The term “eating ethically” generally pertains to 3 things including animals, the environment and the general world population. Essentially, its about eating in a way that is respectful of the lives and well-being of others, including animals. Its about being a compassionate eater such that you are consciously aware of the fact that your food choices impact the rest of the world and the planet. Its also about your being selfless, taking a stand and making a commitment to safeguard the rights and interests of those who are not in a position to protect themselves. To understand this in more depth requires looking more closely at each of the 3 areas of concern starting with animals.

• Eating ethically in terms of animals is about acknowledging that animals, like people, have the right to live out a free, torture-free, serene life on this abundantly rich planet of ours. Specifically, for many vegans it means excluding all meat and meat products from your diet and in some instances your overall lifestyle. Many vegans believe that since animals are living creatures they have certain rights and one of those rights is to peacefully co-exist with man. Thus, for such people a huge component of eating ethically is observing animal rights in the same manner that human rights are observed.

• Next, eating ethically in terms of the environment refers to one’s commitment to eating in a way the ensures the sustainability of our planet’s resources. In other words, it means growing food in an environmentally sustainable way, shopping with local farmers and vendors who purchase locally, as well as packaging food and personal care products in environmentally friendly materials.

• Lastly, ethical eating with respect to the world population has to do with being mindful and proactive about doing what’s needed to ensure that more of the world’s poor is fed. Thus, it is purported by advocates of this approach that adopting a plant-based diet is the solution. The United Nations has declared that a plant-based diet can feed more people than an animal-based diet. For instance, while 1 acre of land can yield 20,000 pounds of potatoes, that same acre of land when used to raise cattle only produces 165 pounds of meat. This is why 850 million of the human population is undernourished, that’s 1 of every 7 humans. As such, advocates of ethical eating in the interest of feeding the world’s poor believe that the solution to the problem is to eat less meat and support local farmers by buying fresh fruits and vegetables from them.

Ethical eating has become a national movement initially started by the growing community of health conscious individuals. Its a movement to educate and stimulate others to eat more compassionately, take more accountability and be more proactive in doing what’s necessary to ensure the sustainability of our planet and its inhabitants.