Today the Guardian published a useful guide on how to cut your carbon emissions by 10%; which is about 1.5 tonnes for the average person. It’s a long list of 51 different carbon cutting measures and right at the top of the list, beaten only by ‘never fly’, ’sell the second car’, and ‘cut your annual car mileage in half’ is ‘go vegan three days a week‘, which will result in a cut of 0.5 tonnes of carbon emissions per year. ‘Change to an almost entirely vegetarian diet, using mostly unprocessed wholefoods such as grains, seeds and nuts’ will also result in the same saving.

Going vegan for just 3 days a week will save five times more carbon emissions than regularly washing over the sink instead of taking showers or getting rid of your freezer, and over twice as much as installing a solar hot water system or buying a wood burning stove.

Asking people to change their eating habits is always a tough ask, by when you look at the huge impact reducing your meat and dairy consumption can achieve, how can anyone who cares about the future of our planet not at least give it a try?

To see the full list, in order of greatest CO2 saving first, go to;

How to cut your carbon footprint

A new report from Bangor University suggests that intensive animal farming is better for the environment than extensive farming.

It is not the first time that researchers have claimed that intensive animal farming is more environmentally friendly than extensive methods. With intensive methods farmers can control the temperature of barns resulting in animals using less energy to keep warm or cool and thus having more energy to grow, and farmers can also better control manure and slurry. Intensive farming also uses substantially less land than organic methods.

On the other hand, environmental organisations, such as Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth, promote organic methods over intensive farming. Organic farming is much more in tune with nature and is thus better for biodiversity; it is less polluting as it does not result in massive amounts of waste which poison waterways with nitrogen and it also tends to use less energy than intensive methods. The energy efficiency of organic farming is due to the use of organic matter to put nutrients in to the soil rather than energy-intensive fertilisers.

Whilst farmers and environmental groups battle it out; the truth is clear. When it comes to animal agriculture there isn’t a sustainable, environmentally responsible solution. Both organic and intensive livestock farming methods are environmentally destructive in their own ways. For example, whilst organic milk requires less energy and eliminates pesticide use it also requires more land and results in higher emissions of greenhouse gases. Whilst organically raised chickens do not need high levels of anti-biotics to protect them from the diseases which spread like wildfire in broiler sheds, they also take longer to reach their slaughter weight, and thus consume more energy and produce more waste during their longer lives.

The best option for the environment is to eat a plant-based diet; no one can argue with that.

Two new reports have been released to highlight the escalating number of starving people in the world - now estimated to be nearly a billion - a sixth of the world’s population.

Oxfam’s report ‘A Billion Hungry People’ and Chatham House’s report ‘The Feeding of the Nine Billion’ call for urgent action in the light of increasing food prices plus an increase in energy and water scarcity which are exacerbating and already devastating situation for the world’s poor.

Barbara Stocking, Oxfam Chief Executive, said: “This should be a wake-up call for all those who believe that the food crisis is over. World leaders have a window of opportunity to prevent a worse situation resulting from the triple crunch of the economic crisis, climate change, and energy and water scarcity. They must act urgently to turn their plans into coordinated action that addresses immediate needs and begins to implement long-term reforms. Failure to act will see millions more people falling into hunger.”

Oxfam recommends reform of the humanitarian aid system and calls for poor countries to invest more in agriculture, targeting women and small-scale producers. However, there is little mention of using the resources we already have more efficiently and fairly. The livestock industry wastes precious resources (such as land, water and energy) whilst causing climate change and other environmental damage. Hundreds of millions of tonnes of grain are fed to animals every year instead of to the hungry. A world free of hunger can only exist if we all choose to eat sustainably and equitably, and that does not include animal products.

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Read more about why a meat-free diet is better for the environment and human rights.

3.2 million people tuned in to Claire Sweeney’s ‘My Big Fat Diet’ last night. The documentary illustrated what happens, in as little time as 6 weeks, when you eat what you want and don’t exercise.

In under a minute in to the programme, we see Claire eating a burger and ice cream. She also tells us she is looking forward to eating full fat butter.

