Letters | Say no to meat, keep Hong Kong healthy and green

With reference to the letter “Chocolate or instant noodles: a pinch of guilt is good” (May 30), I agree with your correspondents on the importance of considering the environmental and social consequences of our dietary choices. Specifically, I believe Hong Kong should switch to plant-based meat to reduce its carbon footprint and address a range of public health concerns.

Food production accounts for a quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, including a large amount of methane caused by cattle and lamb production. In contrast, manufacturing plant-based beef alternatives only releases 5 per cent of the greenhouse gas that would be attributed to producing the same amount of beef.

Choosing plant-based meat can also alleviate some of the pressure on the health care system of Hong Kong. Meat consumption is associated with a range of preventable diseases, such as chronic heart disease and colorectal cancer.

Research has found that two portions per week of processed red meat were linked with a 3 per cent to 7 per cent increased risk of heart disease. Meanwhile, switching to plant-based produce can greatly reduce the risk of colorectal cancer.

Consuming plant-based meat can also help curb the growth of antibiotic-resistant bacteria that threaten public health in Hong Kong and worldwide, as most antibiotics worldwide are used in animal farming. With repeated use of antibiotics leading to the evolution of superbugs, antimicrobial resistance has become one of the most pressing global public health threats facing humanity, and issue that might grow worse with climate change.