For decades there has been a movement toward eating more veggies and less meat……more recently a vegan diet has become popular one where you eat only stuff that comes from seeds…..no eggs, no cheese no honey, etc etc etc……….

Of course as with anything there has been study after study to produce some “facts” that will support this idea…….and now we have a doozey…….

A federal panel that helps set federal dietary guidelines is recommending Americans eat less meat because it’s better for the environment, sparking outrage from industry groups representing the nation’s purveyors of beef, pork and poultry.

The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, a federally appointed panel of nutritionists created in 1983, decided for the first time this year to factor in environmental sustainability in its recommendations. They include a finding that a diet lower in animal-based foods is not only healthier, but has less of an environmental impact.

The 571-page report says the average U.S. diet has a larger environmental impact in terms of increased greenhouse gas emissions, land use, water use and energy use than the healthy dietary pattern it suggests — one that’s rich in vegetables, fruit, whole grains, seafood, legumes and nuts; moderate in low- and non-fat dairy products and alcohol; and lower in red and processed meat, sugar-sweetened foods and beverages, and refined grains.

In its review of scientific studies, the committee highlighted research concluding that a vegan diet had the most potential health benefits.

“The organically grown vegan diet also had the lowest estimated impact on resources and ecosystem quality, and the average Italian diet had the greatest projected impact,” according to the report. “Beef was the single food with the greatest projected impact on the environment; other foods estimated to have high impact included cheese, milk, and seafood.”

With this report the meat industry went batcrap crazy…….like that would be a surprise…….

A new federal report points to the environmental benefits of a vegan diet, and the meat industry is not exactly happy about it. Industry representatives say sustainability isn’t within the purview of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, whose recommendations factor into guidelines by the federal agriculture and health departments, the Hill reports. “The same concern would exist if an expert sustainability committee were making nutrition policy recommendations,” says a rep for the North American Meat Institute. “It is not appropriate for the person designing a better light bulb to be telling Americans how to make a better sandwich.”

Indeed, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack seemed to agree in an interview last month with the Wall Street Journal, the Hill notes. “I read the actual law,” he noted. “Our job ultimately is to formulate dietary and nutrition guidelines.” But earlier this year, the committee noted a need to address the “complete challenge” in order “to ensure a healthy food supply will be available for future generations,” the Journal reported. The chair of the committee also points out that the committee outlines three separate diets, with one vegetarian-focused, one Mediterranean, and one American. “If people took the time to understand, this is not a meat-free diet and this is not [a] vegan approach,” she tells the Hill. “They’d realize this is a healthy dietary pattern with three models that offers consumers a lot of choice.” The group is accepting public comment until next month.

I will be a good boy and eat my veggies…..but I really need my meat!

Any thoughts?