Causecast

Tanaka time…

So I am very sad that today was my last class with Sustainable Works! But more workshops will be held in the near future, I recommend going to them they are very helpful and enlightening!

Well I’m glad our last class ended with talking about food, because this week The Green Project is paralleling the same topic. I want to start off with a couple of statistics which I find eye-opening….

• 6,000 gallons of water is used to produce 1 pound of beef.

• 17-30% of fossil fuels used goes towards meat tractors for farming, powering slaughter houses, transporting animals/meat to slaughter houses & grocery stores, and keeping meat in your fridge.

• The United States comes in 3rd place for consuming the most meat in the world.

• The meat industry is one of the top 3 environmental problems around the world.

Okay, so a few of the statistics I’ve shared concerns meat, I am not in any way putting down the meat eaters out there, instead I find this information to be very informative. I used to eat meat, but gave it up almost 11 years ago, and it wasn’t for animal rights reasons at first. I changed my eating habits because I heard a plant based diet could be healthier, plus the texture of steaks and chicken never sat very well with me. After hearing these statistics, I became more concerned with the environment and animals, rather than the people eating the meat I guess you can say, even though over consuming meat leads to these problems.

So how can you curb these results without giving up meat? You can consume less. You can also watch the labels on packaging when you grocery shop. Make sure food is certified USDA Organic, California Farmers Certified Organic, Fair Trade Certified Organic, Forest Stewardship Council, Green Seal, and Marine Stewardship Council Chain of Custody (seafood traceability). As Nancy from Sustainable Works suggested, never assume “cage-free” means better meat and animal farming practices, because this label doesn’t mean anything really. Even if farmers claim animals are cage-free, it could mean the chickens, cows, or pigs are just let out to roam in a smaller compact space inside of a structure plagued with diseases from feces and sickness.

When you go to the grocery store, do you ever wonder what is really lingering on the surface of your fruits and vegetables? Well the website “What’s On My Food?” provides you with a list of foods that you may be buying that have pesticides, hormones, and other toxic chemicals.

If you want to stop eating meat all together, make sure you do your research and plan the right vegetarian diet for you. PETA’s Vegetarian Starter Kit has a bunch of useful information, tips, and recipes to get you off on the right foot.

Are you looking for restaurants, lounges, or bars near you that have organic products and incorporate eco-friendly designs and materials within their business? Then bookmark these).

1. Real Food Daily, Santa Monica or West Hollywood, CA – They also have an awesome cookbook! 2. ECCO Ultra Lounge – Hollywood, CA – They made sure to include eco-friendly concrete floors, LED lighting, and paper use reduction in toilets! Go ECCO! 3. Zephyr Vegetarian Cafe – Long Beach, CA – I had their tofu steak and it was delicious!!! 4. 118 Degrees – Costa Mesa, CA – Their Lemon Pomegranate Bars sound phenomenal!

Want more lists of restaurants in your area? The Great Green List has many options for you.

NOTE: Keep your good food and recycling habits in mind for the holiday season too! Transform your Black Friday after Thanksgiving into a Buy Nothing Day in support to lessen consumer spending and waste.

Photo by NatalieMaynor, flickr.