Prince Charles tells America to cut down on steaks
Interesting article I found and wanted to share….
Tsem Rinpoche
(Image extracted from: http://www.faqs.org/photo-dict/phrase/564/cattle.html)
Prince Charles tells America to cut down on steaks… for the sake of the world
America’s appetite for beef is jeopardising the world’s water supply, the Prince of Wales said during a visit to the US.
By Jon Swaine, in Washington 7:32AM BST 05 May 2011
In a speech in Washington, the Prince said that the need for vast amounts of irrigation in industrialised food production was threatening to deplete reserves of the “magical substance we have taken for granted for so long”.
“For every pound of beef produced in the industrial system, it takes two thousand gallons of water,” he told the Future of Food conference at Georgetown University.
“That is a lot of water and there is plenty of evidence that the Earth cannot keep up with the demand.”
Americans eat more than 41kg of beef a year on average, according to the UN, almost twice that consumed by Britons and four times the international average.
The Prince called for an overhaul of food production, championing organic and sustainable techniques, and also criticised the US for allowing the destruction of vast regions of its rural land.
“Here in the United States I am told one acre is lost to development every minute of every day, which means that since 1982 an area the size of Indiana has been built over,” he told the 700–strong audience. “Again, in the US, soil is being washed away 10 times faster than the Earth can replenish it.”
Five days after the marriage of Prince William, the Prince said his address made “a change from making embarrassing speeches about my eldest son”.
(Extracted from: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/theroyalfamily/8494171/Prince-Charles-tells-America-to-cut-down-on-steaks-…-for-the-sake-of-the-world.html)
Good article.
In the 80s, most of the people who become vegetarian because of religion. In the 90s, the main reason for people to become vegetarian is because of health. Now, driving force behind the vegetarianism is for the environment.
It is very hard to believe that how much resource has been spent just to produce a piece of steak. With the same resources, I felt we can almost eradicate famine in Africa.
If it is difficult for you to go 100% vegetarian, at least cut down meat. I felt that’s the least one can do for our mother earth.
Dear Lew,
I like your comparison of the habits of the different decades. I wonder if it should be considered progress – where we move from self centered reasons for becoming vegetarian (health) to something that affects more than just ourselves (environment).
I am glad the reason for becoming vegetarian is less focused on religion — why? because it makes vegetarianism more open to everyone else and less focused on a particular religious group. The best reason to be vegetarian is because we do not want to cause pain and suffering on another living being. Why? Its fact based, its kind, its harmless and it is logical. I hope more people adopt this.
There is so much resources spent on maintaining, feeding and growing livestock. From when they are grazing on the greens, the water, feed, corn, are excessively depleted. After that, the transportation of the livestock from the farm to the slaughterhouse causes environmental pollution, alot of usage with diesel, and most importantly, discomfort for the livestock – all that just for the satisfaction of our tastebuds.
The taste that lingers on our tastebuds are temporary – it doesn’t last, after the meal, we go to the toilet, and then it’s forgotten. BUT what lingers is the karma created. What lingers is that a life was lost for your meal. What lingers is that the environment got a little bit more polluted because of your meal. What lingers is the depletion of our resources. Is all of this worth it just for one meal?
It is not like we cannot survive without meat, or one less steak. I thought I couldn’t but I have. Nothing is impossible. It is just mind over matter.
It’s refreshing that the Prince is promoting the decrease of beef consumption due to environmental issues. We need more prominent figures to promote this. It will also decrease the number of cattle from suffering and dying just to feed our stomachs.
If we still continue to be in denial and ignore this appeal, we will experience more environmental problems.