Ethics in Food: Vegetarianism
- Kathryn Fransz
- Jun 12
- 7 min read
Vegetarianism is a food related practice that avoids consumption of meat, and sometimes fish too. That means living on vegetables, legumes, fruits, nuts and grains. There are many reasons for a person to be a vegetarian; religious, cultural, health and moral or ethical. Some statistics indicate that in Australia, 12.1% of the population are believed to be vegetarian while other statistics indicate approximately 1.5 million Australians or 1 in 3 Australians who regularly avoid or choose not to consume meat. Regardless, over recent years, the number of people choosing to practice vegetarianism and actively choose to consume less meat is believed to be growing. Surely, there are a number of factors involved in these decisions however it seems that moral and sustainability grounds are the main driver behind the change.
History of Vegetarianism
Vegetarianism can be traced back to the first millenia across different continents, mainly India and the Mediterranean. The motives behind the practice were mainly driven by 'cosmic oneness' and living in unity with other living creatures. This was present among pagan philosophers, such as Pythagoras, and early Indic religions who also preached condemnation for blood sacrifice rituals that were practiced by pagan religions and other civilisations of the time.
Over time, Vegetarianism made its way into religions of the regions, most notably Buddhism and Hinduism who, like Pythagoras, believed in reincarnation or the transition from human soul to non-human animal soul after death, and therefore believed that one should observe a benevolent existence with all other living things.
In later times, the 17th and 18th century birthed an era of moral progress and found various Christian sects in Europe encouraging the practice of Vegetarianism as a means of living a sinless life and minimising hurt unto other living things. It was also deemed a spiritual practice among many in avoiding gluttony and indulgence, and minimising financial expense and luxury. However, these practices tended to be considered amongst more morally obligated and driven individuals rather than a movement amongst the majority in society at the time.
Vegetarianism and Health
In more recent years, Vegetarianism has been linked to managing certain health conditions or otherwise using the practice to maximise health outcomes, notably cardiovascular health. An increased consumption of red meat is linked to increased risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and various cancers. The reduction in eating red meat has also been linked to weight loss which further decreases the risk of the conditions listed.
Animal Rights and Welfare
The notion of kinship with other living things continues to be front and centre but further to this, the way in which meat is produced on mass scale is understood to have a significant negative impact on carbon emissions. Therefore, an additional moral argument in sustainability and reduced one’s carbon footprint has arisen in the process. Australia’s very own Peter Singer argued that the mass farming or raising and slaughtering of animals is morally unjustified in its current capacity. He also questioned the morality of the way that animals are exploited for scientific research and human progress and benefit.
It is understood that many meat farms raise and slaughter their animals under unsatisfactory, if not cruel, conditions including dirty and crowded pens with limited or no access to outside spaces. Many of these farmed animals have untreated injuries and at times, abusive farming practices, all leading to stressful living conditions. In addition to this, the process of animal transport and animal slaughter are also known to be painful and unsatisfactory for the animals.
In chicken farming, it is commong for chickens to be farmed by means that cause accelerated growth. This results in their mass being substantially more than is natural and too much for their bones which causes pain for up to 20% of their lifetime. Not to mention that activities that they are unable to do due to their unnatural size and weight.
Free range farming is often used argued to be a more just and ethical way to producing meat however free range farms send their animals to the same slaughterhouses as industrial farms and therefore still contribute to the pain and stress associated with transport and slaughter.
Impact on the Climate
Livestock farming is known to be a significant contributor of green house gas emissions including methane, approximately 40% of global emissions, and nitrous oxide, around 30%, as a result of fertilizer and manure from animal production. In total, livestock farming contributes about 18% of human produced greenhouse gas emissions globally.
As an indirect result of the increased greenhouse gas emissions that livestock farming is known to produce, other unfarmed and wild animals are affected. The increased contributions to climate change results in significant events such as bushire, storms, draught and other climate disasters that can cause distress or kill thousands of sentient wildlife. In the instance of draught, crop failure and famine become a likely result impacting the human population, in addition to rising sea levels that displace populations and air pollution that causes respiratory and other health issues. Reducing livestock farming is considered essential in meeting the target for reduction in greenhouse gas emissions which impact all living organisms, including ourselves.
