Can Vegetarian or Vegan dietary change be a solution?

The Living Economies Expo was attended by good people trying to do their best for the environment, for the community and for their own health. They are well educated and informed. They are concerned about the overuse of natural resources, the collapse of local economies, and the viability of local food production. They seek to develop the social connectedness of communities, using local currencies and local decision making processes.

Regarding food and nutrition, there were a large number of vegetarians, and some vegan's in attendance. I've very little to offer people who think that way. As individuals, they have the very best of intentions for the planet, for society, and for their own health. I used to believe that their standards were a "gold standard" we should all try to achieve. Only 5-6 years ago my own meat consumption was down to chicken and fish, each about once a week. I thought that was healthy eating, but I was getting fat, and my diet was the problem.

Today my message isn't one of comfort to vegetarians. The planet doesn't care, it will get on just fine, in fact even better, if all humans are gone.

Some might argue that if everyone was vegan, we could take the cattle off the land, and things would improve. In nature, mixed farming with both grazing and foraging animals and with forestry and cropping is desirable to restore the soils. Think organic farming with animals, rather than just rotational cropping. Better still, think of permaculture forests as the ideal way to improve both soils and food sources for human health. But with a much smaller world population.

What's best for both the land and for human health, is unlikely to support the profit objectives of multi-national food production companies. The financial imperative driving the world towards ecological collapse remains.

Grain production is stable or rising slowly, but at about half the rate of population increase. There is potential to improve the productivity rates, but on the ground that's proving hard to put into practice. Besides populations that are heavily reliant on grains for nutrition don't enjoy the best health.

If everyone in the world was vegetarian, the outcome for the world would be the same. We will be unable to feed everyone. Ecological collapse will still happen. Being vegetarian is a personal sacrifice you make, for no long run benefit for the planet or for society as a whole.

Finally, being vegetarian is bad for your own health. It's possible for people to be both healthy and vegetarian. But it's difficult to do. Many people fully committed to this lifestyle for 20 our more years, even people who spent years teaching people how to be successful vegetarians, finally get sick themselves. After a long battle to get well again, they finally begin to eat meat again. When they do, good health returns. Both Zoe Harcombe and Nina Teicholz had that experience, and it's a commonly reported situation.

In talking to people face to face, I've met many obese vegetarians. I know precisely why they are obese. They need much more fat in their diet. Olive oil and coconut oil will do the job, but honestly, animal fats and animal organs are a much easier way to get the fats and the minerals and vitamins you need.

John Stephen Veitch
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