For most of my life, I was like most kids. I ate whatever my parents made me or what I felt like eating without any thought as to where my food was coming from or how it was made. I was a huge fan of every kind of meat: chicken, burgers, sausage, bacon, etc. You name it and I ate it. Once I became a teenager and got my driver’s license, you could always find me in the drive-thru line of Chick-fil-A, Taco Bell, or some other fast-food restaurant. I always somewhat knew in the back of my head that the meat industry probably wasn’t great, but I didn’t care enough to look into it. Fast forward to junior year of high school and I chose to take AP Environmental Science. I heard it was the easiest of the AP sciences at my school and I thought the environment was interesting enough. Little did I know at that moment that my life would forever be changed.
I have always been a good student and did my work for my classes, but it was always that: work. I never really thought much about what I learned at school at home or applied anything I learned to my personal life. However, AP Environmental Science was a completely different story. It unlocked a new passion in me that I never knew I had. Learning about the environment and the impacts different industries had on it was fascinating to me. I can’t remember all of the information I learned in that class now, but it ignited a spark in me to care about the environment that still hasn’t gone away. I wanted to learn everything I could do to help the planet, no matter how small. I started taking shorter showers, trying to reduce my use of single-use plastics, using a reusable water bottle, etc. You get the gist.
Then, one day in class, we learned about the impacts of the meat industry on the planet. I learned how the production of meat is directly related to deforestation and biodiversity loss, how meat consumption is responsible for releasing greenhouse gases like methane, CO2, nitrous oxide and how hundreds of millions or billions of animals are killed each year for consumption. I learned how much land and water it takes to produce meat and how the meat and dairy industries are ultimately leading to climate change. The more statistics I read, the more shocking they became. I thought, “How could something that I loved and supported so much for my entire life be so detrimental to the planet?” I started to research other things about the meat industry too, like how most slaughterhouses and livestock farms treat their animals. Eventually, I made the decision for myself that I could no longer support the production of meat due to my personal values and my newfound love for the environment and animals.
The day before my 17th birthday, I drove around and ate all of my favorite meats one last time. Then, on my actual birthday, I decided to stop eating meat from that day forward and I haven’t looked back. Deciding to go vegetarian was one of the best choices I’ve ever made for myself. I’ve discovered so many new fun foods, recipes and meat alternatives that I now love. I now know where my food comes from and my diet is consistent with my morals. If you are considering going vegetarian or vegan or reducing your meat consumption by any amount, I personally highly encourage it. If a hardcore fast-food addict and daily meat consumer could do it, so could you. Let me mention that I still love fast food and have found so many awesome veggie options at most fast-food chains (especially Taco Bell)! Cutting out meat was much easier than I thought it would be because it’s the 21st century and there are so many more products available for us vegetarians than there used to be.
Despite everything I’ve mentioned, it is important to remember that every individual’s diet is extremely personal, and everyone should eat what is best for them. It is not easy for many people to cut out meat for several reasons, whether they live in a food desert or cannot afford plant-based products. Some people just don’t want to and that’s okay. However, there is power in knowing the impacts of your food choices and considering how you could adjust your diet to make it more sustainable and environmentally friendly, in whatever way that looks like for you.
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