Dietary decisions are, unarguably, a part of our everyday
lives. For most, these choices are personal and of intrinsic importance, which
makes the task of telling people what they should or shouldn’t eat a great
challenge. Vegetarians and vegans are
particularly stigmatised for their approach to combatting environmental damage
and animal cruelty, and are often labelled as irritating or preachy. Equally,
the ignorance of these issues surrounding food production probably does cause
vegans and vegetarians alike to become a bit self-righteous and cheesed off,
and subsequently berate their meat-eating counterparts. So, how do we stop this
endless cycle? I guess by presenting the hard, cold facts and letting people
see for themselves.
But, sometimes it’s really hard to get all the facts… There
are so many diets out there claiming to be the best, the healthiest, and the
most environmentally friendly, with countless recipes, pictures and ideas on
the internet for you to gaze upon. But, which way do we turn? Vegan?
Vegetarian? Paleo? Raw? Gluten Free? Pescatarian? Raw? No Red Meat? Ahhhh!!
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| Is this really the correct balance in our diets? Source: here |
Many diets have potential pitfalls, and it’s important
having an awareness of what these are and how to combat them. For example, meat-based
diets raise concerns of animal cruelty, diets containing red meat impact on
global greenhouse gas emissions, and vegetarian and vegan diets often face
issues of iron and vitamin B12 deficiencies. Additionally, there are other
limitations to certain diets, such as, health conditions, pregnancy, socioeconomic
status, geographical location, access to food and religious beliefs.
Before embarking on my blogging journey, I had never before
put a label on my dietary habits. I have eaten meat my entire life, and still
cannot quite call myself a vegetarian (even though my consumption is now
relatively limited). As a child, meat was on the table at almost every meal.
For a time, I could not imagine many meals that didn’t have meat on the menu.
It wasn’t until half way through my mathematics undergrad degree that I started
running low on money, and made a conscious decision to start cutting down on my
consumption.
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| Source: http://bridgetnielsen.com |
Since then, I have discovered lots of amazing vegetarian
recipes that are tastier, healthier and cheaper than my original meat ones. I
know that I do not suffer from deficiencies as I was already B12 deficient (so
have regular injections), and have a very high iron count (which is tested
every 16 weeks when I give blood). Now, I only purchase meat when it is in the
reduced section and is about to expire, and only if it is chicken, turkey, pork
or fish. Additionally, if a meal is prepared for me, I will not let it go to
waste.
In this respect, I suppose that I
now consider myself a “flexitarian”. George Monbiot says I’m a cheating vegetarian… I hardly think that’s fair when I consciously avoid red meat
in particular, rarely eat meat at all, and do my best to purchase local and
seasonal food (with exception to my dessert choices – by far my greatest
weakness!). Despite this, I do often think I’m not doing enough. As Chad at
Sown on Stony Grown has questioned, can you eat meat and still call
yourself an environmentalist? I want to, but I can’t help feeling like I’m not
doing enough…
Upon undertaking this blog, I have truly discovered the most
pressing environmental impacts that our food choices have, and I continue to be
utterly stunned at how food production is never at the forefront of the climate
debate. So, if it isn’t being talked about enough, let’s take matters into our
own hands! What diets should we be working toward to do our bit of climate
change? How much power do we have as consumers? And should we be doing more to put pressure on
the food industry?
Please join me next time, when I will be spilling the beans!
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