Eating Meat Is Drowning Miami, Animal-Free Food Advocate Warns

Modern meat production is on track to drown Miami. This is according to Janay Laing, founder of the New Omnivore, an organization that promotes animal-free versions of meat, dairy, and eggs.

Laing told Miami New Times that animal farming, being the leading cause of climate change, has direct impact to Miami where majority of the residents live less than four feet above sea level than any US state after Louisiana. To save Miami from sinking, she said that altering meat eating habits is one of the easiest ways to do.

"Dozens of studies have found that meat production is one of the leading drivers of climate change, due to the huge amounts of greenhouse gases created by the feeding, growing, and transporting of farm animals," Laing explained. She added that because air affects water, almost 90 percent of added atmospheric heat is being transferred to the oceans, causing icebergs to melt and resulting to higher sea levels.

"We [in Miami] have more valuable real estate than any other low-lying coastal area in the world and continue to build expensive properties in the most flood-prone areas," Laing continued. "It doesn't help that our local government has been extremely slow to acknowledge this threat and take meaningful action."

While taking action on climate change is a multifaceted issue, Laing said that the single most powerful thing that people can do is to change the habit of eating meat to cut meat production. This is the purpose of the New Omnivore, an organization she launched last year, to promote cultured and plant-based meat, dairy and eggs as alternative sustainable food sources.

According to BBC News, the US has one of the highest levels of meat consumption in the world with almost 250g per person every day. The animal agriculture sector has been producing about 15 percent of global greenhouse gases, which is comparable to combined exhaust emissions of every car, train, ship and aircraft on the planet.

"This isn't about giving up meat; it's about getting it from better, more humane, and more sustainable sources," Laing stated. "By opening our minds to eating meat in a better way - without using animals - we can continue to enjoy our favorite foods without having such a huge impact on the environment."