Violet Wang

Ms. Gardner

Honors English 5th period

17 November 2017

The Meat Industry

From a meek mouse to an elderly man, we are all Earthlings: inhabitants of the Earth. Our shared

home sustains us, through sources of food, water, and land. However, we must also work to sustain the

Earth, and sustain our fellow earthlings. My name is Violet, and I speak to you not as a crazy activist, but

as a concerned fellow earthling, because our actions as humans are impacting all earthlings. I want to

bring awareness to the real consequences of the meat industry. By supporting the meat industry, dietary-

related disease will kill. By supporting the meat industry, the environment will be polluted. By supporting

the meat industry, animals will suffer. In order to sustain our environment and our health, a transition to

vegetarian diets is necessary.

In the advanced modern world, the population is exponentially booming, faster than ever before.

According to a 2015 report by the United Nations (UN), the world human population is projected to be

9.7 billion by the year 2050. With this significant increase, available land diminishes while limited

resources are put in high demand. Even so, our resources are being used inefficiently, in a way that

pollutes the environment. The production, processing, and distribution of meat releases greenhouse gases

and animal waste and a span of toxic chemicals into our air and waterways, while demanding enormous

amounts of pesticides, fertilizer, fuel, feed, and water. According to the Water Footprint Network, the

global leader in water assessment, a pound of beef requires 2,400 gallons of water to produce, the

equivalent of 120 eight minute showers. Contrastingly, tofu, which has similar protein content, uses only

300 gallons of water per pound. These statistics show how unsustainable meat is, especially when

factoring in water shortages around the world. Not only is meat inefficient , its production also pollutes

the Earth. Overall, according to a report from the Environmental Protection agency, the meat industry

accounts for at least 29 % of all global warming and ozone depleting greenhouse gasses. This is more
than all transportation combined. By eating a diet with meat, you are directly supporting this degradation

of the Earth, which will continually cause even more adverse effects. Vegetarianism is necessary as a

sustainable solution.

Not only does meat give off enormous amounts of pollution, but it is also harming the health of

many people. When we kill animals to eat, their unhealthy flesh ends up killing us through many diseases.

A diet study of 536,000 people for 16 years by researchers from the National Cancer Institute showed that

the people who frequently consumed meat had a 26% higher risk of death by cancer, type 2 diabetes,

Alzheimer's, heart disease, kidney disease, or liver disease. Additionally, the number one killer in the

world is heart disease, claiming over eight million lives each year. I see the effects of this disease

everyday. My grandfather is a constant reminder when I hear the rattle of his countless medication bottles,

when I feel the ever-present fear of his heightened risk for heart attack or stroke. No one should have to

suffer from diseases that could be prevented, so go vegetarian to reduce your risks of mortality.

Some people may argue that humans are meant to eat meat or that it is necessary to maintain a

healthy diet. However, humans are built closely as herbivores rather than carnivores or omnivores. Dr. T.

Colin Campbell, professor emeritus at Cornell University and author of The China Study, explains that

meat in our diet came well after we developed the traits that make us human. Compared to the body

structures of strict carnivores, such as lions, humans do not share universal bodily adaptations. In all other

meat eaters, the intestinal tracts are extremely short, allowing the fast decaying meat to pass through

quickly. Humans however, have extremely long intestines, four times longer than that of a lion. Adding

on, the stomach acid of a human is 20 times weaker than of a lion, extremely poorly designed for

digesting meat. Our flat teeth are designed for grinding, not flesh tearing. While our bodies ultimately can

digest meat, it is not optimal. The human body can not only survive, but thrive on a vegetarian diet.

Our blind support for the meat industry leads to factory farming and horrendous conditions for

animals. Animals are capable of feeling joy and pleasure; they are capable of feeling suffering and pain.

However, in the meat industry, they are objects, treated in a way to maximize profit. You can not be an

animal lover while paying for their suffering.

 The meat industry is violently abusing animals, blindly harming the environment, and cruelly

degrading health. Do not support the destructive meat industry. While the world may never be a Garden

of Eden, you hold the power in your decisions to mold a sustainable future. Will you create change?

Works Cited

Etemadi, Arash, et al. “Mortality from Different Causes Associated with Meat, Heme

Iron, Nitrates, and Nitrites in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study: Population

Based Cohort Study.” The BMJ, British Medical Journal Publishing Group, 9

May 2017

Freston, Kathy, and Colin T. Campbell. “Shattering The Meat Myth: Humans Are

Natural Vegetarians.” The Huffington Post, TheHuffingtonPost.com, 11 June

2009

Hongbo, Wu. “World Population Projected to Reach 9.7 Billion by 2050 | UN DESA

Department of Economic and Social Affairs.” United Nations, United Nation ,

2015

Pisleaga, Mihaela. “Water Footprint, Carbon Footprint, Energy Footprint General

Aspects And Their Influence On Society.” 15th International Multidisciplinary

Scientific GeoConference, ECOLOGY, ECONOMICS, EDUCATION AND

LEGISLATION, 2011

“Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data.” EPA, Environmental Protection

Agency, 13 Apr. 2017