Buzz
Truthfully, consuming meat is far from ideal. It’s costly, associated with cancer, and contributes to severe crises in the developing world.
Despite the logical reasons to avoid it, many of us struggle to abandon our meat-eating habits. Present us with evidence of health risks, and we’ll still crave a perfectly cooked steak. Expose us to the realities of slaughterhouses, and we’ll still reach for our utensils. It might seem harsh, but we’ll only part with our bacon under extreme circumstances—and here’s why:
9. Our Bodies Are Built to Digest Meat
Thanks to evolutionary advancements, humans can thrive on a diet without meat. However, this doesn’t imply we’re natural vegetarians. In fact, as early as 2003, researchers confirmed that our ancestors consumed meat as far back as 2.5 million years ago. That sizzling barbecue isn’t a symbol of modern indulgence; it’s deeply rooted in our ancestral diet. Additional evidence supports this: our bodies lack key features of herbivores, such as multiple stomachs, the ability to digest cellulose, or the intricate digestive systems of plant-eaters. Moreover, our teeth are clearly adapted for both meat and plant-based diets, which is fortunate because…
8. Meat Shaped Humanity
From a purely logical standpoint, humans exhibit several peculiar traits. For one, our brains appear disproportionately large. In most primates, brain size correlates with body size, but humans defy this trend. Additionally, our brains are incredibly complex, packed with neurons capable of generating more thoughts than there are stars in the cosmos. What sets us apart? A 2011 study points to our meat consumption as a key factor.
Indeed, Spanish researchers discovered signs of malnutrition in a 1.5-million-year-old child’s skull, linked to a lack of meat. This finding implies that meat was so integral to our ancestors’ diets that brain development depended on it. Further evidence ties primate brain complexity to daily calorie intake. Since cooking emerged long after our brains expanded, meat was likely the primary source of these calories. In essence, our ability to make choices like vegetarianism stems from our ancestors’ reliance on animal consumption.
7. Other Primates Consume Meat
A common argument for vegetarianism is that humans are the only primates who eat meat, suggesting it’s unnatural—like complaining about steakhouses online. However, this claim is not only false but also scientifically unsound.
In 1960, Jane Goodall documented chimpanzees hunting and consuming other animals in the wild. Since then, studies have revealed that some chimp groups consume up to one ton of meat each year. This isn’t just occasional snacking; it’s a full-blown chimp version of a food challenge. Additionally, they use the meat to gain reproductive and social advantages over their peers. In short, our evolutionary relatives are so fond of meat that they’ll go to great lengths to obtain it.
6. Meat Can Be Environmentally Sustainable
A major argument for abandoning meat is the severe environmental toll of transporting, for instance, a piece of beef across the globe. If you’re passionate about the environment, cutting out meat seems like an obvious choice, doesn’t it?
Not necessarily. Although our current transportation system is as eco-friendly as a wildfire, it doesn’t have to remain this way. Properly managed livestock can perform tasks that would otherwise demand significant fossil fuel use. For instance, grazing animals can recycle nutrients and assist in land management, all while needing minimal chemicals and pesticides to reach maturity. Additionally, a single cow raised on a small farm can sustain its owners for a long time, which is the original purpose of agriculture. Thus, the problem isn’t meat itself but rather our inefficient supply chain.
5. Environmental Harm
In today’s world, it’s widely assumed that consuming meat harms the planet more than eating tofu. However, this isn’t always true. Take organically raised livestock versus mass-produced tofu, for instance. The former requires more land, while the latter involves greater fossil fuel use in soybean cultivation and processing. Additionally, if you live in a place like Britain, where growing meat substitutes is impractical, tofu often travels long distances to reach your plate. In short, that bland tofu burger you’re eating to save the planet might actually have a larger carbon footprint than the mouthwatering steak enjoyed by the person sitting smugly across from you.
4. It Might Lower Aggression
Some human psychological traits seem so apparent they shouldn’t require scientific validation. For example, exposure to weapons can incite violence, and meat-eaters are often perceived as more aggressive than vegetarians. Yet, researchers decided to investigate the meat-aggression link—and their findings defy conventional wisdom.
In an experiment where men were shown images of red meat and then given authority over others, scientists found that thinking about steak could actually decrease aggression in humans. While the exact reason remains unclear—beyond vague references to ‘evolution’—the results are compelling. So, while we might assume a steak enthusiast is more prone to violence than a lentil-loving vegetarian, the opposite could be true.
3. Meat is Irresistibly Tasty
Alright—I’ll admit this isn’t the most profound argument. But let’s face it: a significant part of the online debate between vegetarians and meat-eaters boils down to this simple truth. Despite all the discussions about protein and lengthy articles justifying our dietary choices, most of us who eat meat do so because we genuinely enjoy the flavor. Does this make us heartless or unethical? Perhaps a little. But we live in a world riddled with moral dilemmas—every day, we use electronics made by corporations exploiting sweatshop labor, wear clothing produced by underpaid workers in developing nations, pay taxes to a ruthless government, and benefit from a system built on the exploitation of others. If savoring a slice of bacon daily helps me cope with this overwhelming sense of guilt, then so be it.
2. It Might Help Save the Planet
Take a stroll through the countryside, and unless you’re near a National Park, the ‘natural’ scenery you see is far from its original state. For millennia, our ancestors’ livestock grazed dense forests into oblivion, creating the vast open spaces we now consider ‘nature’. While this might seem unfortunate, this gradual deforestation is precisely what we need. If the world ever commits to sustainability, we’ll require ample open land for wind farms and solar panels. What’s the most eco-friendly way to maintain these areas? Grazing livestock. This isn’t mere speculation—British environmentalist Simon Fairlie famously claimed that raising livestock is essential for boosting biodiversity and achieving true sustainability. And what happens to all this necessary livestock? We consume it.
1. It Doesn’t Necessarily Hurt Animals
One of the primary arguments against meat consumption is its inherent cruelty. No matter how you frame it, confining chickens in cramped cages and overfeeding them until they can’t stand is far from humane. Even if an animal lives a comfortable life, the unavoidable truth is that it’s being slaughtered solely for a meal. It’s no wonder many people choose to avoid meat entirely.
However, this is about to change. Thanks to Dutch scientist Willem van Eelen, we’ve reached a point where burgers can be grown in a lab. Pause and let that sink in: humanity has advanced to the stage where we can produce beef without involving a live cow. Currently, the technology is too costly for widespread use—the first lab-grown burger cost $300,000 and was only ‘decent’ in taste. But within a decade or two, we could live in a world where steaks, sausages, bacon, and even veal are created without harming a single animal.
