Meat-free Mondays is a campaign that aims to highlight the environmental impact of meat consumption and animal agriculture, but does it actually make a difference?
If you’ve never heard of ‘Meat-Free Mondays’, the campaign first launched by the famous McCartney family all the way back in 2009, then you may want to get clued up – especially if you’re concerned about the way meat products are produced and sold.
It’s exactly what it sounds like – an initiative encouraging the public to avoid meat products for at least one full day each week. The project has been endorsed by big names including Paul Rudd, Emma Stone, and Ringo Starr, and has been adopted by many businesses and academic institutions around the world.
‘Meat-Free Mondays’ is primarily focused on combating climate change, saving water, and protecting animals, and boasts numerous health benefits for those that decide to temporarily ditch meat.
All that’s well and good, of course, but does it actually work?
A useful starting point to determine the legitimate effect of ditching meat is to survey university campuses, particularly as these house the ideal Gen Z demographic for the ‘Meat-Free Mondays’ campaign.
Student populations vary hugely across the country, so for this case study, let’s look at two different universities and calculate the net gains from adopting an actual meat free Monday.
LSE, for example, has a relatively small student population and accepts 1,600 freshers every year, whereas Exeter University has a much larger first year population about 6,400.
If we assume that half of these first years will be eating at their university canteens, we get 800 students at LSE and 3,200 at Exeter who will be participating in their canteen’s meat-free Monday.
Now for some maths. Thanks to Meat-Free Mondays impact calculator, one year of 800 students participating in Meat-Free Monday saves:
Over 447,000 bathtubs of water
Over 1000 tennis courts of rainforest (80% of deforested areas goes towards animal pasturing)
Over 150,000 miles worth of greenhouse gas
To put that into perspective, you’d have to travel 24,000 miles to travel the entire globe, meaning LSE’s students would save this amount of greenhouse gas six times over!
With larger student populations these numbers multiply. Students at Exeter could save over 1.5 million bathtubs of water, 4000 tennis courts, and over 600,000 miles of greenhouse gas which is – you guessed it – the equivalent of 25 times around Earth. Not bad, eh?
If you’re still not convinced, studies have shown introducing a meat-free day into your diet can decrease your risk of diabetes, heart disease, high cholesterol, and both breast and lung cancer.
At least 140 universities, schools, and colleges have already moved to Meat-Free Mondays, with many more sampling partial versions which offer vegetarian alternatives to the usual animal-based options.
To get your institution involved you can get in touch with your Environmental Rep or Student Union. The Meat-Free Monday website has tons of resources, facts and stories for you to use too, should you want to jump in.
Plus, if you’re interested in more of the maths, head to the Darwin Challenge to see how it’s all worked out.
This article was originally written by Georgie Morley. ‘I’m Georgie and I’m currently studying History at the University of Oxford. I am passionate about social change, particularly intersectional feminism and climate justice, and I enjoy engaging in these issues through volunteering, campaigning and writing.’ Visit her LinkedIn and view her Twitter.
I’m a contributing writer here at Thred. My bio and contact information can be found at the bottom of each article. If you would like to become a remote writer for Thred, please email us at remotewriters@thredmedia.com or click here to see more information on the Change Maker Network.
Last weekend, a tragedy hit the town of Mokwa in central Nigeria. Over 150 lives were lost in floods that experts call the worst the area has seen in 60 years.
Heavy downpours flooded Mokwa in central Nigeria, which led to the submergence of houses, destruction of the sources of livelihoods, and the displacement of thousands of people.
The enormity of the disaster has dominated discussions across the country and brought...
Meet the grassroots campaign standing up for the rights, safety, and dignity of trans youth.
‘The NHS is not listening to trans youth. How direct do we have to be to make them understand that our blood is on their hands?’ Says Ice Bear, an anonymous protestor for Trans rights.
Trans Kids Deserve Better is a grassroots movement group dedicated to protecting and empowering transgender young people. Formed in response to...
The former Chelsea FC owner was forced to sell up in 2022 after UK sanctions were actioned against the Russian oligarch. He was ordered to give the proceeds of the €2.97bn sale to Ukrainian victims of war, but has continually refused terms.
Remember when the UK went after seven Russian oligarchs with sanctions following their home nation’s invasion of Ukraine back in 2022?
The most recognisable among the names was billionaire...
How much can change in just a few seconds? According to Child Marriage Data, a young girl marries somewhere in the world every three seconds. In this grim reality, Pakistan's new law banning child marriage stands out as a rare ray of light.
NGOs, international and local organizations, and governments have been working together to end child marriages for years, a violence of rights that mainly targets women and young...
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok
1 Comment
