Nicolette Hahn Niman, a lawyer and livestock rancher, is the author of “Righteous Porkchop: Finding a Life and Good Food Beyond Factory Farms.” wrote a piece for the NY Times called, The Carnivore’s Dilemma.

In the piece, she concludes:

“None of us, whether we are vegan or omnivore, can entirely avoid foods that play a role in global warming. Singling out meat is misleading and unhelpful, especially since few people are likely to entirely abandon animal-based foods. Mr. Gore, for one, apparently has no intention of going vegan. The 90 percent of Americans who eat meat and dairy are likely to respond the same way.”

“Still, there are numerous reasonable ways to reduce our individual contributions to climate change through our food choices. Because it takes more resources to produce meat and dairy than, say, fresh locally grown carrots, it’s sensible to cut back on consumption of animal-based foods. More important, all eaters can lower their global warming contribution by following these simple rules: avoid processed foods and those from industrialized farms; reduce food waste; and buy local and in season.”

My thoughts on this article:

Niman is right that most Americans won’t stop eating meat tomorrow, regardless of the damage to the environment or human health. They just don’t care enough to make a real, lasting, significant change.

She’s wrong to mislead readers in to thinking that it’s easier to “avoid processed foods and those from industrialized farms” than to go vegan. Her suggested style of eating (“conscientious” carnism) requires much more effort than simply opting for beans or tofu rather than cow or chicken flesh.

For example: a vegan can shop at the local grocery store. They simply shop mostly in the produce section and get some bags or cans of beans, rice, pasta, oatmeal, etc. But a “conscientious carnivore” must go to Whole Foods or a local farmer’s market, which is an unrealistic expectation for most Americans. Beans and rice are available at every grocery store in the US. “Humane” meat isn’t.

She’s right to suggest the possibility that “a conscientious meat eater may have a more environmentally friendly diet than your average vegetarian.”

She’s wrong to suggest such a possibility is probable.

She’s right to remind readers of the link between soybean crops and deforestation. And she’s right to point out that much of the soy is grown to feed animals in industrial farms.

Niman is wrong to imply that vegetarians need to rely on soy for protein. That’s a flat-out myth. There are plenty of high protein plant foods available to vegetarians and vegans.

But more importantly, most people don’t need to seek out high protein plant foods when they go veg, they need only eat enough plant-based foods in order to consume adequate amounts of protein. (See the FAQ for more info.)

I think Niman is doing a good thing by encouraging meat-reduction. But ultimately, is it enough?

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Thank to Mimi for the link.

Sections: Vegan Et Cetera
Topics: al gore, Carnivore’s Dilemma, climate change, farmers market, global warming, happy meat, humane meat, local, locavore, locovore, Nicolette Hahn Niman, omnivore, realistic, Righteous Porkchop, shopping, slow food, Vegan, whole foods