September
2003
Vegetarian
Advocate: When “Meatless” Doesn’t Mean No
Animals
By Jack Rosenberger
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When I first read about Meatless Monday, my reaction
was nothing but positive. I mean, what could possibly be wrong with
a public health campaign that encourages people to eat less meat? The
answer, I quickly discovered, is plenty. Then again, I’d expected
an organization that encourages people to eat less meat to say a few
favorable words about vegetarianism. Now, isn’t that silly?
Launched two and a half years ago, Meatless Monday is a nonprofit organization
associated with Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and
endorsed by 28 other public health schools. The group’s overall
purpose is “to help prevent heart disease, stroke and cancer—the
three leading causes of death in America. A simple way to do this is
to not have meat one day a week.”
For obvious reasons of alliteration, the group selected Monday as a
target day, but participants are encouraged to go meatless any single
day they like during the week. The campaign’s long-term goal is
to reduce Americans’ consumption of saturated fat by 15 percent
by 2010.
After reading about Meatless Monday in a syndicated newspaper article
(“Make Mondays Meatless—For Health” by The Baltimore
Sun’s Arthur Hirsch), I visited www.meatlessmonday.com,
anticipating a vegetarian-friendly cyberspace. My mistake.
The “Meatless” Health Campaign
While surfing meatlessmonday.com, I quickly discovered that the Meatless
Monday campaign is a sham. In the site’s Frequently Asked Questions
section, for example, it states: “Based on our nutritional guidelines,
‘meatless’ means no beef or poultry. Fish—which is
high in nutritional value and ‘good fats’ our bodies need—is
okay to eat and encouraged.”
Indeed, one of the website’s strong points is its weekly recipes,
and fish is frequently featured as a dinner choice, with red snapper
for the first week of May and poached Halibut with carrots being the
recipe for the first week of September.
It is disconcerting that Meatless Monday doesn’t regard fish as
meat. Dictionaries define fish as meat. Legal statutes define fish as
meat. In fact, most people, even carnivores—when pressed—will
define fish as meat. Yet, the Meatless Monday folks don’t. And,
of course, this faulty definition of what meat is will only generate
unwanted public confusion about what vegetarians do and do not eat.
Moreover, the statement “‘meatless’ means no beef
or poultry” fails to address the fact that humans eat numerous
other animals besides poultry and cows. What about pigs? Do bacon, salami,
and spareribs constitute meatless food? How about venison burgers? Or
stewed rabbit? Plenty of people eat the flesh of goats and lambs. Where
do these foods fall under the Meatless Monday’s nutritional guidelines?
As for Meatless Monday’s take on vegetarianism, the prevailing
mindset is sadly behind the times. In the FAQ section, one featured
question is “Are you telling me I need to be a vegetarian?”
The answer: “No. This is a simple case of moderation. We realize
that Americans are constantly bombarded with contradictory messages
about diet and health, and many people are confused about what they
should eat. But it’s a fact that Americans eat too much saturated
fat. Not having meat just once a week is an effective, easy way to
start
eating healthier.”
As far as I can tell, this is the sole mention of vegetarianism in
the entire site. The site fails to say, for example, “Millions
of Americans enjoy a vegetarian diet, and numerous health studies have
found that vegetarians are at a lower risk of heart disease, stroke,
and cancers.”
Meatless Monday reminds me of our nation’s laws on bike helmets—in
short, a good idea that is poorly executed. America lacks federal legislation
regarding bikers to wear a helmet even though numerous studies have
shown that helmet use reduces injuries and death. In many states, only
children are required by law to wear a helmet and often until they
are
12 or so years of age. Of course, people of all ages are involved in
bike accidents.
Likewise, meatlessmonday.com is too modest. Eating no red meat or chicken
one day a week is a good starting point, but there’s plenty of
research that shows such a measure is inadequate. One recent study
suggests
that eating only half an ounce of red meat a day is enough to incite
cancer.
Dare to Struggle
I interviewed Sid Lerner, Meatless Monday’s chairman, who is content
with the current campaign. He defended the organization’s definition
of fish as being “meatless,” saying “our emphasis
is on nutritional guidelines and saturated fat.” As for the lack
of useful or positive information on vegetarianism, he cited a goal
of “mainstream appeal,” explaining that, “We do not
want to put a strong vegetarian flag on the website. We want to get
people to cut back on meat.”
Lerner’s responses remind me of a George Orwell quote: “If
liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what
they do not want to hear.”
Please write Lerner and request that Meatless Monday acknowledge that
its campaign isn’t actually meatless. It would be considerate
to the vegetarian community if Meatless Monday noted that vegetarianism
means no meat consumption, including the meat of fish. Ask Lerner to
include more positive information about, and resources for, vegetarian
diets. And lastly, remind him that when polled, many Americans like
to say they’re vegetarian, indicating that it is becoming mainstream.
Contact: info@meatlessmonday.com.
Meanwhile, someone should launch a vegetarian health campaign similar
to Meatless Monday. As for a name, I suggest Eight Days a Week.
