Dr. Richard Oppenlander
American Environmental Activist,
Uncomfortably Unaware
and
Food Choice and Sustainability: Why Buying Local, Eating Less Meat, and Taking Baby Steps Won't Work
"Our collective choice of foods as they involve animals—raising & eating livestock & harvesting fish—is the single largest contributing sector for global depletion—the depletion of every one of the natural environs upon which our very existence rests. Our combined demand for and consumption of eating animals are more responsible than any other factor for inefficient agricultural land use, depletion of our oceans, climate change, pollution, increased risk of the four most common diseases and five most common cancers found in the Western world, increased health-care costs and loss of productivity, depletion and use of fresh water, loss of biodiversity, and the prevalence of world hunger. We are pumping massive and unsustainable amounts of resources into a machine that then involves the slaughtering of 1 to 3 trillion animals each year, to spew out unhealthy products that some want to call 'food.' The relationship between our food choices and true sustainability has been well established, and our very survival will ultimately depend on bringing this precept to the forefront when engaging in any meaningful discussion of environmental concern."
"Following one of my lectures at a university campus, a graduate student said to me, “Many of us will be teachers, and I am teaching sixth grade now. Are you saying we should teach our students that they should be vegans?” My response was that she should strive to teach truth to her students. “Tell them the truth,” I said, “that these animals being slaughtered for us to eat are every bit as smart and lovable and sensitive as their own dog or cat. Then ask your students if they think shooting these cows, pigs, chickens, or turkeys in the head, hanging them upside down, and slicing their throats is a cool thing to do. Instead, we could eat all plants, which are infinitely healthier for your students to eat and for our planet to grow."
"One large reason for our state of UN-sustainability is because of the education process imposed on us by the meat and dairy industry, with their massive multibillion dollar advertising campaigns, lobbying, and political efforts. They infuse us with thoughts that their food is healthy for us and, of course, there is no mention of what they are doing behind the scenes to our planet."
"All meat and fish items are products that are derived from animals that are very capable of carrying out thought processes and feeling emotions. So, unfortunately, whenever you eat any part of any animal, you are contributing to the abuse of another living being. No matter what they are called (hot dog, steak, burger, etc.), it is still an animal."
"While shark fin soup has been banned in 11 of U.S. states, the policy debated in other countries for international governance is yet to be established. The media has portrayed the practice to be in decline since 2012, however, shark meat and perpetuation of shark death, by way of bykill and lack of policy or enforcement methods, is on the increase globally."
"The only way we can ensure a sustainable future (and profitable businesses) is with proper food choice and a quick departure from our current demand for animals and animal products, moving entirely to a plant-based diet."