Sustainable Change: Meatless Mondays

If you are interested in switching to eco-friendly products to help reduce your global footprint, you many want to make other changes around your house, too.

One great way to do this is to join a global movement, known as Meatless Mondays.

What is Meatless Mondays?

This is part of an international non-profit public health initiative, the Monday Campaign, which is associated with America’s John Hopkins, Columbia and Syracuse Universities.

Research undertaken by John Hopkins University indicates people are more likely to make positive changes that affect their health on a Monday as this is culturally thought of as the start of the week.

Why participate in this campaign?

According to the Monday Campaigns, Meatless Mondays are a way for the population to reduce their meat consumption by around 15 per cent to improve both their health and that of the planet.

Avoiding meat for at least one day a week can help you reduce the risk of certain preventable diseases such as some cancers, diabetes, obesity and cardiovascular disease.

Meat production requires a large amount of fossil fuels and water, so by reducing the amount of animal products you consume, you will also reduce your carbon footprint.

According to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation, the meat industry generates around one fifth of all the man-made greenhouse gas emissions that are responsible for climate change.

How do I participate?

This is the easy part, all you need to do to join is give up meat on one day of the week. There are plenty of delicious and nutritious vegetarian meals to enjoy in place of this staple, don’t worry.

Instead of taking ham or chicken sandwiches to work in your reusable sandwich wraps, you could substitute this with brie and grilled apples, red pepper hummus with caramelized onions, or roast tomato, thyme and cheese – who said vegetarian options weren’t as mouthwatering as their meaty counterparts?

There is a great online community you can join if you feel you want some support and there are bound to be others in your area taking part. See if you can spot them when you’re picking up your supplies in your reusable produce bags!