European Parliament conference addresses the meat impact on climate change, world hunger and animal rights.

European Parliament conference addresses the meat impact on climate change, world hunger and animal rights. “Feeding the World under the Climate Threat?” was the question posed in the forum on November 12 to 13 that was hosted by Swedish Member of the European Parliament and vegetarian Jens Holm. International experts discussed the harmful impact of mass-producing livestock on the environment and vulnerable populations.

Jens Holm – Swedish Member of European Parliament, Vegetarian: The greatest impact you actually could do, that would be to reduce your meat consumption or stop eating meat totally. You would create a surplus of crops that could be used to feed the people who are starving today.

VOICE: The conference addressed potential measures from the European Union to tackle the animal agriculture sector’s increasing greenhouse gas emissions.

Jens Holm : Today, European subsidies going directly to advertisement campaigns for meat consumption. It should be the other way around. We should have awareness campaigns for vegetarian consumption, because that is the solution.

VOICE: It’s the solution not only for solving hunger and climate change, but according to Parliament member Holm, who is also a staunch animal advocate, vegetarianism protects countless animal lives.

Jens Holm : My hope for the children of the future is that they can live in a world which is in accordance to nature; also in accordance with the animals so that we don’t breed animals; we don’t transport animals, of course we don’t kill the animals.

VOICE: Supreme Master Ching Hai has often mentioned that compared to other proposed solutions for climate change, none is as effective – and lives-saving – as the adoption of the meatless diet.