If everybody who cares stopped eating animal foods…
… we would eventually only be left with industries determining what we get to eat.
If everybody who is conscious and cares about animal welfare, sustainability and the planet stopped eating animal foods, we would eventually be left with degeneration only. Yes, even if we buy all our plant foods organic and try to avoid the processed stuff.
How come?
Because truly regenerative farming is inconceivable without animals, at least on a global scale, in most contexts and environments.
If we want to support a kind of agriculture that truly increases soil health and fertility and also allows the farmers to live a quality life (both not a requirement under the organic label), we have to buy what the farmers investing all their time and energy into that purpose on a daily basis, produce and that (usually) includes animal foods.
We are not supporting them enough if we buy only plants (in fact, I have not even been able yet to find regeneratively produced grain, only “organic”, which is not the same). And we are definitely not supporting them at all if we buy our (organic) food in the big, anonymous surfaces, which by definition are industrial and price-oriented.
If the small farmers go out of business (as they are currently doing), we lose the very people keeping alive ancient breeds of animals and varieties of plants, so crucial for biodiversity and a certain independence and sovereignty of the food system. We also lose local economy and people taking care of rural areas, which increases both the risk of wildfires and conflicts.
Sure, not all small farmers are working regeneratively, far from it. The current legislation also obliges even regenerative animal farmers to have their animals sacrificed in big slaughterhouses. AND by supporting the ones who are walking into the right direction, we help them gain back power to shape things in their favor.
If we only buy plant foods, we might just switch from left to right pocket in the industrial bank account. By buying plant milk or soy meat (even if organic), we are (mostly) supporting the same companies involved in factory farming. Even if we buy only fresh veggies and lentils from our local, organic farmer, we are eventually not supporting a true change of the system, as explained above.
Image taken from my book “The Fertile Path”
Rather than dropping out completely, by not eating any animal foods, let’s use our money to vote for and shape the way we want animals to be raised.
Because like it or not, they WILL continue to be raised, if only for all the people who DONT care.
You can never eat any animal and still contribute to the death of a lot of life if the (plant) food you eat has been produced in a degenerative way, in a way that kills soil, because all LIfe depends on soil. And you can help regenerate the environment and protect biodiversity and thus Life by eating individual animals. Death is unavoidable, It all depends which place we are coming from.
Eat what you want to keep and support what you want to see grow.
