3/8 One Meal at a Time
Image courtesy of Momsgoinggreenblog.com
Throughout this Exploits journey I have continued to stress the idea of small steps creating great change. I believe that we can be as vegany as we choose to be…every single day. There is no code of conduct or point of failure. Start where you are, do your best to make the most compassionate choices….then wake up and take steps forward once again. I maintain my belief that we are making a difference with every single choice we make. Significant and lasting change is not realized by small groups of people over- hauling their lives…it is created by many people making seemingly insignificant or incremental changes that last.
I just read an article in the Huffington Post that made me want to dance around the living room. It felt like validation, realization and an excellent time to celebrate with a bowl of coconut ice cream. Together we are making a difference. Keep reading and eating and enjoying adding new plant based options into your life. By doing so, you are saving the life of another living thing and that reason alone is worth trying something new.
Here is the excerpt from the Huffington Post article written by Nil Zacharias:
“A recent Harris Interactive study commissioned by the Vegetarian Resource Group found that approximately 5% of the U.S. is vegetarian (close to 16 million people) and about half of these vegetarians are vegan. While this may sound like a small number, what’s amazing is that the number of vegans in the U.S. has doubled since 2009 to 2.5% of the population. This means that 7.5 million people in the U.S. now eat diets that do not include any animal products. The study also revealed that 33% of Americans are eating vegan/vegetarian meals more often, though they are not vegan or vegetarian. That is over 100 million people, or one third of the country consciously choosing more plant-based foods!
On the other hand, according to USDA forecasts, the average American will consume 12.2% less meat and poultry in 2012 than they did in 2007. Beef consumption has been in decline for about 20 years; the drop in poultry and pork has also been steady for about five years. And this phenomenon is not limited to meat. USDA statistics reveal that per capita egg consumption in the U.S. has been steadily declining for the past six years and average per-capita consumption of cow’s milk fell from 24.3 gallons per person in 1994 to 20.8 gallons per person in 2008. At the same time, total retail sales of soy milk, almond milk, rice milk and other plant milks reached $1.33 billion in 2011. If you don’t think the growing market for plant-based foods has anything to do with these declining statistics, ask the multi-billion dollar dairy industry! They took the trouble to recently launch an entire ad campaign attacking plant milks.”
These numbers are positively staggering, especially when considering that this has happened in only two short years. Every time you choose a marinara sauce instead of a meaty one or pick up a half gallon of almond milk instead of dairy milk, you are making great change. We are doing it together, one meal at a time and it tastes SO good!
Have a delicious day.
Tags: 30 day challenge, compassionate eating, dairy free, Huffington Post, plant based diet, vegan, vegan challenge, vegan experience, vegan wannabe
