Day 274 – World Vegetarian Day was founded in 1977 by the North American Vegetarian Society (NAVS). October 1st is the annual kick-off of Vegetarian Awareness Month. Even if you have no desire to become a vegetarian, you can still use this day and the coming month to work toward reducing your meat consumption and increase your produce intake.
The North American Vegetarian Society created a list of reasons why you might want to become a vegetarian.
- Reduce the risk of major killers such as heart disease, stroke and cancer while cutting exposure to food borne pathogens
- Provide a viable answer to feeding the world’s hungry through more efficient use of grains and other crops
- Save animals from suffering in factory-farm conditions and from the pain and suffering of slaughter
- Conserve vital but limited freshwater, fertile topsoil and other precious resources
- Preserve irreplaceable ecosystems such as rainforests and other wildlife habitats
- Decrease greenhouse gases that are accelerating global warming
- Mitigate the ever-expanding environmental pollution of animal agriculture
So, to celebrate World Vegetarian Day consider skipping the cheeseburger or pork chop and grab an eggplant or potato.
Tomorrow, ditching the junk mail.
365 Ways to Save the Planet 