Why I gave up eating meat

I gave up eating mammals about two years ago. At first it was terrible. Oh, how I longed for a hamburger at In n out or The Habit! What about a nice steak or carne asada burrito? But I kept my wits and haven't ate a mammal ever since.

But wait let me back up a bit. Why on Earth would I give up eating something so delicious? Why sacrifice the enjoyment of some amazing food? A few months before I decided it was time to move on from beef, pork, and lamb, I started to become aware of the impact the global livestock industry has on the planet. I began to see empirical evidence that our diets caused more damage to the climate and sustainability of our planet than all types of transportation combined. Transportation is necessary. Obviously people could utilize transportation more efficiently or travel locally instead of venturing from one spot of Earth to another for vacation, but there are really competitive alternatives to eating meat, with a lot more coming in the future. So I figured why not just jump into the future now? And I haven't regretted it for a day since then.

The awareness gap

The marginalization of livestock within mainstream climate policy discourse might reasonably be expected to contribute to low levels of media attention and awareness among publics. Where they exist, national polls and assessments do indicate low levels of coverage and public understanding of the links between meat and dairy consumption and climate change. A multinational survey undertaken in 2014 concluded that ‘many consumers, especially those who eat meat more regularly than others, do not think that meat consumption is environmentally detrimental’. This awareness gap inhibits a demand-side response. Understanding of the livestock sector’s contribution to climate change is a precondition for voluntary consumer action to reduce emissions from meat and dairy products. Some personal sacrifices to help promote sustainability are necessary to successfully mitigate personal greenhouse gas emissions.