At the beginning, Claire is 9st 13, has a Body Mass index of 21.3, fat content of 22% and a very healthy pulse rate of 60, blood pressure of 110/70 and a waist size 27.5 inches. To maintain this, she has 3 intensive sessions per week with a personal trainer (and often dancing daily due to her job) and a very strict diet. After just 6 weeks, she was 11 st 12.5, a BMI of 25.2, fat content of a whopping 30%, waist size of 38 inches and a blood pressure reading of 150/110 - which is in the zone of high blood pressure, increasing her risk of a heart attack or stroke.

The clips in the programme showed Claire eating a lot of meat, dairy and egg; as well as many chips! I wonder if she went on a full fat vegan binge whether she would have gained quite so much weight? It’s almost impossible to consume too much fat as a vegan and the fat you do eat is almost exclusively good fat (unless you find vegan cakes and biscuits made with hydrogenated fat), since saturated fats can only be found in animal products.

The programme motivated me to get back on the scales; the first time for a couple of months. With Christmas and New Year just gone (and I ate loads!), and having not exercised any more than walking the dogs for the last few months I was expecting to see some weight gain. As it turns out, I’ve lost a few pounds (now 8st 9) and still have a low 23.6% fat content. My BMI is 18.9. I eat healthily - lots of fruit, veg and grains as you would expect for a vegan - but I also drink wine and beer, eat dark chocolate (almost every day) and crisps, indulge in cake and chips now and again and it seems almost impossible to put weight on.

Alanis Morissette was also in the press this week. She has gone vegan and lost 20 pounds since September. She says in an OK! interview “I feel very alive. Even after a workout, I feel like if I rest a little bit I could go out dancing all night, so that’s exciting. I have no more aches and pains, and my allergies are gone, too.”

So, if you don’t have the timeor money for personal trainers and hours of working out every week, plus you can’t face a really strict diet with no treats, don’t do it Claire’s way, do it Alanis’ way and go vegan!

A major report by the World Cancer Research Fund will yet again prove the link between red meat and cancer.

We’ve heard it over and over again, but here is more evidence to prove to the meat industry, that along with the tobacco industry, they are killers.

21 experts have spent 5 years researching this report which will warn the public of the dangers of pork, beef and lamb. As one in three cancers are diet related, it’s time for people to think carefully about what they eat or face the consequences. Going vegetarian is a small price to pay to avoid operations, months of debilitating chemotherapy and an uncertain future.

Other serious cancer risks are alcohol and obesity. As meat and dairy are the main sources of unhealthy saturated fats which can lead to obesity, a vegetarian or vegan diet is an easy way to protect yourself from cancer.

Read Observer article

A study by Germany’s Institute for Ecological Economy Research has proved yet again that a meat-free diet is the best dietary choice for the environment.

The study shows that a diet which includes meat is responsible for annual greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to the same as driving a mid-sized car 4,758km. A vegetarian diet is responsible for generating 50% less (same emissions as driving 2,427km) and most remarkably, going vegan cuts the emissions released by around 87% (to the equivalent of driving just 629km).

It’s also interesting to note switching to an organic meat-based diet only reduces emissions by around 8% - from the equivalent of 4,758km to 4,377km.

The calculations are based on emissions of greenhouse gases, including methane produced by the animals themselves, as well as emissions from food production including manufacturing feed and fertiliser and the use of farmland.

This is certainly not the first or last to prove that eating meat is bad for the environment. Now enough of the studies and more action! No more excuses.

The charity Diabetes UK has released new figures which indicate that diabetes indirectly kills one person in 10 in England. Diabetes causes strokes, heart attacks and kidney failure. Douglas Smallwood, chief executive of Diabetes UK, said “there are 2.3 million people diagnosed with diabetes and over half a million don’t know they have it.”

Type 2 diabetes, which is associated with unhealthy diets and lifestyles, may account for as much as 95% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes. The recent increase in childhood diabetes is thought to be linked to the increase in obesity in children and many medical professionals fear an epidemic of childhood type 2 diabetes is on the horizon.

