No one dietary choice is the answer to sustainable development—ILRI in ‘The Guardian’

Illustration via Twitter.

The following opinion piece, by Jimmy Smith, director general of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), was first published in The Guardian on 16 Aug 2016, in response to an opinion piece published by environmental reporter George Monbiot in the same paper on 9 Aug 2016 (I’ve converted to veganism to reduce my impact on the living world).

Below is Jimmy Smith’s response, copied in full.

‘Veganism is not the simple solution to sustainability that some have recently argued. I wish it were that easy.

While I commend those taking steps to change their diets to reduce their environmental footprints, a vegan world—where no one consumes any animal-derived meat, milk and eggs—is not how we will achieve sustainable global development.

‘Let me explain.

‘First, while some argue that veganism is the best dietary choice to feed the world’s growing population because of its low…