HEARTY & HEALTHY

How Can a Plant-based Diet Help The Environment?

June 30, 2020

The challenges we’re faced with today — with regard to the environment — are vast and diverse.

These challenges range from the destruction of animal and plant habitats through deforestation to the predictions of leading environmental experts about global warming.

If you are just like us, health-conscious and environment-conscious, the predictions can be terrifying. Thankfully, there are actionable ways we can protect our environment and the earth at large.

One way we can help save and protect the environment is by eating more plant-based diets such as soybeans products, vegetarian products, and plant-based meat.

Ways that Plant-based Diets Can Help the Environment

1. Reduce Carbon Footprint

Animal agriculture has contributed significantly to global warming. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, livestock production is responsible for 14.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The manure produced by livestock is responsible for 37% of agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. Also, manure and its management in factory farms produce large amounts of methane — a gas that warms the earth 20 times faster than carbon dioxide.

2. Conserve Water

Agriculture takes up about 70% of freshwater use. It makes the agricultural sector the largest water-consuming industry in the world. In this statistic, meat and dairy products are at the forefront of large water consumption.

According to the Water Footprint Network, it takes 2,000 gallons of water to produce just one gallon of milk. Which is why plant based products such as soy beans, oats, almonds and cashews are recommended substitutes to dairy products.

3. Reduce or Eliminate Dead Zones

The leading cause of pollution and ocean dead zones is animal agriculture. The wastes from factory farms are usually kept in giant lagoons and applied to crops as fertilizer — untreated.

The thousands of toxins contained in such large amounts of manure cannot all be absorbed by the soil. The unabsorbed toxins find their way into groundwater and then into rivers and oceans, where they end up destroying marine ecosystems due to oxygen depletion.

4. Provide Cleaner Air

All those tons of manure that results in dead zones are also responsible for producing ammonia, which is the most potent form of nitrogen, that kills fish, encourages algae growth, and contributes to smog.

Furthermore, the air surrounding factory farms usually contains high levels of hydrogen sulfide, particulate matter, endotoxins, carbon dioxide, and methane.

5. Reduce Climate Change Impact

Food production contributes up to 30% of total greenhouse gas emissions, with animal products contributing up to three-quarters of these effects.

Future projections show that vegetarian diets were associated with the most considerable reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions. Another research also found that consuming more beans instead of animal product such as beef could significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

6. Alleviates Hunger

There are several reports that more than 800 million people across the world lack adequate food. The reason is directly related to the fact that almost two-thirds of all soybeans, maize, barley, and a third of all grains are used to produce animal foods.

The fight to protect our environment is fought on our plates daily, with the food choice we make. By eating more plant-based diets, you can reduce your carbon footprint, eliminate dead zones, breathe cleaner air, and ensure that essential crops are available to feed people instead of livestock.

With the abundance of plant-based meat, soybeans, and vegetarian products in Malaysia, it is now easy to eat with the consciousness of helping the environment. For more information, feel free to get in touch with us.