5 Scientific Reasons to Switch to a Plant-Based Diet

The production, packaging, transportation and consumption of animal-based foods contribute to numerous environmental problems. Including: greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, erosion of agricultural lands, intensive use of water and soil, excessive waste generation, groundwater pollution, loss of biodiversity, in general resulting in significant negative effects on climate change (1-3). Human diets are highly interconnected with environmental sustainability and animal products have increasingly become a topic of controversy regarding health, safety, environment and animal welfare (4).

At Jimmy Joy, we strongly believe that as a company, we have a responsibility to present consumers with a tangible solution to this problem. All of our products are 100% plant-based, because we want to make sure they are good for your health and the environment at the same time. Part of our mission is to incorporate sustainability into our daily operations and ensure that what we do contributes to a positive impact on society and the environment. Throughout the rest of this article, you can read our top 5 science-based reasons why switching to a plant-based diet is the way to go.

1. A plant-based diet is the best way to reduce your environmental impact

Each year, The Global Footprint Network calculates a metric known as the Ecological Footprint, which compares the resource demands of individuals, governments, and businesses to what the Earth can renew in one year. The result of the calculation is the biocapacity needed to support human resource demand. In 2020, humanity has been living by using as many finite ecological resources as if we lived on 1.6 Earths. Furthermore, the same calculation determines a specific day, known as World Overshoot Day, which marks the date when humanity has exhausted the Earth’s natural capacity budget for the year. In 2020, this day falls on August 22. Thus, for the rest of the year, the world is operating in excess, maintaining an ecological deficit by reducing local resource reserves and accumulating carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (10). Click here to read more about Earth Overshoot Day .

The agricultural industry is the largest contributor to the creation of the ecological footprint, resulting in the fact that half of the Earth’s biocapacity is used to fuel our food systems. This problem is mainly due to two underlying factors: resource inefficiency in food production and food waste (11). Livestock farming generates 18% of total greenhouse gas emissions across all industries; an even higher percentage than the transportation industry (12).

Animal products play a critical role when it comes to sustainability, particularly meat products, as they are among the most energy-intensive and ecologically burdensome foods to produce (5). By 2050, the world’s population is expected to reach 9.7 billion (6). Simultaneously, meat consumption is estimated to increase from 49 kilograms to 52 kilograms per person annually. These global trends show exactly the opposite of what the future of human diets should look like. Food production alone contributes to about 30 percent of the total environmental impact caused by humans (7, 8). The fact is that, based on projections of future diets, the “business as usual” scenario cannot continue. Research suggests that through vegan diets, GHG emissions could potentially be reduced by up to 70 percent, or by up to 50 percent through a vegetarian diet. In monetary terms, it could also prevent climate-related damages of $1.5 trillion (3, 9).

Data on greenhouse gas emissions from individual food products along the supply chain show that animal products (i.e. dairy, meat, and eggs) account for 83 percent of carbon footprint generation. More specifically, by far the largest contributor to the carbon footprint, red meat, alone creates 62 percent (13). This is due to the fact that beef production happens to be the most resource-inefficient and creates the most food waste as a byproduct. On average, 15,500 liters of water, 25 kilograms of feed, and a huge amount of land, among others, are required to produce 1 kilogram of meat. A single cow produces as many greenhouse gas emissions as 4.5 cars, contributing to soil, water, and air pollution, acidification, and the extinction of flora and fauna (14).

Hence, returning to the ecological debt that humanity owes to the planet, it is indisputable that meat consumption is a fundamental issue to address. It is believed that if global meat consumption were reduced by 50 percent, Overshoot Day would move 17 days. For example, replacing the cultivation of 1 kilogram of beef protein with 1 kilogram of red bean protein requires approximately eighteen times less land, ten times less water, nine times less fuel, twelve times less fertilizer, and ten times less pesticide (15). All in all, a recent comprehensive analysis from the University of Oxford suggests that adopting a plant-based diet is the best way to reduce your environmental impact on Earth. Furthermore, eliminating meat and dairy products from your diet could reduce an individual’s food carbon footprint by up to 73 percent (16).

2. Feel good and stay healthy

No scientific research confirms the fact that the human body needs meat to survive. However, there is a large body of research validating the healthiness of plant-based or meat-free diets (15, 17, 18). Cardio-metabolic diseases, including heart disease, stroke, obesity, and type 2 diabetes, represent a major health burden. Nearly half of deaths caused by cardio-metabolic diseases could be prevented through proper nutrition. It is suggested that following a plant-based diet is one of the most effective strategies to improve nutrient intake. Evidence shows that plant-based living is highly correlated with decreased all-cause mortality and decreased risk of type 2 diabetes, stroke, and coronary heart disease (19, 20). Click here to read an article about the world’s populations with the longest life expectancy. Spoiler: most people who live to be over 100 are on plant-based diets.

