Vegetarianism/veganism | TableDebates

Baskets of apples and green leafy vegetables. Photo by Peter F via Unsplash.

Are modern plant-based diets and foods actually sustainable?

In this piece, Helen Breewood introduces the environmental impact nuances behind trending vegan and flexitarian consumption patterns. Helen wrote this post in her personal capacity. Note that the FCRN has no financial affiliation with any of the brands mentioned in this blog.Helen Breewood is a research assistant at the FCRN. She is also a freelance writer and blogs about solving global sustainability issues at The Progress Motive. You can find her on Twitter.

Image: Memphis Meats Press Kit, Southern Fried Chicken

TEDx talk: The end of animal farming by Jacy Reese

Social scientist and co-founder of the Sentience Institute Jacy Reese discusses public attitudes to diets and the potential of lab-cultured meat to end animal farming, as well as possible pitfalls.

Image: Sam LaRussa, Yeast Cells Under the Microscope, Flickr, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

News: Yeast could be the next dairy disruptor

Startup Perfect Day, which grows milk proteins in yeast cells instead of cows, has raised $24.7 million dollars in funding and is now talking to major food brands.

News: Greenpeace launches campaign to halve meat and dairy consumption by 2050

Greenpeace is calling for global meat and dairy consumption to be halved by 2050, citing climate change, the health benefits of plant-based foods and the association of animal farming with antimicrobial resistance.

Image: Jon Åslund, Frukt och Grönt (och andra färger) i Östermalmshallen, Flickr, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic

Evaluating the environmental consequences of Swedish food consumption and dietary choices

In this paper, FCRN member Michael Martin examines the environmental impacts of various Swedish dietary choices across a wide range of environmental impact categories, paying particular attention to the trade-offs between impact categories.

Image: World’s Direction, Milk, Flickr, Public Domain

How well do plant based alternatives fare nutritionally compared to cow’s milk?

A new paper compares four popular plant based milks to cow’s milk. It concludes that soy milk is the best replacement for cow’s milk from a nutritional standpoint.

BBC World Service - The Why Factor - Vegans

The FCRN’s founder Dr Tara Garnett was interviewed on the BBC Worldservice’s Why Factor programme, for their episode which discussed veganism.

Mayor de Blasio announces Meatless Monday pilot in NYC schools

New York City mayor Bill de Blasio, schools chancellor Carmen Fariña and Brooklyn borough president Eric Adams announced that 15 Brooklyn schools will participate in Meatless Mondays in spring 2018. The program will provide participating schools with healthy, all-vegetarian breakfast and lunch menus every Monday. The NYC mayor, First Lady Chirlane McCray and Gracie Mansion will also go meatless for all Monday meals.

Photo: Loco Steve, Flickr, Creative commons licence 2.0

The simple menu innovations that can get people to order vegetarian options

This master thesis study from the London School of Economics shows how consumers are 56% less likely to order a plant-based dish when it is labelled vegetarian and categorised in a separate section on menus