Many people rely on a purely vegan diet.
Anyone who would like to try it out can now join the “Veganuary” campaign.
Global meat consumption has a negative impact on the environment.
At the beginning of the year, people around the world take part in the
“Veganuary” initiative
and
do
without
animal products for
a month
.
In the UK-based campaign, which consists of
“vegan” and “january”
(German: January), many users in social networks see the campaign as a
challenge
and post pictures of their vegan food.
More than 500,000 Internet users worldwide, reported a spokesman for the organization “Veganuary”, have registered on the website to try a vegan month in January.
They
do without meat, fish, dairy products and eggs
.
The campaign was launched in 2014.
Even
German companies
want to make customer vegetable and meat-free products palatable.
"We have around 150 companies from Germany that have announced actions - that is a new record," said the spokesman.
Not only in the “Veganuary”: Meat substitutes are very popular
The good news from the point of view of doctors and animal rights activists first: In Germany, every consumer has been eating less and less meat on average for years - and substitute products are booming.
According to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, the estimated per capita consumption in 2019 was 59.5 kilograms per inhabitant and thus 2.5 percent below the value of the previous year.
“In 2013 it was about 66 kilos per head,” said Barbara Unmüßig from the board of the Heinrich Böll Foundation on Wednesday.
A real meat turn, however, has not been initiated, she criticized in Berlin when presenting the current “meat atlas”.
In it, the Federation for the Environment and Nature Conservation (BUND) and the Foundation regularly collect data and facts about animals as food.
Accordingly,
consumer behavior in Germany
does
little to slow down global meat production - with serious consequences for the environment, animals and, last but not least, for those employed in the meat industry.
Also read:
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Dispute over the name of veggie products.
Worldwide meat consumption is 320 million tons
"Worldwide meat consumption has more than doubled in the past 20 years and reached 320 million tons in 2018," the authors write in the report, justifying this with the growing population and rising incomes, especially in rapidly growing emerging countries.
"Meat consumption may grow by another 13 percent by 2028."
According to the calculations, it would then be 360 million tons - 40 million more than in 2018.
The effects can also be observed in Germany:
protesting farmers
, the
working conditions in slaughterhouses
and secretly filmed videos showing
animal cruelty
in companies.
For BUND board member Olaf Bandt, these are also symptoms of a failed EU agricultural policy, which has been consistently geared towards the world market in recent years and decades.
"The result is a race to the bottom for the worst social and environmental standards, which runs consistently," he said.
"The
cheap meat
model
is just not the greatest luck, as we are being advertised," said the Green Bundestag member Renate Künast.
"The meat industry works today through the
exploitation of people, animals and nature
."
Also interesting:
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There is so much animal in these products.
Not only in the “Veganuary”: Demand for meat substitute products is increasing
Consumers can therefore play a small part in ensuring that this changes.
Meat substitute products made from soy or wheat proteins are
already booming in Germany
: According to the “Meat Atlas”, around 26,600 tons of them were sold
in Germany
in 2019 - a record high.
That corresponded to an
annual turnover of 273 million euros
.
For comparison: According to the report, 40.1 billion euros were turned over with meat and sausage in the same period.
"The market for meat substitute products is developing more dynamically than ever before," the authors write.
The
conventional meat industry has
long since
jumped
on the
trend
.
"In
July 2020, the
manufacturer Rügenwalder Mühle
made more sales for the first time with vegan and vegetarian meat alternatives than with classic cold cuts or tea sausages," it continues.
Above all, however,
politicians have a
duty
.
"We have to raise the minimum standards for animal husbandry in Germany and Europe significantly," demanded Bandt.
He also sees an enforcement deficit in existing regulations.
In many places, animal owners and butchers are already violating the law, according to him.
That is not controlled enough.
"Implementing the existing laws would help to end the misery."
Read more:
How to make oat milk yourself and in which recipes the plant drink tastes best.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210106-99-915720 / 4
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