Hi everyone!!! I’m Julia, before doing this project I did not no that eating meat was so bad for the environment, Now I am just shocked to realize that I personally pruduced more carbon from what I eat then from my Transportation and purchases combined!!! This is mind blowing but also very saddening. For one I absolutely LOVE steak and chicken and I could never in a million years give it up but look at the damage it does to the environment. This also concerns me because I am a member of a local 4-H club were we raise Belted Galloway’s. Here is a photo of one, for those of you who do not know Belted Galloway:

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You see there are multiple types of cattle, there are dairy cattle and beef cattle. Belted Galloway’s are beef cattle which means their only purposes are breeding and slaughter. I love my work there, I love the Belties and I love steak but it realize now that this pruduces a ton of carbon. But I’m not sure I could ever give this up...

This is a valid predicament that many Americans face each day. With this, my data presented that my frequent consumption of beef makes up approximately 12% of my carbon foot print. By consuming foreign cattle by-products the carbon footprint is exponentially higher, as fossil fuel consuming methods of transportation are required to place this food in your grocery stores. As you mentioned you raise cattle locally with sustainable farming techniques, which is able to provide a lower carbon foot print than that of foreign countries. Overall, the consumption of beef contributes greatly to carbon footprints of individuals, however by reducing the amount of beef you consume even by one day a week in addition to eating loocally raised live stock your carbon foot print can be reduced greatly.

I used to be a vegetarian (I lasted for about four years and am no longer one) and although I initially began eating a plant-based diet out of sympathy for animals, after much research I discovered that it also greatly benefitted the environment. I too, was shocked by the statistics. According to bussinessinsider.com, it takes 0.126 pounds of methane to produce just one quarter-pound of beef. According to forbes.com, the average American was expected to eat 222.2 pounds of red meat in 2018. That means that on average, approximately 112 pounds of methane were used (in 2018) to produce red meat per person in just one year! I would like to try a plant-based diet again at some point to help the environment and would encourage others as well. Even if it seems like this change would be insignificant, it could make a difference if more people committed.

I fully agree that beef and other meat, creates a lot of CO2 in the atmosphere.e  The people that can go off of meat entirely, should. It's a small difference in this big issue. For me personally, my highest category was Transportation. I drive a lot and I would love to have a car that is better for the environment. Eating local meat will help keep your CO2 levels go down.

I think you can enjoy steak and chicken from time to time but, consistently purchasing and eating meat might not be the best for the environment. My highest was transportation as well because of my driving and I can't help that very much but I can cut meat out of my diet to help.

I also didn't realise the severity of the carbon production from eating meat (namely beef).  However, I think the solution lies in reducing fossil fuel usage along the chain of production (i.e. electric vehicle transportation), not in eating less of it.  The problems that lead to carbon production also exist in other areas, and therefor need to be solved anyway, not just in the instance of beef production.  Additionally, major corporations oftentimes waste things that could be used, so I think that we should also focus on putting systems in place to reduce the amount of waste.

I believe that the hardest part of switching to more plant-based diets is how little options it gives to people who are very accustomed to the flavor, texture, etc. of meat, especially red meats. Despite it being cheaper and there being many different meals and cuisines being vegetarian or even vegan, I think many people just want what they're used to and is easy for them. However, now there are advancements in science allowing lab-grown/plant-based "meats" to act extremely similar to red meats - even "bleeding" when cooking. I think that gradually, more people will switch to more plant-based diets, especially if vegetarian "meats" get cheaper and more accessible to the public.