During my first official research session I was overwhelmed by information. Apparently the topic of reducing meat consumption is quite a big one, which is good because I gained a lot of information including differing insights! First, I wanted to start by learning some facts surrounding meatâs impact on the environment. I stumbled upon a website founded by the Environmental Working Group. I was aware that this website would be quite biased since it was run by environmentalists, but I also knew it would provide me with accurate, credible information since they are an official association. Majority of the articles were written by Kari Hamershlang, who is the Senior Analyst of the Environmental Working Group. This website was set up in a very organized way with different tabs to direct me to more specialized topics, varying from the âfull climate reportâ to âmeat and antibioticsâ specifically. It offered me a multitude of facts surrounding the impact of agricultural practices as a whole, followed by many concerning the meat industry, specifically. After reading past the impacts of agriculture, the focused in on the meat industryâs impacts and effects. I learned plenty of interesting facts, including how Americans consume on average 60% more than Europeans and that beef creates the second highest amount of emissions - more than twice the emissions of pork, four times that of chicken, and 13 times the amount of vegetable based proteins. Following this, the Hamershlang told about where these environmental impacts are stemming from. She wrote that livestock is fed and fattened up by consuming great amounts of âfishmeal, corn, soybean meal, and other grains.â She explained that even feeding the livestock has damaging environmental effects since âgrain production requires significant quantities of fertilizer, fuel, pesticides, water and land.â The fertilizer that is being applies to the soil to grow these grains generates a hazardous gas known as nitrous oxide which has a much greater warming effect than carbon dioxide, 300 times it to be exact. Hamershlang also discussed how the waste of the livestock has an impact to our water and air through the release of nitrous dioxide and methane, harming the environment even further. In addition to this data, the articles included multiple graphs to support the data stated, which I will share in the following blog post. The graphs themselves helped me see the differing impacts that different meat options have. I now clearly understanding that lamb is the worst type of meat, both for oneâs health and the environment, followed closely by beef. Lagging behind these are pork, farmed salmon, turkey, chicken, tuna, eggs, and more. They also allowed me to more clearly understand why certain types of meat, lamb and beef, are so much worse for the environment than others. Overall, solely from this one website I learned an array of new information and have seen bright and clear that the meat industry certainly plays a major role in the negative effects facing our environment. Following this research session, I am hoping to find out more about how reducing meat intake will specifically reduce the environmental effects and just how much reduction is necessary to make a proper difference.
