Livestock Industry Bullying on Meatless Mondays Campaign Doesn’t Change Facts–Or Consumer Trends

[marmar]

from Civil Eats:


Livestock Industry Bullying on Meatless Mondays Campaign Doesn’t Change Facts–Or Consumer Trends
By Sasha Lyutse on June 24, 2013


The Meatless Mondays campaign encourages consumers to skip meat one day a week in favor of plant-based foods, and highlights how this simple action can help improve their health and reduce the environmental impacts of their diets. Seems small, but the collective impacts are potentially anything but. According to estimates by the Humane Society of the United States, if every American embraced Meatless Mondays, we would need to raise 1.4 billion fewer farm animals. That translates into a lot fewer toxic chemicals, reduced climate pollution, healthier soils and waterways, and a lot less animal cruelty.

But when a food company decided to implement the initiative in House of Representative cafeterias this month, the conventional livestock industry was quick to pounce—in highly hyperbolic fashion.

In a letter to the House Administration Committee, the euphemistically named “Farm Animal Welfare Coalition” called Meatless Mondays “an acknowledged tool of animal rights and environmental organizations who seek to publicly denigrate U.S. livestock and poultry production.” The group asked the Committee to inform the company that “it must cease immediately” any activity promoting Meatless Mondays. Unfortunately, the effort now appears dead in its tracks.

Last year, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) was similarly pressured into removing language promoting Meatless Mondays from a sustainability newsletter to employees after facing pressure from the National Cattleman’s Beef Association, which I discussed here. That’s right. Not a press release or any kind of policy document. An internal employee newsletter suggesting that one way to reduce their environmental impact while dining at their office cafeteria is to skip meat once a week. ...............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://civileats.com/2013/06/24/livestock-industry-bullying-on-meatless-mondays-campaign-doesnt-change-facts-or-consumer-trends/#sthash.oOOhfpIw.dpuf

[Politicalboi]

1. Gee how come nobody complained

When the catholics eat fish on Friday's? Big mighty NCBA is scared of losing a few bucks. I hardly eat meat anymore. I still do, but not as much as I used too.