Adopting a vegan diet dramatically reduces one person's impact on the environment

    It would help tackle the problem of climate change if people ate less meat, according to a Government agency.

    A leaked email to a vegetarian campaign group from an Environment Agency official expresses sympathy with the environmental benefits of a vegan diet, which bans dairy products and fish.

    The agency also says the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs （Defra） is considering recommending eating less meat as one of the "key environmental behaviour changes" needed to save the planet.

    It says that this change would have to be introduced "gently" because of "the risk of alienating the public".

    David Miliband, the Environment Secretary, has raised the issue that farm animals are blamed for producing large amounts of the powerful greenhouse gas, methane, and told farmers they need to do something about it but the agency's response appears to go further than official advice.

    It has provoked an immediate response from the National Farmers' Union, which said the suggestion was "simplistic" and "a cause of concern".

    The agency's official was responding to an email from the vegan group Viva, which argues that it is more efficient to use land to grow crops for direct consumption by humans rather than feeding them to dairy cows or livestock raised for meat.

    The campaign group entered a comment on the Environment Agency's website saying: "Adopting a vegan diet reduces one person's impact on the environment even more than giving up their car or forgoing several plane trips a year! Why aren't you promoting this message as part of your [World Environment Day] campaign?"

    An agency official replied: "Whilst potential benefit of a vegan diet in terms of climate impact could be very significant, encouraging the public to take a lifestyle decision as substantial as becoming vegan would be a request few are likely to take up.

    "You will be interested to hear that the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is working on a set of key environmental behaviour changes to mitigate climate change. Consumption of animal protein has been highlighted within that work. As a result the issue may start to figure in climate change communications in the future. It will be a case of introducing this gently as there is a risk of alienating the public majority.

    "Future Environment Agency communications are unlikely to ever suggest adopting a fully vegan lifestyle, but certainly encouraging people to examine their consumption of animal protein could be a key message."

    Juliet Gellatley, director of Viva, said: "I think it is extraordinary that a Government agency thinks becoming a vegetarian or vegan could have such a positive impact for the environment yet it is not prepared to stand up and argue the case."

    A Defra spokesman said: "The Government is not telling people to give up meat. It isn't the role of Government to enforce a dietary or lifestyle change on any individual."

    吃純素可極大減小個人對環境的影響

    據一政府機構（環境署）稱，如果人們減少肉食會有助于解決氣候變化的問題。

    一份被泄露的環境署官員致素食運動組織的電子郵件，就純素食（禁止奶制品和魚類）對環境的種種益處表示贊同。

    該機構還表示，環境、食品和鄉村事務部（Defra）現正考慮建議將少吃肉，作為拯救地球所需"關鍵的利于環境的行為改變"之一。

    據說，這一改革將要和緩地推出，因有"疏離民眾的風險".

    環境部長大衛米利班德，提出了農場動物產生大量強溫室氣體甲烷而受指責的問題，并告訴農民要對此采取措施，但該機構的反應看來比官方的建議更進一步。

    這立即引起了全國農民聯盟的反應，說此建議"過分簡單化"并"會引人關注".

    該環境署官員在回應一份Viva素食組織的電子郵件中論述，種植農作物供人類直接食用比喂養奶牛或飼養用于肉食的牲畜，在土地的使用上更有效。

    此素食運動組織在環境署的網站上評論說："吃純素可減少個人對環境的影響，比不開車或一年中減少幾次飛行之旅都更有效！為什么不把這個信息作為你們[世界環境日]活動的一部分來宣傳呢？"

    一名環境署官員回復說："雖然純素食在氣候影響方面的潛在利益可能非常重要，但沒有什么人會對此請求采取行動，鼓勵民眾做像吃純素這樣重大生活方式改變的決定。

    "你們會有興趣知道Defra正在制定一系列關鍵的利于環境的行為改變以減緩氣候變化。其中強調了動物蛋白消費的問題。因此，這個問題可能開始成為未來氣候變化交流的一部分。這將會和緩地推出，因有疏離大部分民眾的風險。

    "未來的環境署交流不大可能會建議采用完全的純素生活方式，但無疑鼓勵人們審視自己的動物蛋白消費是一個重要的訊息。"

    Viva的負責人朱麗葉格拉特利說："我認為這很奇怪，政府機構既然認為吃素或吃純素會對環境產生如此積極的影響，卻不準備為此站出來說理。"

    Defra發言人說："政府不是要大家放棄肉食。強制改變個人的飲食或生活方式不是政府的職能。"