Vegetarianism sweeps the globe with launch of International Meatout Day.

From educational seminars to tasty veggie food sampling, the International Meatout Day campaign begins today, the first day of Spring on Thursday, March 20, simultaneously in all 50 US states where it began, and is joined by two dozen countries across the globe. Everywhere, people are discovering the benefits of an animal-less diet, for our health and that of our precious planet.

International Meatout Day - Cincinnati, Ohio, USA

It's all veggie chicken?
Oh, wow.
How do you like the soy chicken, sir?
I like it a whole lot.

As thousands of people welcome the chance to discover how tasty vegetarian food can be, Meatout Day also offers an opportunity to discuss the important matter of our everyday diet, how it is affecting us and the world around us.

Phoebe Cooper - Vegan Meatout participant, USA

They [doctors] had actually said I wasn't going to be able to walk again. And I can run up and down stairs till this day. If you ever want to change your life, start with your diet. Because it will actually change your whole life.

(In Korean)
Buddhism Department of Dongguk University, Seoul, Korea
             
saw a cow being pulled to a slaughterhouse, and I was shocked about it and I could not touch meat after that. The cow had tears in its eyes. For people like us with a religion, it's very helpful for spiritual practice to refrain from meat eating, for the aspiration of Buddhahood and the compassion that we speak of.

Meatout participant, USA

God gave us a gift by giving us this planet. What else can you ask for, you know? And once we lose this planet, we have nowhere to go. So you got to stop now and think, what are we doing? Just go green, go with the world, go with our planet. Just go vegetarian! What's it going to hurt? You know, just live life and love it.

Let's go now to Supreme Master Television's international correspondents to hear more about this exciting trend in vegetarianism worldwide and find out how people on different continents are celebrating Meatout Day.

International Meatout Day - Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Big greetings to our compassionate viewers all around the world on this happy, bright Meatout Day! I am reporting from the deep South of Georgia, USA.

How did you enjoy the Meatout festivities today?

Oh, it was tremendous.
It took us to another level of understanding ourselves in relation to the plant life here and how we co-exist and how we can make ourselves better through harmony with the world and nature.

In light of the recent news of the largest beef recall in the USA, the Meatout campaign in Georgia is also calling for the recall of ALL animal products.

There was a recall of 143 million pounds of beef - the largest recall in US history last month. I just want to get your opinion about that.

Mary Green, Co-founder of vegetarian food manufacturer:

We've been hearing a lot lately about antibiotics that have been used in the animals. Those things are passed down to us and it gets into our soils and our water system. We've hearing a lot about that. And you just don't have those problems when you aren't consuming animal products.

Dirk Twine, Imani Holistic Health Institute Natural Health Expert:

It's been said that the amount of food that we feed our animals in America will literally feed our world. So if we just gave up the fact that we are eating meat and move that food supply we are feeding them to these countries in these locations where people are starving, we can help the world tremendously. 

In Atlanta, the capital of what was once the nation's top broiler state, vegetarianism is gaining popularity with over 20 pure vegetarian/vegan restaurants in operation.

Chef Mbali - Oh, Soul Divine catering service:

We are complete vegetarians. We really work to not only serve the food and cater the food but we also do community outreach as far as educating people on benefits of eating healthy.

International Meatout Day - Sao Paulo, Brazil

(In Portuguese)

And which kind of food do you serve here?

Here we serve food, vegetarian natural food.

And what is the approximate average of people that come here? It has increased recently?

Yes, the movement has increased a lot. You see, they are not fully vegetarian, but, during the week, they eat here, speaking about the meat, the contamination of the meat.

Along with the health and humanitarian benefits of a meat-free diet is the effect of treading more lightly on the planet. Let's hear from some of the Meatout participants whose concerns extend to the environment and halting climate change.

(In Korean)

International Meatout Day - Seoul, Korea

Halo from Seoul, Korea. Here in Korea also, more and more people are switching to a vegetarian diet. They realize that vegetarianism is good for our health, the environment, and also even for peace. I will visit a vegetarian restaurant here and see the current situation. What is the response of your customers?

Young guests converse here and talk quite a lot about how we should adopt a vegetarian diet to save the Earth.

