Veganism and the Environment

Every relationship in this world is based on the principle of give and take, one-sided relationships end with time as expectations of love and care, keep us all glued together. Same is the case with humans and the environment that they live in, what we sow, we reap. When we take care of our environment as a precious possession, taking care of the limited amount of resources that it provides, thinking about the future generation and withholding a responsibility that we owe to our home, that helps us survive with fresh air to breathe in, pure water to drink, food to quench our hunger along with taking care of each of our necessities we get back our rewards with the same love and care.

But this relationship has been disturbed for a very long time now. With the increasing population, the pressure on these resources has been increasing too, with each passing day, trying its best to serve every individual possible. The environment has adapted itself in various ways to be the surviving source of so many humans and animals at once, but it has been failing due to our non-cooperation.

Veganism and its benefits

Veganism is a lifestyle that includes abstaining from the consumption and usage of all animal products, rejecting their status as a commodity that is made for human use being against animal cruelty for their needs and pleasure. A person who follows such a lifestyle is known as a vegan.

Veganism holds its advent to the flesh-avoidance concept of eastern Mediterranean societies along with ancient Indian with the word becoming known in November 1944 by Donald Watson who was an English animal rights activist and the co-founder of the Vegan Society. After the society came into existence, it lived on the motto that man should live without exploiting animals, laying its foundation of a cruelty-free environment where humans and animals co-existed, being sensitive enough to understand that every life on this planet matters.

With the passing years, the popularity of veganism increased among the people for it is not only an animal-friendly lifestyle but is highly beneficial for the human body and health of the environment. Livestock farming not only contributes to the 18% of the greenhouse gas emissions but also uses acres of agricultural land and tons of water along with massive quantities of food and energy to raise animals for human consumption, using artificial techniques for faster growth leading to more animal exploitation and health hazards in humans.

Vegan Diet vs. Non-Vegan Diet

There are too many reasons that can influence you to keep animals and their products off your plate. A meat-eating diet uses about 4,000 gallons of water each day, raising animals for food requires acres of land for their harvesting which in turn uses about 26% of the terrestrial land and about 80% of the agricultural land in the United States alone, differing according to the needs and requirements of the people of the region. These animals not only require space but food that helps them survive to be served as food for the meat-eaters for which about one-third of the fertile land of the planet is used, in turn using more water and other resources.

When it comes to pollution that has become the biggest threat to human existence, livestock farming has a big contribution in the emission of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide which are the biggest sources of global warming. Production of beef and pork emits more greenhouse gases than driving a car, in turn using more energy just for our taste buds. According to the studies that are done from time to time, production of about 2 pounds of beef produces more pollutants than driving a car for three hours along with cows and other grazing animals that are raised for milk emit two-third of all ammonia, huge amounts of methane and other harmful gases as the livestock farming is responsible for 18% of all greenhouse gases that are produced due to manmade causes according to the FAO.

Everything that is sold depends upon the demand of the consumers. As more and more people are shifting to a vegetarian diet, realizing the health hazards of living on a meat-eating diet, many of them still consume milk and its products daily. To meet this demand cows are artificially impregnated every year to reproduce and in turn, become milk-producing machines in these farms. The newborn male calves are either sent to slaughterhouses or are left on the streets to die where their mothers face the same faith when they are no more capable of producing milk, in turn occupying more and more land. Same is the case with cruel practices of animal experimentation and wool, leather and fur industries. A lot of solid waste including flesh and keratin wastes, animal hair, skin trims along with protein which is the main component is left over due to leather production and can be harmful to the environment if not disposed of properly, producing ammonia, sulfide and other harmful compounds.

According to reports by GlobalData, there has been an increase of 600% in people becoming vegan in the last three years in the United States alone. The recent reports of the Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) say that if we all went vegan the food-related emissions would drop by 70%, making people healthier with good food and a pure environment.

It’s high time to stop prioritizing our taste buds and understanding what all it takes to produce everything that we put on our plate and every meal that we earn and work for. It’s time to take responsibility for protecting our home and our fellow beings from torture and suffering, providing everybody a safe place to live in.