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The Daily Tar Heel

Column: UNC would benefit from vegetarianism

Georgia Brunner
georgia

I have been a vegetarian since I was 8. I did it because I really liked animals, and it made me sad thinking about them dying for the sake of pepperoni on my pizza.

My parents, bless them, dealt with it, and I ate pasta and cheese for 10 years until I discovered that maybe that wasn’t the best idea (my dad has since followed suit so now the herbivores make up half the family).

In retrospect, I am so glad I became a vegetarian when I did. Though I have no proof, I feel like becoming a vegetarian is easier at 8 than 18 or 28. Being a vegetarian was certainly the right choice for me and, barring medical issues, probably for most people.

A healthy vegetarian diet can prevent many diseases. Research indicates that vegetarians enjoy fewer cases of heart disease and type 2 diabetes.

Further, vegetarians help save the world. If vegetarianism and veganism became widespread, we could cut greenhouse gas emissions by up to 70 percent. Logically, this makes sense as cows produce methane, but more importantly, because animals that are killed to become meat, they eat produce that humans could be eating. Land that currently houses livestock essentially wouldn’t be needed without meat eaters.

Now, I don’t want to become a preachy vegetarian stereotype, (though I’ve experienced way more preachy ominovers trying to get me to eat meat or slip it into my food than the other way around) but the facts are there. Eating meat is bad for you, and it’s bad for the earth.

I get that no one reading this will drop their knives and pick up forks, but I do think there is one sector of campus that really could make a positive change in this regard.

When I ate in the dining halls, being a vegetarian wasn’t the easiest, as most stations are centered around a meat dish. Getting food from only one station and the salad bar gets a bit monotonous after awhile and was the reason I dropped my meal plan after a year, despite still living on campus. CDS should stop serving meat.

They’ve already made great strides for animal welfare by using cage-free eggs, though those conditions still aren’t the best for chickens. They need to take the next step.

Meat is very expensive, making this easy from an economic perspective. Further, students like me would be more willing to continue eating at CDS past their first year, given more choice. Omnivores can eat veggie options, while we can’t eat meat.

If CDS really holds stock in their goal to “provide and prepare the freshest and healthiest foods,” they need to switch away from unhealthy meats and toward fresh veggie options. Their attempts to be sustainable cannot be taken seriously without a critical look at the amount of meat they buy and use.

I want our campus to be one that strives for the health of our students and of the world. And I know this won’t happen today or tomorrow, but I really hope the tide of vegetarianism catches CDS, allowing students to be healthier and have a better future in a world that isn’t on fire from global warming.

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