(In Bulgarian)

International Meatout Day - Sofia, Bulgaria

My name is Borislav Sandov and I am president of the Students' University Club for Ecology and Sustainable Living of "Sofia University", called UNECO, form the University Eco Club and United Eco Club.

We know you are vegetarian; can you say a few words about the connection between the meat industry and ecology, which are indeed connected. In an UN report of 2006 it is said that the meat industry is the number one factor for global warming.

Yes, definitely. I have been vegetarian for 5 years and I feel great. Of course, it is important to say that there are several types of contamination. One of the basic ones, which is causing global warming, or for so called greenhouse gases, is the methane. The other kind of contamination is the mental one, also a very serious problem for humanity and for the planet Earth.

(In Chinese)

International Meatout Day - Formos

In Formosa, "Veg" is not a new term.  Vegetarianism can actually be said to be part of Formosan culture. However, there is a new trend these years showing that the average age for vegetarians is younger in Formosa. Many owners of the restaurants indicated that there are more and more young couples who are coming to their restaurants for lunch or dinner. When interviewed by our correspondent, many customers stated that eating vegetarian is not only good for our health, but also good for our environment.

International Meatout Day - Chicago, Illinois, USA

Whole Foods Market Global natural and organic supermarket Sauganash, Illinois, USA

My name is Jessica Jafari. I am the Marketing and Community Relations Specialist at Whole Foods Market, Sauganash. Whole Food Market is the world's leading natural and organic supermarket. Everything within this store is free of artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. We also do not carry anything with hydrogenated fat.

 I know you carry a wide selection of vegetarian foods.

At Whole Foods Market, we do have a wide variety of vegetarian products and we are seeing an increase in shelf space due to customer demand. We have all sorts of meat-free items including seitan and meat-free Canadian Bacon. We also have our 365 brand Organic Tofu and all sorts of different flavored tofu.

Vegetarianism is not only a growing individual choice, it's also a trend in schools, businesses and restaurants, both vegetarian and non alike.

International Meatout Day - Sydney, Australia

Supreme Master Television Correspondent in Australia: Greetings from Sydney, Australia, where more and more people are becoming vegetarian. There are many vegetarian restaurants opening and serving delicious foods here. And because Australia is such a multicultural country, there are many different choices of vegetarian food to enjoy, such as Thai, Indian, Vietnamese, Chinese, Australian food and even organic vegetarian food.

(In Korean)

International Meatout Day - Seoul, Korea

I'm here at a kindergarten in Seoul that provides vegetarian school meals to its kindergarteners. Let's go find out more.

Even one vegetarian meal a day alleviates atopic dermatitis, so children don't need to go see a doctor anymore.

Vegetarianism benefits not only physically but it also helps children emotionally. So I hope more and more people go vegetarian.

So Hyun, is it delicious?

Yes.

Which vegetable do you like?

 Kimchi!

Vegetarian diet is the best.

Is vegetarian delicious?

Yes!

International Meatout Day  - Amman, Jordan

(In Arabic)

All of these dishes are vegetarian, which is not over-emphasized, actually.
It tells you about the culture, though. Maybe our roots are vegetarian here.

Falafel is mixed with chick-peas.

Falafel is vegetarian, right?

Yes.

Here, you have stuffed falafel. Stuffed with onions and some spices. Secret spices, very secret, very good. They are also very nutritious. You have huge amounts of protein, calcium, all the vitamins you need.

Are you eating falafel and beans everyday?

Of course. It has a healthy effect.

It is also very simple to make, very cheap. In addition, it is very, very delicious.

Aside from the ecological destruction and inhumane treatment of animals involved with factory farms, recent reports on tragedies worldwide that have befallen humans and animals alike, all associated with meat consumption have surfaced - such as: Listeriosis, Blue tongue disease, E coli, Salmonella, Bird flu, Mad cow disease, Pig's disease (PMWS), and Shellfish mercury poisoning.  Dr. William Richardson from the American Clinic for Preventive Medicine further explains other diseases related to a meat diet:

Meatout Day - Georgia, USA

It is extremely important. If you want to avoid heart disease, cancer of the prostate, the breast, uterus, pancreases, and many other health maladies, you want to take MEAT OUT. Meat is the only source of cholesterol and also the source of many hormones. Cooking meat is harmful because it produces cancer-causing agents. Chicken can give you more cancer-causing agents than red meat. I also think that meat can affect human behavior. If people were more vegan, it will cause less war.

