Meatless Monday – what’s it all about?

24 Jan 2018

“Meatless Monday” is a global movement aimed at encouraging everyone to eat meat-free one day a week.  44 countries worldwide take part in this campaign, and UCC is playing its part.  On Meatless Monday, the main restaurant will offer meatless meal options for students and staff that wish to take action to help our environment.

Did you know?

… Individual actions can have an impact on our world.

A recent scientific study found that following a plant-based diet is one of six “high-impact” actions an individual can take to reduce their carbon footprint.

(for more info follow this link)

It has been estimated that eating one less burger a week, over the course of a year, saves the same amount of CO2 as taking a car off the road for 320 miles.  Imagine the impact if everyone in UCC did this?

We’re all aware of the environmental issues associated with fossil fuel dependence.  Not only does burning fossil fuels contribute to our carbon footprint, but their extraction is also destroying some of the most beautiful parts of our planet.   The production of meat-based protein requires almost ten times as much fossil fuel as plant-based protein.

… Cutting down on meat consumption isn’t just about our carbon footprint.

It takes approximately 16,000 litres of water to produce one kilogram of beef!  Water scarcity is a significant and growing threat to livelihoods and it impacts every continent.

Eating a plant-based diet is fairer on everyone.  

It can take up to 12 kg of grain to produce 1 kg of beef. Consuming large amounts of beef means that we could be consuming more than our fair share of the world’s available nutrients.  It has been estimated that the grain used to feed all of the world’s lifestock could actually be sufficient to feed about 840 million people.

Going meat free one day a week doesn’t have to be a chore.

Just ask these supporters of the campaign!  We are asking you, our UCC Community, to join us in this event so that collectively we can have a real impact on our environmental footprint.  And remember, it’s only one day!  KSG have also prepared a varied menu with many appetising options for the day, check them out here.

UCC’s Meatless Monday is supported by the Student’s Union, the Restaurant Committee, KSG, the Green Forum and UCC Health Matters.