It's considered an "inefficient" farming practice due to the significant amounts of water and land that are required to produce meat comparative to vegetables and other non-animal products. The land and water used in this process include both the practice of farming animals and growing the produce required to feed the animals being farmed. Livestock farming is understood to use 30% of the Earth's land surface and further, significant areas of the Amazon rainforest in South America is known to have been cleared or deforrested in order to rear cattle and grow soy to feed them. It takes 25kg of feed to produce 1kg of beef and 15, 000L of water, whereas pork and chicken are believed to require less resources. So, given that humans can consume a lot of the product that is fed to the animals such as grain and soy, it is argued that we are better off using the animal's feed to produce our own food products rather than invest them in farming animals.
Distribution of Global Resources
Globally, it is understood that we have enough food to feed the world however 10% of the global population remain hungry and a third of the world's population, food insecure. Food is known to be unfairly distributed with one third of food going to waste and the majority of food resources going to the global north. Half of the world's grain is fed to animals or used as fuel, and as discussed above, a lot of food product and land mass are being used in a way that does not contribute to human consumption or feed human need. This is also reported to drive up grain priced making food less affordable for the "global poor." It is believed that we have enough food globally to feed everyone on Earth and the growing population for decades to come however on the premise that changes to the previously discussed inefficient meat production occur in order for this to be achievable and for global food resources to be equitable.
Economic Vegetarianism
Economic vegetarianism is the concept that people either avoid or don't eat meat due to their economic status, meaning that meat is too expensive to be included in their regular diet. This pattern has been identified amongst younger people who may be studying or be in the early stages of their career and therefore earn less money than older adults. The same is said for single adults who tend to have a lower household income. Surveys in the US identified that minority populations such as black and hispanic communities, had a higher percentage of vegeterians which was suggested may also be linked with corresponding lower incomes. In America, the value of ground beef is believed to have increased 39% between 1985 to 2016 further supporting the idea that the affordability of meat has decreased and that meat consumption can be dependent on household wealth and income. In some developing countries, meat is also understood to be expensive and scarce and so it is suggested that this may sometimes motivate these populations to eat a largely vegetarian diet.
Antibiotics
Antibiotics are often used in the food and water used in livestock farming. Injections are used to accelerate growth and also to manage the infection, injuries and health issues that arise from their poor environment and living conditions, as described above. Infact, 73% of the world's antibiotics are used in livestock farming and 80% of antibiotics in the US are used for the same. As the use of antibiotics increases, so do the number of antibiotic resistant germs and diseases that can subsequently infect humans. When germs and diseases become resistant to antibiotics, it causes grave illness and in some cases, death as antibiotics are no longer an effective treatment option for these germs and diseases.
Counter Arguments
Many counter that vegetarianism or reduced the amount of meat intake results impacts nutrition and that that red meat contains important nutrients in specific combinations that make red meat the most efficient way of receiving or absorbing these nutrients including B12, and that a decrease in red meat has also been linked with some forms of anaemia.
Some would argue that free range farms allow an animal to live a good quality of life before slaughter and that eating meat that is farmed free range would morally omit them from avoiding meat completely.
Finally, some might say that animals do not hold the same moral status as human beings as they do not hold the same intellect or contribute to the well being of other species in the same way as humans, and therefore it is ethically plausible to farm them for human benefit.
Despite these counter arguments, the aim of this article is to investigate another angle to our relationship with food. For many, vegetarianism is an ethical, moral and political act that represents a relationship to food beyond taste, smell and sight. It extends to a belief system that highlights an additional role that food can play in our lives other than nutrition and sustenance, enjoyment, socialisation and culture. Vegetarianism uses food choices to express people's beliefs, morals and opinions and help to fulfil a bigger purpose. It's important that people with all food needs, including dysphagia, have access to these choices so that they too, can do the same.
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