A federal panel that helps set federal dietary guidelines is recommending Americans eat less meat because it’s better for the environment, sparking outrage from industry groups representing the nation’s purveyors of beef, pork and poultry.
The Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, a federally appointed panel of nutritionists created in 1983, decided for the first time this year to factor in environmental sustainability in its recommendations. They include a finding that a diet lower in animal-based foods is not only healthier, but has less of an environmental impact.[. . .]
The Agriculture Department and Department of Health and Human Services will use the committee’s report and recommendations to draft the final guidelines for 2015, due out later this year.
But even Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has said sustainability is an issue that falls outside the scope of the guidelines.
Yeah, not kidding, "outside the scope of the guidelines." Not to mention outside your expertise. Who's kidding whom here? Who can really determine anything as complex as what diet is best for the planet? OK, government, stay out of my bedroom, my boradroom and my damn kitchen. You just keep doing your bureaucraty Dept. of Agriculture stuff and let the planet take care of itself.
Whew. Worked up an appetite there. Think I need a Whopper for lunch.
