7]
However some smaller brands are helping to make this easier by buying from specific plantations or cooperatives and being more transparent about labour and supply issues.
For example The Netherlands’ Tony’s Chocolonely company publishes the number of cases of labour abuses it finds every year. Scotland’s UP-UP surveys every worker in its supply chains
Also look out for Divine and vegan chocolatier Pacari who source their cocoa from individual plantations and have greater transparency.
References
[1] https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/mar/04/water-world-run-out-planet-hotter-looming-crisis
[2] https://theconversation.com/the-next-pandemic-its-already-here-for-earths-wildlife-222306
[3] https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2024/mar/06/queensland-land-clearing-deforestation-data-analysis
[4] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/mar/18/bewildering-to-omit-meat-eating-reduction-from-un-climate-plan
[5] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/mar/10/calls-for-legal-action-after-unimaginable-suffering-filmed-at-devon-pig-farm
[6] https://vegconomist.com/investments-finance/ai-recipe-formulation-platform-proxy-foods-2-3m-tasty-nutritious-alternatives-more-quickly
[7] https://theconversation.com/buying-affordable-ethical-chocolate-is-almost-impossible-but-some-firms-are-offering-the-next-best-thing-225239
