Our Message:

-       Climate Change is one of the defining crises of our time and is tearing through communities across the globe right now. It can be difficult to know where to begin, but we collectively know we can and must make a big, positive difference.

-       Changing our collective diet is perhaps the easiest and most effective step that we can take right now. Whether people go vegan, vegetarian or simply reduce their meat intake, we can make a big global impact, not least by showing leadership on such an important issue.

-       We also know that tasty meat-free products are on the rise and are now readily available in many UK supermarkets.

-       That is why we are asking the University of Edinburgh to cease the sale of all beef products on campus and in catered student halls.

 

The Facts:

-  (1) According to The Guardian, giving up beef reduces an individual’s carbon footprint more than giving up a car.

-  (2) The UK has the 2nd largest beef herd in Europe according to the National Farmers Union of Scotland.

-  (3) In 2009, the livestock industry was responsible for 37% of all methane emissions, 65% of nitrous oxide emissions and 9% of CO2. This is only getting worse.

-  (4) According to the BBC, if everyone became vegetarian by 2050, there would be 7 million fewer deaths each year.

-  (5) Plant-based diets can reduce the land we use for agriculture by 76% according to George Monbiot, a columnist at The Guardian and  British environmentalist.

 

The Good News:

-       As a community, we at the University of Edinburgh can join together to help each other find alternative foods and recipes.

-       The University of Edinburgh has already committed to exciting clean energy initiatives to make us carbon neutral by 2040. We want the University to apply the same proactive approach to reducing meat consumption by the start of the second semester of the academic year 2019/20.

-       So let’s join other universities like Goldsmiths, University of London and the University of Coimbra, Portugal in bringing an end to the sale of beef on campus.

 

Please sign this petition so we can work together to end the sale of beef at the University of Edinburgh!

 

Together, let’s save humanity!

 

Bibliography:

1) Nfus.org.uk. (2019). What Scotland's Farming Industry Produces | NFUS. [online] Available at: https://www.nfus.org.uk/farming-facts/what-we-produce.aspx [Accessed 24 Sep. 2019].

2) Carrington, D. (2019). Giving up beef will reduce carbon footprint more than cars, says expert. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jul/21/giving-up-beef-reduce-carbon-footprint-more-than-cars [Accessed 24 Sep. 2019].

3, 4) Galer, S. (2019). The consequences if the world decided to go meat-free. [online] Bbc.com. Available at: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20170612-the-consequences-if-the-world-decided-to-go-meat-free [Accessed 24 Sep. 2019].

5) Monbiot, G. (2019). The best way to save the planet? Drop meat and dairy | George Monbiot. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/jun/08/save-planet-meat-dairy-livestock-food-free-range-steak [Accessed 11 Oct. 2019].

6) The Ecologist. (2019). Intensive farms gain £70m from taxpayers. [online] Available at: https://theecologist.org/2019/jan/03/intensive-farms-gain-ps70m-taxpayers [Accessed 11 Oct. 2019].

Image) Cowspiracy. (2014). [film] Directed by K. Andersen and K. Kuhn.