Now that we can turn the lights out for one hour a year, are we ready to skip eating meat for one day a week as well? It's not like we haven't been told that one non-meat day a week can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. David Suzuki, in Australia to promote his new book Suzuki's Green Guide said it a few days ago.
Last year Paul McCartney was encouraging the British to drop meat from the menu once a week for the planet's health, while the chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Dr Rajendra Pachauri, said one meat free day a week would help tackle climate change. As we all know by now, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates that meat production accounts for nearly a fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions .
But while urgings to cut meat consumption for the planet's sake aren't new, perhaps what's missing is more practical guidance on how to do it. It's one thing to screw in an energy-efficient light bulb now and again, but for some people creating a meal minus meat as it's centrepiece is a bigger step. It's partly about cooking skills, but not entirely. It's also about tweaking attitudes in a country where an image of a dinner plate dominated by meat or chicken is still the norm, and where the word meatless - in many minds at least - somehow equals deprivation.
When I first began cooking non-meat meals years ago it had nothing to do with the environment or ethics, but (another) financial crisis - in a long running journalist's strike there was an urgent need to drastically trim the family budget. It was then that I discovered what great dishes you could make from foods like split peas and white beans, or by combining grains with nuts. From that time on I never saw a meatless meal as going without - just eating different food with its own appeal.
A few things to think about:
- A meat-free meal doesn't mean being nutrient deprived. There's no rule that says you need meat every day - the current Dietary Guidelines for Australian Adults recommend a small (teensy, in fact) 65g-100g of cooked meat three or four times a week.
- If you can't imagine a meal without meat - at least not yet - try reducing the amount of meat you eat at each meal by adding extra veg. Or try replacing some of the meat with legumes like canned red kidney beans or black beans added to chili, or canned lentils added to a pasta sauce or casseroles (and think of the money you'll save).
- Reducing meat consumption isn't so much about doing without as eating more of something else. it's a great opportunity to broaden your mix of plant foods - and nutrients - and to experiment. The cuisines of Greece, Italy, India and the Middle East are great sources of dishes based on legumes and grains.
Cooler autumn days are a great time to try your hand at some meatless mains and there are plenty of good websites to browse for inspiration like the BBC Good Food site - check out this vegetable and cashew biryani - or Meatless Monday's dinner recipe archive on the Johns Hopkins University site.
Posted by Paula Goodyer
Copyright © 2009. Fairfax Digital.
April 1, 2009
AUSTRALIA: We can do Earth Hour - How about one meatless day a week too?
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SYDNEY, NSW / The Sydney Morning Herald / Life & Style / Chew On This / April 1, 2009
Now that we can turn the lights out for one hour a year, are we ready to skip eating meat for one day a week as well? It's not like we haven't been told that one non-meat day a week can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. David Suzuki, in Australia to promote his new book Suzuki's Green Guide said it a few days ago.
Last year Paul McCartney was encouraging the British to drop meat from the menu once a week for the planet's health, while the chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Dr Rajendra Pachauri, said one meat free day a week would help tackle climate change. As we all know by now, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates that meat production accounts for nearly a fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions .
But while urgings to cut meat consumption for the planet's sake aren't new, perhaps what's missing is more practical guidance on how to do it. It's one thing to screw in an energy-efficient light bulb now and again, but for some people creating a meal minus meat as it's centrepiece is a bigger step. It's partly about cooking skills, but not entirely. It's also about tweaking attitudes in a country where an image of a dinner plate dominated by meat or chicken is still the norm, and where the word meatless - in many minds at least - somehow equals deprivation.
When I first began cooking non-meat meals years ago it had nothing to do with the environment or ethics, but (another) financial crisis - in a long running journalist's strike there was an urgent need to drastically trim the family budget. It was then that I discovered what great dishes you could make from foods like split peas and white beans, or by combining grains with nuts. From that time on I never saw a meatless meal as going without - just eating different food with its own appeal.
A few things to think about:
- A meat-free meal doesn't mean being nutrient deprived. There's no rule that says you need meat every day - the current Dietary Guidelines for Australian Adults recommend a small (teensy, in fact) 65g-100g of cooked meat three or four times a week.
- If you can't imagine a meal without meat - at least not yet - try reducing the amount of meat you eat at each meal by adding extra veg. Or try replacing some of the meat with legumes like canned red kidney beans or black beans added to chili, or canned lentils added to a pasta sauce or casseroles (and think of the money you'll save).
- Reducing meat consumption isn't so much about doing without as eating more of something else. it's a great opportunity to broaden your mix of plant foods - and nutrients - and to experiment. The cuisines of Greece, Italy, India and the Middle East are great sources of dishes based on legumes and grains.
Cooler autumn days are a great time to try your hand at some meatless mains and there are plenty of good websites to browse for inspiration like the BBC Good Food site - check out this vegetable and cashew biryani - or Meatless Monday's dinner recipe archive on the Johns Hopkins University site.
Posted by Paula Goodyer
Copyright © 2009. Fairfax Digital.
Now that we can turn the lights out for one hour a year, are we ready to skip eating meat for one day a week as well? It's not like we haven't been told that one non-meat day a week can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. David Suzuki, in Australia to promote his new book Suzuki's Green Guide said it a few days ago.
Last year Paul McCartney was encouraging the British to drop meat from the menu once a week for the planet's health, while the chair of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Dr Rajendra Pachauri, said one meat free day a week would help tackle climate change. As we all know by now, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates that meat production accounts for nearly a fifth of global greenhouse gas emissions .
But while urgings to cut meat consumption for the planet's sake aren't new, perhaps what's missing is more practical guidance on how to do it. It's one thing to screw in an energy-efficient light bulb now and again, but for some people creating a meal minus meat as it's centrepiece is a bigger step. It's partly about cooking skills, but not entirely. It's also about tweaking attitudes in a country where an image of a dinner plate dominated by meat or chicken is still the norm, and where the word meatless - in many minds at least - somehow equals deprivation.
When I first began cooking non-meat meals years ago it had nothing to do with the environment or ethics, but (another) financial crisis - in a long running journalist's strike there was an urgent need to drastically trim the family budget. It was then that I discovered what great dishes you could make from foods like split peas and white beans, or by combining grains with nuts. From that time on I never saw a meatless meal as going without - just eating different food with its own appeal.
A few things to think about:
- A meat-free meal doesn't mean being nutrient deprived. There's no rule that says you need meat every day - the current Dietary Guidelines for Australian Adults recommend a small (teensy, in fact) 65g-100g of cooked meat three or four times a week.
- If you can't imagine a meal without meat - at least not yet - try reducing the amount of meat you eat at each meal by adding extra veg. Or try replacing some of the meat with legumes like canned red kidney beans or black beans added to chili, or canned lentils added to a pasta sauce or casseroles (and think of the money you'll save).
- Reducing meat consumption isn't so much about doing without as eating more of something else. it's a great opportunity to broaden your mix of plant foods - and nutrients - and to experiment. The cuisines of Greece, Italy, India and the Middle East are great sources of dishes based on legumes and grains.
Cooler autumn days are a great time to try your hand at some meatless mains and there are plenty of good websites to browse for inspiration like the BBC Good Food site - check out this vegetable and cashew biryani - or Meatless Monday's dinner recipe archive on the Johns Hopkins University site.
Posted by Paula Goodyer
Copyright © 2009. Fairfax Digital.
