Food for Thought
Join us in trying to eat fewer animal products, and you’ll get a chance to win a Shun paring knife. Ooooh, ahhhh. Details below.
Here’s the backstory.
We’ve had an all-over-the-board summer with lots of travel and even more visitors. Because of that, one constant has been more mindless eating than usual. Sure, we’ve countered our grubby food indulgences with a fair amount of healthy meals, but things aren’t as in sync as usual. It feels crappy. Time for a challenge.
Off to the farmer’s market we went.
We exercise regularly and are on the move a lot, so we notice a big difference when our nutrition suffers. When you have an empty-calorie-laden meal, a 6-8-10 mile run is exponentially more difficult. We do have some parameters in place that keep us from going too far down the unhealthy road. For instance, we haven’t had anything but vegetarian meals in our house for several years. Sometimes, our meals are even vegan when we prepare them. The big problem comes when we eat out or are on the road. We fall hard.
About to head off on our big camping/hiking adventure, we decided it was time to do better. To try harder. (Don’t worry, we’ll still be food crazed; we just want to be a little more mindful.)
Well, guess what? About the same time we made that decision, we heard about some startling statistics:
About 50% of all water used in the United States goes towards raising animals for food.
It takes about 2400 gallons of water to produce one pound of meat.
Raising animals for food uses 30% of the earth’s land mass.
Time for some clarification.
1) Our primary reason for trying to eat well is to keep our comprehensive-healthcare-less bodies in good shape.
2) Our primary reason for avoiding animal-centric food is the environment. But – big but – we had no idea just how inefficient, dangerous even, it is to raise animals for food.
Just look at those statistics. They really caught us off guard. Add to that the fact that 1 in 7 world citizens – 1 billion people – are chronically hungry, and you realize that we have no room to not make smarter decision about food consumption.
It’s a done deal in NVR World. Please join us in committing to one of the following challenges. Small, medium or large. You pick.
Small: Join the Meatless Monday movement – no meat on Mondays.
Medium: Make your home a meat-free zone – eat whatever you want when out.
Large: Offset every day you have meat with a vegan day – this inspires mindful choices.
Tell you what… we’re going to attempt to stick to all three, so you can do one, right?! Notice that no option is a zero tolerance zone. We’ll continue to have gut busting meals and ridiculous desserts. Just more purposefully.
Follow along as we hit the road for our camping/hiking extravaganza. This general topic – food security – will serve as this year’s advo-camping platform. We’ll be wearing awesome T-shirts and bribing those we meet to join in the fight to sustain our planet and to feed all humans. Oxfam’s GROW campaign (see sidebar —>) provides a lot of informative and helpful information, so we’ll be directing people there.
Making the world’s food supply more equipped to handle the 7 billion (and soon to be 9 billion) lives that occupy our planet begins with each of us. Like most other people, we struggle at times when it comes to making smart choices, food related and otherwise. We just want to do better – for our health, our planet and for our fellow world citizens. Will you do the same?
Let us know in comments if you’ll take the small or medium or large challenge. Alternatively, pick your own challenge. If you comment with your commitment (tweet the post too!), we’ll give you a chance to win the high quality Shun paring knife pictured. Sorry, hand model not included.
10/15/2012 UPDATE: Congratulations to Marsha for winning the Shun paring knife!
I love the way you guys nudge gently and never preach–a great reminder to think about our attitudes toward consumption of all kinds. The small challenge is definitely doable, so I’ll start with that! : )
Awesome, Marsha – glad you’ll get involved!
Thanks, too, for your comment about our approach. We each struggle with all sorts of things – just like everyone else – so we never want to sound preachy. Everything is a journey.
Throughout the website, we aim to talk about our path (the fun and the serious) and our attempts to live more mindfully. In doing so, we hope to encourage others to do the same.
I’ve already moved adopted the medium challenge so next is the large. Thanks for addressing this important topic guys!
Erika
Great, Erika. Glad you, too, think it’s an important topic. We’ve been doing a lot of research and have learned that – with 2 billion more world citizens expected by 2050 – we all have to do our part in watching what we eat and protecting the earth’s resources.
This is such a great post. Wish you the very best with your challenge. As for me, I am a Hindu who has never ever eaten meat (includes eggs as well) in my life. And it will continue to be the same till I die. We are pure vegetarians, there is so much variety in vegetables and there are so many ways in which different vegetables can be cooked with all the spices, there is no need to look outside of it!! Waiting to read about your adventures!!
You can be our inspiration
Posts from our adventures to come. Stay tuned!
I would happily inspire in promoting vegetarianism
i really like the idea of offsetting a meat day with a vegan day. i am going to do my best to visit my local farmers market regularly and really uphold a healthy lifestyle.
