Small Changes Can Have Big Impact

The word ‘flexitarian’ was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2014 and according to YouGov analysis, 14 per cent of Brits identify as flexitarian. This is twice the number of people who say they follow a plant-based, vegetarian or pescatarian diet. However choosing to swap a few meals a week and eating more plants can have a significant impact, find out how:

Research analysis by Oxford University scientist Joseph Poore shows that if every family in the UK swapped a red meat meal to a plant-based meal just once a week, the environmental impact would be the same as taking 16 million cars off the road. This is not surprising, considering world meat production was expected to hit a record high of 335 million tonnes in 2018 – more than double the 155 million tonnes produced in 1985.

"Greenhouse gases from agriculture could be reduced by more than half." - Dr Marco Springmann

Research published in the science journal Nature reports that, compared to baseline projections for 2050, moving to a more plant-based flexitarian diet could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 52 per cent. Not only that, if everyone ate less meat it would reduce or eliminate the need for intensive animal farming, which has a high impact on the environment. 

Many find it easier to make changes to their diet by switching to flexi options so it is likely to be a sustainable, long-term choice for most. The Committee on Climate Change’s most recent report confirms that a shift towards a diet that's less reliant on carbon-intensive animal products could enable you as an individual to reduce your dietary emissions by 35 per cent.

"The environmental impact of our food system could increase by 50–90% by 2050." - Nature, Science Journal

At TYME we make it easy for you to switch to eating more plants. If you swap out your meals during the working week for a menu of plant based meals and snacks you will feel an impact on your body and know that you are having a positive impact on our planet. Not only that, but even if you only manage to cut out one red meat meal a week, that’s better than nothing. The latest recommendations from the Committee on Climate Change claim that a 20 per cent reduction in beef lamb and dairy consumption would help the UK to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to almost zero by 2050. So it's true that every small change we make will have a lasting impact.

 Image credits: Curtis Morgan, Overview, Maxar Technologies