To save the planet, we need to change how we eat. That’s why these eight countries are supporting, promoting, or investing in plant-based food.
It’s no secret, global temperatures are soaring. The world’s biggest industries have pumped more and more greenhouse gasses into the atmosphere, and the consequences are becoming difficult to ignore. Last year was fraught with extreme weather events, like heatwaves and devastating floods, and this year, more is coming. In fact, early forecasts suggest that a combination of El Niño and the climate crisis could see temperatures exceed 1.5C of warming this year. The prediction is alarming. But, when it comes to climate crisis mitigation, we’re not totally powerless.
As individuals, there are some actions we can take to reduce our own environmental impact. In 2018, the world’s biggest food production analysis, conducted at the University of Oxford, concluded that rejecting resource-intensive and pollutive animal agriculture, and adopting a plant-based diet, was the best way a person could reduce their own carbon footprint. “A vegan diet is probably the single biggest way to reduce your impact on planet Earth, not just greenhouse gases, but global acidification, eutrophication, land use, and water use,” said lead author Joseph Poore at the time.
But when it comes to climate action, the truth is, the problem is far bigger than individuals. And that means the solution needs to come from higher up. We are, of course, talking about governmental action. There is a long way to go before many countries, particularly those in the West (who are responsible for most of the world’s emissions), can say they have truly done their part to limit emissions and tackle the climate crisis. But, by pushing plant-based food consumption and supporting alternative protein development, some governments (at a local, state, and central level) have started to take important steps—here are eight examples.
- Germany
- The US
- Canada
- Denmark
- Taiwan
- India
- The Netherlands
- Finland
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