The “meat and potatoes” prove we are wrong!

Let’s assume for the sake of this explanation, that there is a possibility that majority of the people
might be getting misleading information about the true impact human species have on our
surroundings. Is it possible that our way of life is not entirely correct and that we are making big
mistakes like eating too much meat??

Let me give you an example: To produce one pound of beef approximately 10-16 pounds of grain
need to be grown, gathered and fed to the cattle. This demands water, seed, fuel and of course grain. In
order to speed up the production process the cattle is fed with hormones which cause several illnesses.
Also, the water-waste produced during the process often pollutes surrounding streams, rivers and well
water-reserves, not to mention the cattle consume a large amount of water. During their life-time,
mostly because of the grain, the cattle produce 16% of the total methane gases which are greenhouse
pollutants. Once “ripe” the cattle has to be slaughtered, processed, packaged and delivered to stores
which also demands energy. According to professor Pimentel of Cornell University, the author of
more than 20 books and 500 articles, the total amount of water used to produce a pound of beef is
12,009 gallons! According to the USDA, one pound of ground lean beef has 1197.5 calories. The
USDA lists one pound of potatoes as containing 288 calories. To get roughly the same amount of
calories from potatoes as you do from a pound of beef, you would need 4.15 pounds of potatoes.

Because we are not informed of the true price of one pound of beef and most of us do not feel the
consequences directly, we do not choose to eat less meat. While producers of industrial meat know
these facts well, it is just not in their financial interest to inform us about them, regardless of the
consequences for the environment.

Now try and apply this critical point of view to all new trends and products with the “green” or
“environmentally friendly” label on them. You would need too much time and a whole lot of
knowledge if you wanted to truly know what is sustainable. Or you could just frequently visit
independent critical sites which post information about these products and are open to discussion
about them.