Earth Hour:
Going Plant-Based for a Greener Future
Welcome! If you've found your way here, you probably consider yourself a protector of Earth, an environmentalist. An environmentalist is defined as "a person who is concerned with or advocates the protection of the environment." I fall into this category, and I hope you do, too.
By joining us for Earth Hour: Going Plant-Based For A Greener Future you're seeking out knowledge, so I'm sure you're already a smart cookie. I'm going to assume I don't have to quote you climate change facts or tell you why we need to conserve water. I'm going to focus on just the facts about a vegetarian or plant-based diet and how transitioning away from consuming animal products is something all environmentalists should be working towards. Whether you're thinking of going complete vegan, or just looking to cut down your dependence on animal products, I hope you can find some helpful info here.
Due to COVID-19, we are unable to hold an in-person event this year, but please feel like you can still ask questions. Join the conversation on the Facebook event page, or email me directly.
Animal production uses a whopping third of ALL raw materials and fossil fuels consumed in the U.S.
These days, we often hyper-focus on transportation as being the big bad when it comes to greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel consumption. While we absolutely can (and should) be using public transportation, and getting away from using fossil fuels in our private vehicles, something we don't think about when we talk greenhouse emissions and pollution is that animal agriculture is responsible for more greenhouse gas emission that all transportation combined. In 2006 this clocked in at 18%, compared to 13% for transport.¹ If we look at other types of pollutants, the figures look even worse: 80% of ammonia emissions in the US come from animal waste,² animal production uses a whopping third of ALL raw materials and fossil fuels consumed in the US,³ and a Princeton study predicted that shifting away from animal production in farming would reduce the nitrogen waste level in the oceans so much that the infamous "Dead Zone" in our Gulf would likely disappear.⁴
For more information about fossil fuel consumption in the meat and dairy industry, check out the very accessible,
Explain Like I'm Five: How Fossil Fuels Are Used To Produce Meat https://www.onegreenplanet.org/environment/how-fossil-fuels-are-used-to-produce-meat/
1) UN report, Livestock's Long Shadow - Environmental Issues and Options, 2006
2) State of North Carolina, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, “Review of Emission Factors and Methodologies to Estimate Ammonia Emissions From Animal Waste Handling,” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Apr. 2002
3) Simon D. Donner, “Surf or Turf: A Shift From Feed to Food Cultivation Could Reduce Nutrient Flux to the Gulf of Mexico,” Global Environmental Change 17 (2007): 105-13.
4) Ecological Cooking: Recipes to Save the Planet, Joanne Stepaniak, 1991
As you probably know, our fresh, available water is finite and we need to conserve it, as well as keep our rivers and groundwater safe. We've already touched on how much animal production is polluting the water, but how much is it consuming? Farming uses 70% of the planet's accessible water.⁵ How much of that goes towards animals is hard to figure, but even the most conservative figures still put the average omnivore as using three times the amount of water to eat as a vegan would. For example, it takes 15,500 litres of water to produce 1 kg beef, contrasted with 180 litres for 1 kg tomatoes and 250 litres for 1 kg potatoes.⁶
For handy comparison tables looking at different foods and how much water they consume check out
Save Our Water The Vegetarian Way
https://www.vrg.org/environment/water_brochure.php
5) WorldoMeter, World Water Use statistics compiled from the UN, UNESCO, and FAO
6) WorldWaterWeek.org
The average omnivore meal uses three times the amount of water a plant-based meal does.
In America, a third of our agricultural land is used to raise corn and soy, but only 10% is being eaten by humans.
As a educated environmentalist, you probably also know that land is a finite resource on our planet for humans. Habitable areas on the planet are filling up, and so is the space needed to grow food. Just looking locally, in America, a third of our agricultural land is used to raise corn and soy, but only 10% of that is being eaten by humans.⁷ As a kid I'm sure you learned about trophic levels in biology - how eating higher on the food chain uses more resources and space - but have you ever stopped to apply that to your actual diet? Back when I was a grade school teacher I did this carrying capacity activity with my highschool students. It's very informative, and as an adult we can learn even more from it. Let's give it a try now.
On an average omnivore day, keep track of everything you eat. Count your caloric intake and record what foods it comes from on this handy list. Of course, not everything you eat will fit handily into one of these slots, but assign the calories as correctly as you can. No one's judging. You're the only one who will see this. From here you can also take a guess at how much you, personally, will consume in a year. Math will be needed, but only very simple math and don't be afraid to pull out the calculator on your phone.
7) MightyEarth.org
Transfer this calorie data to the Carrying Capacity Worksheet in the Daily Consumption column. Then figure out your Annual Consumption in the next column by multiplying by 365. The third column is the estimated crop yield a square meter could produce in a year in calories. Divide your consumption with the estimated yield. Add this column up to see the square meters of land required to support you.
Back when I was teaching, I would then have my students take all the calories they were consuming in animal products, add them instead to plant sources, and see the change in how much land they needed. I ask you to repeat this experiment, but this time eat plant-based for a day and see what changes.
While not as accessible as some of the other information I have provided, I encourage everyone to at least flip through the wealth of information the UN provided with their 2006 report
Livestock's Long Shadow: Environmental Issues and Options
http://www.fao.org/3/a0701e/a0701e00.htm
And take a gander at Earth Hour's official PDF on sustainable food options for the world, which is also a great way to learn about tasty new foods to try
https://www.wwf.org.uk/sites/default/files/2019-02/Knorr_Future_50_Report_FINAL_Online.pdf
So there's the WHY, now here's the how. Don't worry, it's not rocket science. Start small. Try Meatless Mondays, and then work up to going entirely plant-based for a day. Small things help. Replace all the cow milk in your fridge with non-dairy options like oat or almond milk. Then replace all the butter. Keep going.
And YES there are vegan versions of almost any product now and a wealth of vegan and plant-based recipes online. Not all vegan versions are created equal and just because you've tried one and didn't like it, doesn't mean that you won't love the next brand. Check out my What About Cheese? guide for help discovering your favorite vegan cheese, and as a helpful intro to working with plant-based options in the kitchen.
What if you don't want to cook at home all the time? No worries. Huntsville continues to modernize, and that includes providing restaurant options to those with dietary restrictions. You can probably still go to a lot of your favorite places. Almost all the restaurants at the Stovehouse have options, just ask! Along with places like Nothing But Noodles, Honest Coffee, and even Mellow Mushroom pizza. Huntsville even has the state's first vegan foodtruck, Hippea Camper. We also have many "virtual restaurants" whom you can order plant-based food from, such as Heaven's Healthy Kitchen and we even have a fully vegan meal prep service, The Veggie. If you already use a meal prep service, ask them if they have plant-based options. They just might!
Scouting out restaurants for plant-based eaters and vegans is what I do at Veg Out Huntsville, so check out my restaurant list, which contains detailed menus of your options. COVID-19 has put a temporary hold on my ability to add new menus to the page, but normally I add a new restaurant every week. Follow me on social media for regular posts. And I'm not the only one, @madison_vegan.eats on Instagram, is always finding new places eat at.
Please don't hesitate to contact me by email or through social media if you have any questions. Helping people find food is what I do, and I regularly answer questions from folks about finding the best veggie burger brand, along with troubleshooting vegan cooking questions. There can be a learning curve, and I'd love to help you in whatever way I can. Together we can make a greener future.
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Earth Hour
Learn more about Earth Hour, what it means, and how it's celebrated around the world.