From celebrities such as the Beatles' Sir Paul McCartney, supermodel Christy Turlington, actor Pierce Brosnan, pro athlete Prince Fielder, singer Carrie Underwood, among many others, the vegetarian movement is blossoming around the world.  Even top government officials are urging their co-citizens to turn towards a vegetarian diet as an important part of overcoming climate change. Camden's Councillor Alexis Rowell of London, UK is a member of the Culture and Environment Scrutiny Committee who is urging for a vegetarian diet. Mr. Rowell spoke in a telephone interview with Supreme Master Television's correspondent in the United Kingdom.

International Meatout Day - United Kingdom

We all think that people should cut down on meat and dairy. There are two reasons for that. One, the livestock industry is estimated to be responsible for about 18% of the world's carbon emissions. That's partly because cows burp methane, but it's also because we use huge amounts of fossil fuels to transport meat in refrigerated trucks and ships, to grow grain to feed the cattle, to pump water to give cattle something to drink, and also, to sell meats in supermarkets in open fridges and freezers. So there's a huge environmental benefit to cutting down on meat and dairy. But there's also a massive health benefit. We are in the grips of an obesity epidemic in the West, particularly in the US and UK. And a part of that is for eating too much meat and dairy.  So we say, let's cut down on meat and dairy because that has a huge health and a huge environmental benefit.

The facts of climate change by the world's climate change scientists without exception now say that we're going to find it very difficult to prevent runaway climate change if we don't act in the next few years.

We sincerely thank all involved for calling attention and encouraging the widespread adoption of a vegetarian diet. God bless your devoted efforts. Whether it's for compassion, health, the environment or all these reasons, it's truly Time to Act - by going veg. 

For more information about adopting a vegetarian diet, please visit Meatout.org.

Older, thicker Arctic ice makes up only 30% of the polar ice cap. 

This represents a 30% decline over the past 20 years.  Scientists at the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)'s announce that the older ice continued to decline over the winter.  Dr. Walt Meier of the National Snow and Ice Data Center stated, "It's becoming thinner and thinner and much more susceptible to melting during the summer - much more likely to melt away.  It may look OK on the surface, but it is like looking at a Hollywood movie set - you see a fa?ade of a building and it looks OK, but if you look behind it, there's no building there."  

We are deeply grateful, scientists, for your alerting us to the Arctic icecaps' severe state.  With the God's grace, may research such as yours guide us to take urgent action to save our planet and the lives of her inhabitants. 

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7303385.stm 

Drift ice disappears from Hokkaido, Japan. 

Abashiri, Hokkaido is the southernmost area of the world where Arctic drift ice is found.  But data collected by the Sapporo District Meteorological Observatory shows that drift ice has thinned dramatically over the last 4 years.  Last year Abashiri residents formed the Okhotsk Drift Ice Trust Movement to promote immediate action on climate change. Masanori Ito, secretary general of the Okhotsk Sightseeing Federation, said, "There is a clear sign of a global crisis right here in our city, and the message has to be sent out to the world." 

We thank you, Mr. Masanori Ito, Okhotsk Sightseeing Federation, and Okhotsk Drift Ice Trust Movement, for your clear message and call to action. Heaven bless the people of Japan for your initiatives to go green. May they be successful in keeping you and our planet safe and sustainable.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20080313f1.html


Japan to purchase carbon quotas from Poland. 

Through a plan known as the Green Investment Scheme, Japan has come to an agreement with Poland to buy greenhouse gas emission quotas. In return, Poland commits the profits to green measures.  Their agreement was made during a three-day meeting in Chiba, Japan, where ministers of the world's top greenhouse gas emitting nations discussed ways to halt climate change.

Japan and Poland, we laud your green accord! May your continued relations bring abundant benefit for the health of the planet and the people of both nations.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/world/20080318TDY02310.htm