Religious Groups Are Giving Plant-Based Eating a Boost
In June this year, the world's first vegan Jewish center opened in London, while two years ago, dozens of rabbis from around the world signed a declaration calling on Jewish people to adopt a plant-based diet.
BRIAN KATEMAN: ‘As we become increasingly aware of how factory farmed meat consumption impacts the planet, animal well-being and our own health, more and more people are seeing the benefits of transitioning to a plant-based diet. The number of plant-based food and drink products in the US more than doubled between 2012 and 2018, according to consumer research company Mintel…
Raised awareness of plant-based eating has been encouraging discussions around what exactly religious texts say about eating meat. David Clough, Professor of Theological Ethics at the University of Chester, for example, has argued for reduced consumption of meat and improved welfare for farmed animals. He writes: “It seems to me that our use of animals for food is an urgent ethical challenge that Christians have particular faith-based reasons for taking note of”…
The conversation is new in relation to the mounting pressures on populations to cut their meat and dairy intake for the sake of their health, animal welfare and the future of the planet. And now, conversation is moving towards action, and religious groups are stepping up as an ally in the fight against factory farming – whose vested interests are driving the current debate on labelling plant-based alternatives – and are seeing the moral imperative of playing a part.
Vegetarianism has long had associations with a variety of spiritual and religious traditions, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and some Christian monastic orders. But now, there are movements within many of these groups to move even closer towards a fully plant-based diet. In June this year, the world’s first vegan Jewish center opened in London. The center aims to service an “ever-increasing demand for and interest in Jewish veganism,” while two years ago, dozens of rabbis from around the world signed a declaration calling on Jewish people to adopt a plant-based diet…
Increasing awareness of plant-based eating among faith groups is a hugely positive step towards reducing our meat and dairy intake, especially when we consider the reach of religious groups in the US alone (70 percent of the US is Christian)… Religious and spiritual groups have a huge potential to support many more people in altering their diets for the good of the planet, for animals suffering in factory farms, and for the empowering experience of embodying their deepest values’. SOURCE…
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