Red meat consumption has also been shown to be an independent risk factor in the onset of type 2 diabetes. According to research published earlier this year by the University of Minnesota, there is a strong link between red meat and diabetes. The scientists recommend that servings of red meat are strictly limited to just two per week. Eating more than this leads to greater levels of metabolic syndrome, also known as pre-diabetes. Other studies have reached the same conclusion. In 2004, researchers studied 37,309 women for nearly 9 years and ‘found that a higher consumption of red meat, especially total processed meat, was associated with an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes in middle-aged and older U.S. women’.

Fast food chains invest millions in advertising campaigns to target children and they must be held accountable for the damage they are causing to children’s health. It has long been known that consumption of red meat, which is high in saturated fats, leads to heart disease and some forms of cancer, but now we have sufficient proof that it also leads to diabetes. Help your children live a long and happy life by establishing healthy eating habits whilst they are still at home; and that means lots of plant-based foods, which are vitamin and mineral rich, naturally very low in unhealthy saturated fats, have plenty of fibre and high levels of anti-oxidants, which fight disease.

Try to tempt a die-hard carnivore to eat vegetarian or vegan food and the response is usually very predictable; ‘it’s so bland, I’m not eating that rabbit food!’. It’s no secret to thousands of ethical eaters that meatless food tastes great, but now comes a study which shows that the issue of taste is all in the mind.

Michael W. Allen (University of Sydney), Richa Gupta (University of Nashville), and Arnaud Monnier (National Engineer School for Food Industries and Management, France) (see ref 42) carried out a number of experiments that examined the symbolic meaning of foods and drinks. They found that when it came to tasting meat, what influenced participants was what they thought they had eaten rather than what they actually ate.

The authors stated that “Heavy meat eaters claim that they eat meat because it tastes better than other foods, such as meat substitutes. Our results challenge that claim. Participants who ate the vegetarian alternative did not rate the taste and aroma less favorably than those who ate the beef product. Instead, what influenced taste evaluation was what they thought they had eaten and whether that food symbolized values that they personally supported”.

They went on to give ideas of strategies for changing the diets of meat eaters. Perhaps the most important is to change the cultural values associated with meat, such as power and strength, and to attribute these to fruits and vegetables. Another is to carry out further blind taste tests; which is something we can all do. Any vegetarian who hasn’t sneaked in a tray of veggie sausage rolls at the family picnic should be ashamed of themselves!

Vegan parents in Scotland are facing criminal charges because their 12-year old child suffers from rickets and is said to have the spine of an 80-year old.

Doctors have taken the easy option and immediately pointed their fingers at the vegan diet. Let’s get something straight, the skin makes its own vitamin D when exposed to sunlight and this is main source of the vitamin, not the diet. Many of the 15-20% of adults in the UK with vitamin D deficiency have become so because they do not spend enough time outside.

Many foods are now being fortified with vitamin D in recognition of the fact that dietary sources are rare; only liver, some fish and egg yolk are thought to have a good amount. Just 15 minutes outside 3 times a week from April to September provides you with all the vitamin D you need (a little longer if you have dark skin); a supplement is recommended for winter months.

Personally, I don’t know any children who eat a lot of fish, liver or egg yolk and since The Department of Health recommends only that children aged between six months and four years take vitamin A, C and D supplements I wouldn’t imagine many children take supplements either. Therefore the obvious conclusion is that most children get their vitamin D from fortified foods (such as margarine and cereals) and from playing outside in the sunshine, neither of which have much to do with a vegan diet.

A far more serious issue, harming many many more children than veganism, is the excessive consumption of meat and dairy. If you want to blame anyone for childhood illness and the misery caused by a life-long fight against obesity (let alone the heart disease, cancer and other illness that meat and obesity cause), blame the millions of parents who take their children for birthday parties at McDonalds or KFC.

Mac Danzig is an Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter. After Mac turned vegan, he won 12 fights in a row. He then went on to win the last series of the US show The Ultimate Fighter and is a finalist in the Men’s Health “25 Fittest Guys In America” competition.

In an interview with Men’s Health he explains how cutting out dairy to get rid of allergies then lead to him abandoning nonsensical theories about needing meat to be strong and thus becoming vegan, for the sake of his health and animals.

I’m no fan of fighting, but Mac proves we don’t need meat or dairy to be healthy. If he can maintain his supreme health and strength with such a demanding lifestyle, I’d say it’s pretty damn easy for the rest of us!