In "Moving Towards a Plant-Based Diet" I announced that my wife and I were embarking on a 75% vegetarian diet, pushing meat down to about 25% of our meals. Earlier this morning Alex Tabarrok of Marginal Revolution posted "The Revolution Has Begun: Beyond Meat" which makes me think that when trends start they ripple through social tribes quickly!
Tabarrok states that "animal rights will be the big social revolution of the 21st century."
Most people have a vague feeling that factory farms aren’t quite ethical. But few people are willing to give up meat so such feelings are suppressed because acknowledging them would only make one feel guilty not just. Once the costs of giving up meat fall, however, vegetarianism will spread like a prairie wildfire changing eating habits, the use of farm land, and the science and economics of climate change.
My new diet choice was based on three things: Health, mercy, and a cleaner world. Mounting evidence suggests that, at least Americans, consume too much meat and reducing its consumption can significantly reduce disease. Further, factory farming can be brutal and animal agriculture causes a good deal of environmental damage.
Tabarrok's post was inspired by finding a tasty new vegetarian burger from Beyond Meat. The faux burger "extracts protein from peas and then combines it with other vegetable elements under heating, cooling and pressure to realign the proteins in a way that simulates the architecture of beef."
I'll be checking it out the next time I venture into Whole Foods...
What are your thoughts?
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Rob Viglione is a PhD Candidate in Finance @UofSC with research interests in cryptofinance, asset pricing, and innovation. He is a former physicist, mercenary mathematician, and military officer with experience in satellite radar, space launch vehicles, and combat support intelligence. Currently a Principal at Key Force Consulting, LLC, a start-up consulting group in North Carolina, and Head of U.S. & Canada Ambassadors @BlockPay, Rob holds an MBA in Finance & Marketing and the PMP certification. He is a passionate libertarian who advocates peace, freedom, and respect for individual life.
Image source: http://beyondmeat.com/