Everyone from Kelly Osborne to Oprah Winfrey, Joanna Lumley, Moby and Ricky Gervais have backed a growing movement called Meatless Monday. In the UK this movement is spearheaded by famous vegetarian Paul McCartney but in fact the idea is quite old.
During WWII the American FDA urged Americans to reduce their intake of key staples, meat being one of them, to help the war effort and slogans like ’Meatless Monday’ and ’Wheatless Wednesday’ were born. This campaign was reborn in 2003 but really started to gain traction around the world in 2009 when Paul McCartney and his daughters launched a ‘Meatfree Monday’ website with similar campaigns launched in Australia and Europe.
“I think many of us feel helpless in the face of environmental challenges, and it can be hard to know how to sort through the advice about what we can do to make a meaningful contribution to a cleaner, more sustainable, healthier world,” says Paul. “Having one designated meat free day a week is actually a meaningful change that everyone can make that goes to the heart of several important political, environmental and ethical issues all at once. For instance, it not only addresses pollution, but better health, the ethical treatment of animals, global hunger and community and political activism.”
Reducing our meat consumption is a key way the world can reduce carbon emissions.  While in New Zealand our farmers are doing a great job, the increasing demand for meat around the world means that nations will continue to farm intensively, rather than responsibly, to meet demand
There is a lot of debate about the health benefits of a vegetarian diet but what most people agree on is that reducing our meat consumption can only be a good thing. So ease the family in with one meal a week and go meat free on a Monday. If not for health or environmental reasons your wallet will thank you for it.
Nourish have lead the Meatless Monday movement in New Zealand having promoted a Meatfree recipe every week via our newsletters and social media for over 9 years.

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