The New York City Mayor’s Office of Animal Welfare is encouraging residents to reduce their meat consumption in an effort to meet the city’s meat reduction goals. These goals are part of the city’s OneNYC strategy to fight the climate crisis and ensure healthy lives by eating less meat. An email sent to residents points out that individual choices contribute to progress, and eating less meat is better for people, the planet, and the animals. The email also includes guidance—developed in partnership with World Animal Protection’s meat reduction campaign—on how residents can reduce their meat consumption, including incorporating Meatless Mondays, reducing beef by 50 percent, phasing out processed meats, and replacing meat dishes with plant-based proteins.
New York City agencies also offer programs that help promote plant-based eating and increase the affordability of fruits and vegetables, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP/EBT); Meatless Monday offerings at hospitals, public schools, homeless shelters, and jails; and Health Bucks program.
“It’s incredible to see America’s largest city promoting a reduction in meat consumption. This guidance includes valuable information on the importance of eating less meat and resources to help New Yorker’s shift towards more humane and sustainable plant-based proteins,” Joe Loria, Meat Reduction Campaign Manager, World Animal Protection, US, said. “The United States consumes more meat than nearly any other country in the world. This demand for cheap meat has fueled factory farming and practices that treat animals as mere cogs in a machine, including extreme confinement, brutal mutilations, and antibiotics overuse.”
This post was originally published on VegNews.com.
