To the editor

Last year, nearly 45 billion animals were killed for food around the world. In honor of World Farm Animals Day (Oct. 2) and Gandhi’s birthday, I think it’s a good time for us to stop and think about the effects our food choices have on our health, the planet and the animals.

Please consider these facts (according to John Robbins’ book, “Food Revolution”): In every Big Mac, there’s a piece of tropical rainforest and with every billion burgers sold, another hundred species become extinct. Toxic poisons from factory farms accumulating in the food chain are poisoning our children and our Earth for many generations to come. A low-fat plant-based diet would not only lower the heart-attack rate by about 85 percent, but would also lower the cancer rate by 60 percent.

It takes 25 gallons of water to produce one pound of wheat and 2,500 gallons to produce one pound of meat; and that while millions of people face starvation around the world, 90 percent of agricultural resources produced in the U.S. are fed to livestock. And lastly, the unimaginable amount of pain and suffering that our “food animals” go through to get on our plates. These feeling, sentient animals are caged, confined, deprived, mutilated and many times skinned, dismembered and scalded while fully conscious. What a disgrace to our human spirit.

People don’t realize it is easier than ever to go vegetarian. With so many tasty, healthy substitutes for meat and dairy products, there is no reason to continue to consume animal products and all the damage and cruelty that comes with this type of diet.

Ann Wilson,

Lawrence