Ripon meat boss questions Veganuary

John Pallagi, CEO and founder of online meat retailer Farmison & Co, writing in his January blog, warns that the themed month to encourage veganism, could have the opposite effect of saving the planet.

“The perseverance of the narrative that a plant-based diet is a magic bullet for the climate crisis is worrying,” said John.

“Vegan cookbooks, full of almond and avocado recipes, are a case in point and to me are far removed from the chilly landscape of Yorkshire.

“The idea of consuming foods grown thousands of miles away, often in a chemically intensive and water intensive manner, in the name of sustainability is beyond satire and undermines the very concept of our seasons.”

And Farmison & Co’s founder also calls for consideration of a UFL – an Unseasonal Food Levy – to help change the ‘everything all-the-time’ mindset and guide customers into lower-cost, lower-impact eating.

As part of its Save Our Seasons (SOS) campaign, Farmison has produced a helpful seasonal food guide at https://www.farmison.com/save-our-seasons that will help educate customers as to the right food at the right time.

In his monthly blog, John calls out the avocado as part of the problem, flown thousands of miles to the UK from countries where the water table is under severe pressure.

He added: “Eating out of season should come at a cost.

“I’m calling for a UFL (Unseasonal Food Levy) to be an effective and alternative way to reduce imports of this produce - and the export of environmental damage for a fuller fruit and vegetable aisle.”

In his new year message John invites Britons to join him in eating better – putting seasonality first and preferably British produce with minimal food miles.

“Not only does eating seasonally mean produce tastes better, but it’s also far more sustainable - keeping food miles low, reducing waste and supporting local farmers,” said John.

“As the British climate warms, we risk losing the seasons that make our food culture so vibrant.

Plant-based diets that rely on tropical imports threaten our seasons with their contribution to carbon emissions.”

He said, compared to an avocado travelling 6,321 miles from Peru to the UK, a rib eye steak from a Farmison farm in Castle Bolton in Yorkshire, would travel 75 miles to its Ripon HQ for packing – onward distribution to Penzance would see that steak travel a maximum of 490 miles.

What’s more a kilogram of avocados need around 2,000 litres of water to grow despite coming largely from water-challenged areas of the globe.

Heritage Breed meat such as Dexter and Galloway are reared on lush pasture requiring no additional water.

In January, Farmison’s seasonal produce guide suggests, customers should try vegetables such as beetroot, cauliflower, celeriac, celery, Jerusalem artichoke, kale, leeks, parsnips, potatoes, shallots and turnips.

See John’s blog at: https://www.farmison.com/community/blog/new-years-ceo-update-2021