Animal agriculture and meat production, in particular, has been a central issue and demonised quite rightly by a broad range of campaign groups and organisations. From environmental NGOs such as Greenpeace and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), to think tanks like Chatham House that advise governments and corporations directly, all are saying that we must move away from animals in our daily diets. It is only the degree to which the point is pushed that differs, with most taking the more temperate line of having meat-free Mondays and other such half-measures.
It would seem that the Lyon decision has struck a raw nerve. French farmers – who we saw protesting the council’s decision by descending upon city hall with tractors and animals in tow as if seeing a live cow would make a politician change their mind about killing them and offering them up to school children – will be feeling under attack like in any country where growing environmental concerns have found their way into the political agenda. Those who lobby for animal agriculture will be putting more money into convincing politicians not to support any changes in legislation or indeed any political move to stifle meat consumption, feeling the threat of inevitability. Meat is still widely consumed, we are a long way off from purely plant-based societies, yet the resistance is strong as trends show veganism, vegetarianism and flexitarianism to be more prevalent in the younger generations.
This means that eating animals could have a generational shelf life, or in other more blunt words, it could die out with older people. This brings us nicely back to why it is so important that children should have meat-free meals normalised, and why a child should see their friends and those around them at an early age make conscious informed food choices.
School is one place where we learn many of our social norms. According to MeatFreeMondays.com, writing about a PETA-led joint campaign to reform school meals, the UK’s school food standards stipulate that children must be served flesh three days a week, oily fish once every three weeks, and dairy every weekday, thus “setting a dietary pattern for adult life”.
“As long as the mandatory animal-derived food servings remain in the standards, caterers are restricted in meeting the demand for sustainable, healthy meals,” said PETA’s Carys Bennett. “Government guidelines should certainly not require schools to offer foods that are wrecking the climate and fuelling the childhood obesity crisis.”
We know that eating animals is linked to a range of health issues, being high in saturated fat and cholesterol while red and processed meats are known carcinogens. Conversely, properly planned vegan diets are appropriate for all stages of life, according to both the British and American Dietetics Associations. The idea that animals are essential for children is outdated and even dangerous.