Veganism and the Environment
By Vanshi Agrawal (H/462) Wednesday, Aug 18, 2021
Veganism is one of the most popularly growing lifestyles all around the world. Briefly explained, veganism is the way of life that excludes all forms of animal consumption, (including all by-products) in diet, clothing or any other purpose. This manner of living has become widely popularized in the past years, with growing concerns and awareness for the environment, animal cruelty and health in general.
The vegan lifestyle, especially the diet affects the environment radically, in both positive and negative ways. It is mostly assumed that veganism is only beneficial for the environment, but that has been proved wrong.
Out of the many pros of vegan lifestyles, there are some that are more prominent. Land conservation is one of these positives. It is obvious that animal consumption goes down with the rise in veganism, which results in a decreasing need to keep livestock, meaning that there is no need for pastures or land to grow crops to feed the livestock and hence, no forests or green areas need to be cut down. Cattle ranching in the Amazon contributes to 80% of deforestation and thus adopting a vegan lifestyle would be a big solution to the issue of land shortage and deforestation.
It is also one single huge answer to the increasing greenhouse emissions. Cattle, especially cows, are a huge contributor to the increasing methane levels. Even the stored manure releases methane. Decrease in methane emissions will help reduce climate change. Carbon dioxide will automatically decrease alongside deforestation.
Veganism also, of course, addresses the issue of animal cruelty. Animals are treated harshly and kept in abusive conditions often. Reducing the need for animal products and by-products will lead to a safer environment for them.
However, there are some negative effects of veganism too. Like all others, veganism is also negatively impacted by industrial agriculture, meat substitutes and water shortage.
Growing plant based foods needs very specific conditions. Crops are grown in very selective places, usually very far away from the consumer. Transportation of these products alone uses a huge amount of energy and often these products, being perishable, go to waste.
Meat substitutes are rapidly gaining popularity in vegan culture. However what most people fail to recognize, is that meat substitutes require a lot of water and energy to be used and it basically lays waste to the main agenda of veganism for the benefits of the environment.
Water consumption is a big issue the vegan community is yet to solve. Most plant based popular foods such as avocados use an enormous amount of water. Water is already scarce in places and this is one of the biggest challenges the vegan lifestyle is yet to overcome.
It is tough to decide whether following a vegan lifestyle is the right way to go or not, and that is a personal choice for everyone. But we can make basic changes in our diets, vegan or not, and try and make it just a little more environment friendly. We can change our world by changing what is on our plates!
-Vanshi Agrawal (H/462)
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