Why our food is legless

This is my 21st year without meat and Mark’s 17th. Our reasons have changed quite a bit. Mark first did it out of laziness when we got together - I wouldn’t cook meat, so it was easier for him to give up and enjoy my meals (although he had been ethically veggie years before we met). I originally gave up meat for animal welfare reasons. I love animals, especially pigs, and didn’t like to think they were dying just to feed my face.

Let’s be straight from the start, we’re not actually ‘vegetarians’ but ‘pescetarians’ ie we eat fish (pesce =fish) and vegetables. Not many people seem to know the term, but it is gaining some currency. I read once about some celeb shunning 'meat with four legs' and changed that into 'legless food' to describe our diet (NB: crabs have claws!)

Why eat fish? Isn’t that just as cruel, you ask. As an A-level biologist I used to be able to tell you all about the differences between the nervous sensory system of a mammal, bird and fish. I can’t any more, but basically the upshot is that a fish’s is a lot less developed so does not feel pain like a lamb.

We were vegetarians (‘lacto-ovo-veggies’ ie eating diary and eggs) for about five years, after Mark came back from lunching with Steve McIvor who never ate ‘anything with eyes’. That was it! As soon as he mentioned it, the fish went (even the clams – do they have eyes?)

Being a veggie in 1990’s Britain was relatively simple with restaurants offering good choices, plus the launch of Quorn and the Linda McCartney brands. Nowadays, our supermarkets are packed with meat-free options, but the choice in restaurants seems to have taken a bit of a backward step. A bit of fish here, a bit of chorizo there – anyone would think all chefs trained in France!

Foreign travel has always proved an issue. We went for years struggling to eat decent food on holidays and finally went back to eating fish after getting married in Tobago: we were served spaghetti in tomato sauce atop mashed potato, while our friends enjoyed fine dining on fresh fish. Enough was enough!

When it comes to ethical lifestyle choices, those who do nothing are always the first to take a pot at anyone who goes part of the way. For them, unless you’re whiter than white, you’re a fraud and they will gladly taunt you for not going all the way and being completely vegan. But our stance is this: doing something – however small - is better than doing nothing. Eating veggie food 80% of the time is better than eating meat or fish every day.

And more importantly, it’s a personal choice. We don’t ram the meat-free message down anyone’s throat. We can easily sit next to Stan eating a rare steak. I even cook meat for the dog and for family and friends who really don’t like anything else (believe me, we’ve tried veggie with all of them!)

I said our attitudes have changed. Now, our reasons for being meat free are about sustainability. We don’t think it is right that world famine continues while rich nations use land to grow crops for cattle that could be better used to grow enough crops to feed the world’s human population.

Environmentally, turning over acres of land to meat production still involves destroying important natural habitats that keep eco-systems in balance and reduce climate change. Livestock production is responsible for 70% of Amazon deforestation. It also takes thousands more litres of water to produce a kilo of beef than to grow the same quantity of basic crops.

We cannot continue along this path. We cannot continue with current Western consumption and accommodate the growing appetites for meat in China and India where it has, so far, been economically out of the question for the majority of consumers.

The Earth’s fertile land is finite. We think it is better to use the land we have for producing food that can sustain all people – equally – all around the world.

In an ideal world, the majority, not the minority, would be vegetarian, by choice. But we think that’s rather unlikely. People like the taste too much – we did (and still do with fish).

As meat and fish can be farmed organically and sustainably, surely the trick is to eat just a little bit of high quality every now and then, rather than gorge daily on cheap, unsustainably farmed mega quantities?

By eating less meat and fish less often, we could reduce overall consumer demand, which in turn would reduce the demands on the land and seas.

Now here’s some food for thought ... May 23-29 is National Vegetarian Week. If we pledge to support it by cutting out fish, could you pledge to go meat free for a bit?

Debbie Griffiths