Furthermore, studies suggest that plant-based diets are an effective strategy in treating obesity. In a 16-week experiment, researchers compared the effect of a plant-based diet on body composition and insulin resistance. The plant-based diet was shown to be superior to the control animal-based diet in improving body weight, fat mass, and markers of insulin resistance (21).

Furthermore, adopting plant-based diets could help minimize malnutrition and hunger. As of today, 821 million people live with hunger every day (22). With the ever-growing world population, issues are emerging regarding the amount of resources available to feed humanity. Following standard meat-based diets requires two football fields of space to produce the amount needed to feed one person. Whereas, following plant-based diets, the same amount of land is needed to feed 14 people. If the entire world population followed a plant-based diet, forest the size of 5 billion football fields worth of land could be restored, or the land could be used to produce the food that will be needed to feed the growing population reaching almost 10 billion people by 2050 (6).

 

3. We could save the lives of +80 billion animals every year

People often forget about the source of the food on their plates. Research suggests that people who are very attached to meat possess a greater ability to deny animal suffering and view the animals they eat as “insentient objects” (23). Animals can feel pain and are capable of feeling and consciousness. Yet even today Western food culture remains largely resistant to the idea of ​​reducing animal products (24). To this day, meat occupies a central role in Western diets (25). For many people, meat is the most important component of the meal (26). However, it is essential to acknowledge the fact that eating meat is also a moral case. More than 80 billion animals are raised and slaughtered for human consumption worldwide every year (27).

The conservation of terrestrial ecosystems and biological diversity is primarily affected by human consumption of animal products. Research identifies livestock production as the largest driver of habitat loss, which subsequently leads to climate change, soil loss, and water and nutrient pollution. In particular, 60 percent of global biodiversity is lost due to land clearing for livestock production. It is strongly believed that a shift in human diets towards a predominantly plant-based diet will lead to enormous impacts on the environment, animal welfare, and biodiversity restoration (40).

 

4. Plant-based diets are simply delicious

The negative impacts of meat production and consumption have led to the development of meat substitutes and several new brands and product introductions. The most well-known meat substitutes are plant-based (i.e. soy, peas, lupins). In addition, lab-grown meat and insect-based alternatives are in the early stages of development, approaching commercial viability (28-31).

Meat substitutes (also known as substitutes, alternatives or analogues) are plant-based food products containing protein made from plants, using plant legumes as the protein source. Legumes are the edible seeds of plants belonging to the legume family, such as peas, chickpeas, lentils, beans and soybeans, and are particularly rich in fibre and protein (32). Replacing meat with plant legume alternatives is proposed to be the most effective way to make food consumption more sustainable (16, 33).

However, it is suggested that “resistance to the idea of ​​reducing personal meat consumption” persists as the main reason why meat consumption remains high (34). Producers of plant-based meat alternatives have been targeting their products primarily towards vegetarians and occasional meat eaters. However, new generation meat analogue brands are hoping that consumers with mild to high meat-intensive diets will become their target market (35, 36). Research suggests that pro-meat consumers who identify as meat eaters report that they would prefer meat alternatives to closely resemble meat (i.e., lab-grown meat); whereas pro-meat substitute consumers prefer meat alternatives to not resemble meat (37, 38).

For example, nowadays we can choose from several different brands of new generation meat analogues. Meat analogues or simulated meat are a specific category within the broader group of meat substitutes or meat alternatives, which aim to emulate the taste and texture of meat. They could be considered essentially identical substitutes that replace meat as a component of the meal (25, 39). For example, Beyond Meat is one of the most popular new generation meat analogue brands. It is completely vegan, made from pea protein, and also contains beet juice to give the burger the juiciness and “bleeding” effect.

It’s important to let go of the reluctance to change a diet and realize that a switch to plant-based products offers more and more innovative products and alternatives. Some of our favorite meat substitutes are tofu, seitan, and tempeh. We bet you’ll be surprised at how easy it is once you get started. A well-known fact is that it takes 21 days to adopt a new habit. So, after a few days or weeks, you won’t even notice that you miss or crave animal products. Speaking of plant-based diets, with Jimmy Joy going plant-based is easy, here you can find some easy plant-based recipes that we love.

  

5. Last but not least: because David Attenborough wants us to...

And let's be real: Who can say no to that man?

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