RETHINK, REACT, AND RESTORE
Observed on June 5 each year, World Environment Day is a global platform led by the United Nations Environment Programme for environmental education, outreach, and action. The 2024 World Environment Day focuses on land restoration, desertification, and drought resilience.
So why is this day relevant to our conversation about food systems?
Simple! What we eat greatly impacts the natural world. Animal agriculture is a major contributor to biodiversity loss, climate change, water pollution, and deforestation. Animal agriculture accounts for 14.5% of global human-induced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Removing animal products from our plates can cut our food-related carbon footprints in half because plant-based foods—such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, legumes, nuts, and lentils—generally use less energy, land, and water and have lower greenhouse gas intensities than animal-based foods.
RETHINK What We Eat
To mitigate the effects of climate change, reduce GHG emissions, halt biodiversity loss, and restore ecosystems, we need to see how our food choices affect the environment, from production and processing to transportation, storage, markets, and even food-waste disposal.
As consumers, we have the power to reduce our environmental impact. We can do our part by rethinking what we eat—switching to plant-based foods, supporting local and organic food producers, and choosing whole plant foods over processed and heavily packaged foods.
REACT by Taking Action and Choosing More-Sustainable Plant-Based Foods
Amid growing concerns regarding the environmental and health impacts of food production, the need to explore sustainable dietary options becomes more pressing. A pivotal solution gaining traction is the global transition to plant-based eating.
Research shows that such a shift holds immense promise, not only in preventing disease and mitigating climate change but in alleviating the resource strain associated with animal agriculture.
Malaysia’s demand for and consumption of animal meat has been rising steadily, but thankfully, we also have a growing plant-based movement and market for plant-based food. Hence, finding delicious plant-based foods and resources to start a plant-based journey is easy.
We have a collective duty to reduce our food footprint, and plant-based foods stand out as the most effective means to achieve this goal while mitigating the harms of animal agriculture.
RESTORE Ecosystems to Heal the Planet
Our planet has lost half its natural ecosystems, and the average populations of wild animals have fallen by 68% since 1970. In contrast, more than 100 billion animals are killed for meat every year. Industrial animal agriculture causes serious damage to the environment and to people through zoonotic diseases, water contamination, and climate change.
By reducing our demand for meat and eating plant-based, we can eliminate the pressure to clear new land for animal agriculture. Growing crops for direct human consumption requires far less land, water, and resources. More efficient use of farmland would free up land to be restored. Native ecosystems could better support biodiversity and become carbon sinks that help mitigate climate change and its effects.
All around the world, pockets of biodiversity are appearing where farms once stood, as farmers abandon farmland that has been overused. The shift to plant-based eating helps free up land, reduce carbon emissions, and enable the rewilding and restoration of former agricultural land.
Ultimately, the message of this year’s World Environment Day is one of hope and optimism. We are all able to effect change and repair and restore ecosystems by making conscious choices about the food we eat.