We like that particular idea too! Offsetting is a strategy we use in many areas, and it works great for both of us. We’ll see how it goes. Again, it’s especially tough when we’re traveling.
Well, since I’ve long advocated Meatless Mondays on my blog, and even had many of my recipes featured on their website, I think I have to go with option number 1.
While the blog is certainly not veg-centric, there are lots and lots of vegetarian, vegan, and vegan-friendly recipes there.
“Good on ya” as they say down under, for staying on track with what you think is important. I pledge to do my part.
That’s great, Kristina – thanks for joining in. “Good on ya” right back to you!
Like you, we’ll probably never give up meat entirely, but we see the importance of scaling back. Resources – like your site – are great.
Lately I’ve been getting more into those carb-free diets, which are nothing but meat & veggies, but that isn’t working out so well since I don’t like to eat a ton of meat. One thing I am trying to do is go with more meat substitutes. We have a ton of eggplant growing in the yard, and I want to finally figure out how to cook my own tofu and make it taste ok.
Cube the tofu and fry it in garlic. We’re not tofu fans, but that’s what we do for some recipes (like the vegan Asian Salad). Eggplant from the garden sounds delicious. How about vegetarian lasagna?
All the best with your challenge.
Thank you!
Well, I’m out of the competition for the knife. Not sure how well it’d go down with customs in Korea
Now then gents, I’ve never heard those statistics before and when you put it like that, it IS startling. I can’t believe that 30% of the world’s land mass is used for raising animals for food? That’s insane.
You know how much I love my meat though, however I will commit (and I’ll try my best, I promise!) to the Small Challenge. I think I can handle one meatless day per week.
That is wonderful news, Tom. Thanks for joining us! We know how much you love your meat. We do as well – just much less so now.
Want more motivation? Watch Food, Inc. – disturbing.
Interesting stuff. I’m definitely a meat eater, though I make a concious effort to try and get hormone free, grass fed, free range, etc. These statistics though are rather alarming! I’ve considered trying to cut back on the meat in my diet a bit and I think something along the lines of meatless Monday is definitely something I’ll be attemtpting!
Those stats slay us. Stay tuned… more to come.
Keep us posted on your Meatless Monday attempt, and thanks for joining in.
This is so great! I just stopped eating meat a month ago (I saw a truck full of little piggies drive by, and every night see a truck filled with chickens and that was enough for me). I am so happy you all are doing this and helping raise awareness (and becoming healthier at the same time). You two are an inspiration. xx
Of course you are not eating meat. I mean, why not change your ENTIRE life at the same time. Hahaha…
Keep us posted on your progress. Honestly, though, we won’t be feeling too sad for you. You have all those great veggie options in Thailand.
Can you feel the envy, D? Can you?
Massive lose for the veggie theme. I’ve been Veggie/Vegan for 2 years now and I have never felt better for it. Massive Vegan love <3 x
Great to hear! We’ll add you to our list of inspirers.
Hey guys! I’ll do meatless Mondays
My boyfriend and I already enjoy eating vegetarian meals from time to time, so picking a day of the week to go all out is a great idea!
We threw that in as an option because we were just reading how successful it is for people who give it a try. Plus, after the weekend many people are more health minded, so Monday seems like the perfect day for just such an endeavor.
That knife looks really professional, and I can’t believe your call to this action, because I had been thinking about some changes in my nutrition for a couple of months now when I came to your article. Thanks for giving me some extra-inspiration to my resolution!
Awesome! Keep us posted.
Oh, man. I’m from the midwest — land of meat and taters — so this is just gonna kill me. Count us in for #2. Sigh…
(p.s. We just researched water conservation for an article so how can we go on eating plentiful meat when you’ve added those stats?)
Woohoo!
I really admire your commitment to so many causes you feel passionately about. I could never switch to being vegan or even vegetarian, but I’m certainly going to try to eat more healthy and get more exercise. I’m not terribly great at either. And even though in some ways I eat better in Germany than I did in the States (I’m eating more protein, more salads, almost nothing resembling fast food) I also find that I drink more and eat more ice cream. I’m also too afraid to ride my bike, which I’m sure would be a huge boost to my physical activity. I’ll keep trying though! (and make sure to take me out of the contest for the knife, non-US address and all that)
There’s lots of great vegetarian Mexican food out there in the world
And I bet your homemade salsa is a fantastic topper!
LOVE this post! Back in the begining of the year we did a 15day juice diet inspired by the documentary Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. We felt amazing and even though we do enjoy meat and will continue to indulge (buying organic, grass fed, local products) occasionally we have certainly shifted to more than 50% vegetarian eating. Good for you for acknowledging what our dependence on eating meat has done for the environment and, truly, how the animals are forced to live in feed lots in order to meet the demand.
p.s…. we’ll be speaking at the Meet Plan Go in Seattle in October and are starting to look for accomodations… any good options we might not have thought of yet?
