I write this as someone who stopped eating meat about 25 years ago. This was for various reasons that included animal cruelty, the environment and my own health. Somehow I have managed to survive since then. I'm not a vegan or even a proper vegetarian as I still eat some fish and I like cheese and eggs. In general I am more of a pragmatist than an extremist. You may know that we keep some chickens, but just for eggs. I'm going to talk about farming, but these are more like productive pets.
I've been reading a few articles lately about alternatives to meat. This was the latest about a company called Solar Foods who have developed a way to make protein from air, water and electricity. This is groundbreaking as it could reduce the need for much of the farming industry around the world. Of course it creates a new kind of industry, but it could be one that requires far less resources and allow vast areas of land to be returned to nature. It's still early days, but NASA are very interested as it has possibilities for long space missions.
There was a dramatic report this week about the extent to which humans have wiped out other species on this planet. I make no apologies for using the Guardian as a source as they have good environment coverage and I'm aware of their political bias. There's a lot of talk about climate change, but even if we ignore that (please don't) the damage we are doing to the planet is horrific and totally unsustainable. At this rate the planet could be uninhabitable in a few generations. Farming is part of the problem with land being cleared for crops, much of which is used to feed animals. If you feed the plants directly to humans then you need far less. As well as the inefficiency of meat production there's also the inevitable animal cruelty. This is an industry that doesn't look much like the farms our kids see in books. Farmed animals far outnumber wild ones and live short lives that may be brutal too. Of course there are free range farms where the animals have a relatively good life, but to produce the vast quantities of meat at the prices people want it's mostly an industrial process that does the bare minimum for animal welfare.
I'm not going to say that everyone should give up all meat as for many it's a part of their culture, but I think we have to accept some responsibilities for our actions and consumption. Even cutting meat consumption by a few meals a week can make a difference. There are products coming to market using cultured meat that is grown from animal cells, but I don't think can be considered cruel as it doesn't even involve a brain and it's much more efficient. Even I would consider eating it. I'm actually interested to try products made from insects too.
Of course people need nutrition, but does it have to be the result of killing an animal? In some cases it seems people want to show their mastery over nature by eating it, but that seems lame to me. If there's an alternative that is indistinguishable by taste and provides equivalent nutrition then isn't that better? When it comes to things like chicken nuggets and other processed meat it's really just a protein source.
I'm not saying you can't have a steak now and then, but for your basic, daily nourishment there are lots of alternatives. I eat a lot of Quorn and soya products that take the place of meat for me. One issue is that they can be more expensive than cheap meat, but maybe mass adoption would bring the price down.
As someone who stopped eating meat ages ago I have noticed that it's much easier to find alternatives to meat now. It used to be that restaurants would offer veggie lasagne or salad as our only options and you had to really hunt in the supermarket for meat substitutes that are much more common now.
I don't expect things to change overnight as cultures change very slowly. I'd hope that some of these new technologies will see rapid development that makes them cheaper than producing meat by current methods. Then the big producers will want to switch for economic reasons.
I'm interested to hear opinions on this topic. Have you changed your diet in recent years, and if so, why? Would you eat 'synthetic' meat or insects?
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