meatless mondays

Summer Pasta, 8″ x 10″ modern fine art photograph

We’ve recently made a big change to what we eat at our house.  We’ve begun a weekly ritual that we call meatless mondays.  We don’t eat much meat as it is, but this initiative is helping us to consume just a little bit less.

Why it’s a good idea to reduce your meat consumption:

• the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that livestock is responsible for 18% of greenhouse gases, that’s 4% more than the world’s transportation sector produces (source: David Suzuki Foundation)
• eating 454g (1 pound) of meat emits the same amount of greenhouse gasses as driving an SUV 64km (40 miles) (source: goveg.com)
• reduce your meat consumption by one meal every week (150g serving) and over a year you will reduce your greenhouse pollution by up to 300kg (661 pounds) and reduce water use by up to 10 000 litres (2 640 gallons) (source: Australian Conservation Foundation)
• if Americans were to reduce meat consumption by just 20% it would be as if they all switched from driving a standard sedan to the ultra-efficient Prius (source: The New York Times)

Be sure to stop by the blog this coming monday for the recipe for one of our favourite meatless dishes:  Eggplant and Feta Skillet.

What’s your favourite meatless meal?

(image: jennifer squires productions)