There has been much speculation this year about a plant-based New Zealand and in the light of COVID 19, which jumped species in a meat market, the implications for all animal agriculture are clear. So can it be done? What are the problems? Why do we need it? What's wrong with meat and dairy anyway? The Vegan Society Aotearoa New Zealand are honoured to publish The Green Protein Report which answers these questions and many more. This detailed dossier explores how this can be achieved, how much profit there is to be made from fruit and vegetables and how much healthier our citizens would be.

Currently our arable land is not fully utilised, we could increase our cropping and horticultural land by up to ten times what it now is, without land loss to the animal based farms. For too long animal agriculture has dominated our landscape, and it has resulted in mass deforestation, mass leaching of nitrates into our rivers, we have one of the highest methane emissions per capita, our soils are being eroded, our native wildlife has been decimated and we are losing our “clean and green” image even further in the eyes of the world.

The report makes compelling evidence for a new way for New Zealand to farm and produce food. We must start to reduce our reliance on animal agriculture and make the transition to plant-based farming now. We need our government to encourage and support those farmers who see that the writing is on the wall for meat and dairy. There is no more time to waste if we are to meet our Paris Agreement, our best chance to meet it is if we reduce our stock numbers, especially the numbers of dairy cattle.

As a result of our excessive consumption of meat and dairy, Kiwis have become obese and at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, we suffer heart attacks and get cancers, all of which can be reversed by a fully plant-based diet, using mostly wholefoods. It is time we accepted the figures and made those changes necessary within our public buildings, especially in hospitals, prisons and schools. There is much evidence to support the use of plant-based diets to reduce diseases and even in tempering negative emotions, particularly anger and aggression.

There are 160 million farmed animals based in New Zealand and in spite of our much touted Animal Welfare Bill, we were ranked just 30th out of 50 countries for animal welfare standards. In spite of claiming that animals are sentient beings, we do not treat them as such. We remove babies from their mothers, with all the heartache which that entails, because we like the taste of cheese. It is no longer acceptable to treat animals as commodities and the Earth simply cannot continue to support our animal use.

We need to value our resources better and reinvigorate our plundered landscape, we need to show the world that New Zealand is indeed clean and green, we are innovators and can provide top quality fruits, vegetables and grains for export, as well as supplying our local needs easily and cheaply, something that our meat and dairy industry is failing to do.

You can read and download a PDF copy of the report here www.vegansociety.org.nz/green-protein-report

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