Up until about six months ago, my diet was all-encompassing with no real dietary restrictions. However, after graduating with my degree in Environmental Resource Management I thought it best to take into consideration just how what I was eating was affecting our dear old Earth. I've never been a preachy person and obviously everyone can make decisions for themselves...so that being said, rest assured this isn't some hippie drivel I'm trying to force on everyone while wearing my Birkenstock sandals and homemade tie-dyed t-shirts. I understand that we all are accustomed to a certain lifestyle and can't all commit to living a totally environmentally impact-free existence. What is realistic is compromising in areas that are doable for you -- and for me that was adjusting my diet.
After writing countless essays on the impact of meat production and the environment, reading article after article on how meat negatively contributes to carbon dioxide emissions, land use and water scarcity, listening to hundreds of hours on the topic in lecture and all the other academic sources I jammed into my head during my four years of post-secondary education, what it took to convince me to stop eating meat was a movie I watched out of boredom one night. All right, so maybe I was turning a blind eye to my studies purposefully because I used to love meat: burgers, steak, wings, you name it and I happily devoured it! But after seeing visuals of what happens to both the animals and our Earth...well I just couldn't be blind any longer. The documentary, Food Inc., looks into where the food in North America comes from and how large conglomerate companies dominate almost everything that is sold at large chain supermarkets. It was eye-opening, informative and probably depicted behind-the-scenes footage more graphically than need be, but it worked: I was converted!
To all you out there who are thinking of becoming vegetarian, I recommend doing it the smart way. This means going to your doctor or a nutritionist and figuring out how to still get all your nourishment while being meatless. I say this because I watched the film, freaked out, cut out any and all meat products for a month only to almost faint on a plane and start bruising like a day old peach whenever anything or anyone so much as grazed my skin. Overall, being a waif, fainting, black and blue wisp of a person was not -- I repeat -- not fun.
It's been about six months now and I'm so used to being vegetarian that the thought of meat doesn't cross my mind; I don't feel deprived and I certainly don't feel faint anymore. If I had to cut out sugar, well that'd be another issue entirely....cheesecake is the best way to bribe me and pancakes are a surefire way to my heart. My point being that if you really feel you just couldn't stop eating meat then don't leap before looking! Maybe jump on board with the "Meatless Monday" movement where one day a week is meatless, or try and help our lovely Earth in other ways: Drive less and bike more. Conserve more energy around your home. Cut down on your water usage. There's a way to help that fits every lifestyle and a little knowledge it all it takes to figure out why it's well worth the change.
I'm still very much a foodie, albeit now just one who's keeping up with our changing times. Eat, drink and be merry blogees, and check out the following links for more info on Food Inc. and meat production in general:
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