McCartney and Pachauri address policy makers about meat problem

Press Release

December 1, 2009


Paul McCartney and Rajendra Pachauri are calling on mayors and other policy makers to tackle the overconsumption of meat in western countries. In a letter, they point out the relationship between meat and climate change and suggest that governments develop initiatives to raise awareness about the issue among their citizens. The ex-Beatle and the IPCC chairman will also address the European Parliament in an event called ‘Less Meat = Less Heat’, on December 3.

In the letter, McCartney and Pachauri point out that the livestock sector is responsible for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, one of the most powerful weapons against climate change may very well be… our fork. However, McCartney and Pachauri also state that the efforts of individuals, however important, are limited, and that ‘it is also the responsibility of governments and industries to ensure that sustainable alternatives like plant-based products are widely available and affordable.’ They list a number of initiatives that governments have taken, such as the weekly veggie day campaigns in Ghent and Hasselt (Belgium), São Paulo (Brazil) and the Meat Free Monday and Meatless Monday campaigns in the UK and the US respectively.

On December 3, McCartney and Pachauri will address the European Parliament on the topic of ‘Less Meat = Less Heat’. Four days before the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, the event reflects a perception that climate change needs to be addressed at all levels – especially individual but also at local, regional, national, across Europe and worldwide.

According to the FAO, the livestock sector is in the top three causes of any major environmental problem, including land degradation, climate change and air pollution, water shortage and water pollution and loss of biodiversity. Eating less meat (and other animal products) is not only healthy for our planet, but also for our body. A WHO study has shown that a decrease in saturated fat by just one percent would result in about 13.000 less deaths of cardiovascular disease in Europe per year. And last week, a new study in the Lancet pointed out that a reduction of livestock production with 30% might decrease the number of premature deaths by heart disease by 17%.


Contact information
About the letter
Tobias Leenaert, EVA
(0032) (0)494 64 69 38
tobias@vegetarian.be


References:
-H. Steinfeld et al, Livestock’s Long Shadow, FAO, 2006, p. xx.
-Ffion Lloyd-Williams, Martin O’Flaherty, Modi Mwatsama, Christopher Birt, Robin Ireland,& Simon Capewella, Estimating the cardiovascular mortality burden attributable to the European Common Agricultural Policy on dietary saturated fats, Bulletin of the World Health Organization | July 2008, 86 (7)
-Dr Sharon Friel et al, Public health benefits of strategies to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions: food and agriculture, The Lancet, Early Online Publication, November 2009

Source: EP Live: Event : Hearing 03 December 2009 - 10:00 - 13:00
Author: European Parliament

Link: About the Hearing on December 3
Link: Becoming vegetarian will help save the planet: study
Link: EP Live: Event : Press conference - 'Less Meat Less Heat' 3 Dec 09, 1230-13h
Link: MEPs want focus on climate and economic crisis at next EU summit
Link: SIR PAUL MCCARTNEY - MCCARTNEY TAKES VEGETARIANISM TO EUROPE