Is your green salad really green?
Just because something is plant-based doesn't mean it's necessarily grown in a sustainable manner
Plant-based — a hold-all term we’re being swamped by, for foods not containing animal products — is apparently going to save the world. That much seems to be very firmly lodged in the collective mind of well-to-do urbanites. The divisions of the world into animal, vegetable and mineral is as old as the hills, and is undeniably logical, but when it comes to the current problems with our food production and the possible solutions, these categories aren’t too useful. Why? Because something being plant based per se, in no way responds to the problems. ‘Plant-based’ tells you almost zero about that item’s environmental impact. In fact, the halo around the term is allowing ‘conventional’ industrial crop farming to keep up its destructive game; now cast in the same light as well farmed ‘plant-based’ foods.
Suddenly, we’re less interested in whether the item is grown well, and more concerned that what we’re eating is ‘plant-based’. To choose something on the basis of what it isn’t ...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.