Keep up the good work!
Send off an e-mail regarding MPG. That sounds great.
We need to see that documentary. Food Inc. was enough for us, and I can only imagine what this will inspire.
I’m in! But I guess I don’t really count.
I will be your cheerleader instead.
You are on the perma XX-Large challenge
I generally don’t eat a lot of meat, but there are a couple things from growing up in New Mexico I can’t resist: pork tamales and posole. I should, however, learn to take better advantage of the amazing fruit and vegetables available at farmers markets in the Pacific Northwest. It’s so easy to go local and organic, and I don’t do it as much as I should.
Every time we go to the farmers’ market we get totally idea-infused just by seeing all of the different options. Right now, the peaches and tomatoes are killer.
You are in our heads! Chris and I have had the same talk over the past couple of weeks and have significantly cut down our meat consumption. It’s something that we’re definitely working on.
We’ve also declared this month to be “fit August” with our healthy eating and heavy backpacking. We’re hoping that this will continue on to be “fit life”, and not only a month out of the year.
We’re onboard!
We’ll talk over (healthy?) brunch!
I have fallen hard lately too, and I can feel the effects even though I still keep up my exercise routine.
I’m going LARGE! Can I take the Latin America perspective and assume that chicken and pork are not meat? (Kidding!)
Going LARGE = woot! And, no, you can’t assume chicken and pork are okay. Seriously, Stephanie
I’m pretty much already at the Medium level challenge – we hardly ever eat meat at home, but I’ll indulge in whatever I feel like when I dine out. I’ve just gotten frustrated that so much of the meat available is barn-raised, corn-fed, GM etc and it’s just so tasteless (unless you slather it in sauce, which of course makes it unhealthy). I don’t want to be offensive, but I really find that meat and produce naturally tastes very different (sweeter, jucier and generally more flavorful) in other parts of the world.
When we made the decision to not have meat in the house, it turned out to be a lot easier than expected. And you’re right, it is usually tasteless.
I already have a mostly meat-free diet but I haven’t made exact commitments. I think the Medium idea is brilliant–I rarely have meat in the house but allow myself to eat it when I go out IF there is nothing vegetarian that sounds good for some reason. Thanks for the inspiration, and I will be adding a vegan day to offset every day I eat a bit of meat.
We’re finding the “offset day” idea very effective. We like that, for us, these things aren’t about a hardcore “NO!” but, rather, about being mindful.
Hi guys! I am late to this post but wanted to add that I am with you in the challange to do all 3!In fact, I have been trying to eat vegetarian or even vegan for several months now. Not always easy, especially when traveling and when everyone else around you and in your family does not eat that way. But I am slowly moving those closest ot me toward a more conscious way of eating. The thing that has helped me most is actually my Vitamix – I use it every day to make whole food, vegan smoothies, soups and even vegan ice cream! Love it! And I feel so much better when I eat this way. Even my 13 year old daughter admitted she is noticing she feels bad when she eats unhealthy and is starting to embrace more mindful eating. I wont force my kids to change how they eat but I am modeling and informing them ( and slipping kale into their smoothies when they aren’t looking).
I know I have been quiet but I still follow you guys and love reading about your adventures and challenges!
Hey, Liane – glad you are in for all 3! We, too, love the Vitamix. After reading your comment, I’m realizing that we probably don’t use it enough. As you say, it’s great for making soups, and we’ve fallen away from using it that way.
I fall hard on the road as well, especially when there is some game or interesting pork product I really want to try. I ate SO much bison in Montana.
But like you I detox at home. Pork is usually a flavouring agent for me (hence why it is magic) and never the main ingredient. I only eat meat really when I’m out.
David Suzuki (a Canadian hero in environmentalism) had a challenge 5 years ago asking people to just go one day without meat. I signed up for an organic CSA and there were so many vegetables I ended up going several days without it. I think I have two advantages though, I can cook and I love beans.
But for my challenge I’m going to go one step farther. I adore cheese and could never give it up. But I will one day a week. I’ll only eat vegan one day a week for you.
Awesome, Ayngelina! Cheese is the toughest thing for us to go without too. Keep us posted.
Great post! I’ll go with Small (Meatless Mondays) even though many other days/week are vegetarian (but not vegan due to cheese). The stats are very alarming on conventionally raised animals; but I’d like to think that eating wild boar (and these nuisance hogs actually destroy a lot of agricultural crops in Texas) is actually helpful to the environment and allows more veggies to be harvested! Plus, incredibly flavorful and much leaner.
Glad you are in for the challenge. Thanks!