“..When school began in September, the kids of Baltimore became the first in the country to adopt ‘Meatless Mondays, an international program that asks people to cut meat from their diet one day a week.
Their goal is simple: reducing meat consumption by a mere 15% can improve human and planetary health.
Endorsed by esteemed medical institutions like the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, this seems like a no-brainer, right?
Impressed with the credentials and the program, Baltimore decided to take part and see what would happen.
I’m not sure anyone was ready for the firestorm of attacks being launched at them by the meat industry.
Leading the charge is, of course, every vegetarian’s favorite villain, J. Patrick Boyle, CEO of The American Meat Institute ..
.. whose mission in their own words includes: ..
.. being the most effective, credible and widely recognized voice of the meat and poultry industry ..
.. and valuing livestock and poultry as nutritious food sources.
The mission statement also says that the ‘AMI values honesty.’
Ah, irony.
The attacks launched against Meatless Mondays in Baltimore schools are anything but honest.
If they told the truth, they would say that by eliminating meat for one meal a week in our kids’ diets, we are affecting their bottom line.
They have little regard for our children’s health.
If they did, would growth hormones, steroids, antibiotics and other toxins are so heavily used in the foods they peddle to our kids ..
.. and call valuable sources of nutrients?
If they told the truth, they would acknowledge the connections between childhood obesity, diabetes and heart disease ..
.. and the excessive consumption of meat products.
If they told the truth, they would admit that reducing meat intake by even the smallest amount results in dramatic improvements in human and planetary health.
While Meatless Mondays has received an endorsement from PETA, the infamous animal rights group, it has little to do with the program itself, except to applaud its efforts.
The idea of not eating meat on Monday originated back in World War I as an effort to conserve resources.
But that’s not good enough for Mr. Boyle.
In his letter to Andres Alonso (CEO of the Baltimore school district), Mr. Boyle stated that this campaign is a way for animal activists to brainwash young children.
Yes, Mr. Boyle, we can’t have our kids going all healthy and compassionate on us and valuing life!..”
go to source/story>>Christina Pirello: Children’s Health And The Meat Industry
