Brussels, 8th February 2017 UECBV Ref: 10498

RE: MEAT IMAGE MEPs’ attacks

Executive summary Many ongoing actions about climate change, environment and sustainability are connected to meat and . In the last months there was an intensification of the adverse-publicity led by Humane Society International (HIS) and its executive director, Johanna Schwabe. Both seem to receive the support of the online portal EURACTIV, and a growing number of MEPs. One of the last actions of Humane Society International is a joint letter signed by 24 MEPs to the EU Commission, denouncing the impact of animal products on the environment and health, while other MEPs challenged an information campaign in favour of meat in .

Résumé analytique De nombreuses actions en cours sur la question du changement climatique, de l’environnement et de la durabilité sont liées au secteur du bétail et de la viande. Au cours des derniers mois, la publicité négative menée par l’organisation ‘Humane Society International’ (HIS) et sa directrice Johanna Schwabe s’est intensifiée. Toutes deux semblent soutenues par le portail en ligne EURACTIV et un nombre croissant de Membres du Parlement européen (PE). L’une des dernières actions de HIS est une lettre commune signée par 24 députés européens et adressée à la Commission de l’UE, dénonçant l’impact des produits animaux sur l’environnement et la santé, alors que d’autres membres du PE contestent une campagne d’information en faveur de la viande en Italie.

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CONTENTS

THE JOINT INITIATIVE OF HUMANE SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL AND EURACTIV ...... 3 WHO IS JOANNA SWABE? ...... 3 MS. SWABE CONCERNS ABOUT MEAT CONSUMPTION ...... 3 THE GHG AND THE PARIS AGREEMENT ISSUES ...... 4 CONSUMER MISLEADING THE “MAYO CASE” IN USA ...... 4 THE MEAT SUBSTITUTE MARKET ...... 4 IF YOU CAN’T BEAT THEM, JOIN THEM ...... 5 HUMAN SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL AND MEPs UNITED TO REDUCE MEAT CONSUMPTION ...... 5 THE POSITION OF THE GROUP ABOUT THE EU SUSTAINABLE FOOD POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS ...... 7 SUGGESTIONS GIVEN TO SUSTAINABILITY GOALS ...... 8 GREEN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT SUGGESTIONS ...... 8 STEERING THE RESEARCH ...... 9 EDUCATION PROGRAMME ...... 9 EXAMPLES TO BE FOLLOWED ...... 10 WHO ARE THE MEPs INVOLVED IN THE ACTION ...... 11 THE ITALIAN GOVERNMENT’S INITIATIVE TO RESTORE MEAT CONSUMPTION TRUST ...... 17 WHAT IS THERE BEHIND THE , A GROWING BUSINESS? ...... 19

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THE JOINT INITIATIVE OF HUMANE SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL AND EURACTIV

At the end of October 2016, the well-known media platform published an article attacking European Commission behaviour “encouraging” meat-based diet instead of plant-based one. https://www.euractiv.com/section/agriculture-food/opinion/hard-to-swallow-breaking-the-eu-taboo- on-healthy-sustainable-diets/

EurActiv is a European media platform specialising in the publication of articles focusing on European policymaking, founded in 1999 by Christophe Leclercq. It is present across 12 EU capitals.

According to EurActiv, the Fondation does not lobby, except to promote online media independence, and is not aligned to any political faction or faith group.

EurActiv is financed by a variety of EU actors, be they of public or private origin, via sponsoring, memberships and other such ventures.

For example, in 2015, EurActiv had contributions from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and by the pharmaceutical industry Sanofi and Regeneron.

WHO IS JOANNA SWABE?

Joanna Swabe is the executive director of Humane Society International (HIS): http://www.hsi.org/about/who_we_are/leadership/executive_staff/joanna_swabe.html The primary task of HIS is to lobby EU institutions to achieve legislative change.

MS. SWABE CONCERNS ABOUT MEAT CONSUMPTION

In her last article against meat-based diet [https://www.euractiv.com/section/agriculture- food/opinion/whos-afraid-of-meat-substitutes/], Ms. Swabe’s concerns are focused on the importance of plant-based substitutes and their role on climate, sustainability, consumer choice and profit. Then she wonders why in a recent written question to the European Commission, two Italian MEPs - Paolo De Castro (S&D) and Giovanni La Via (EPP) - called for plant-based food companies to be restricted in the naming and marketing of their products.

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Ms. Swabe mentions again the environmental damages on the environment and on the health given by the meat without mentioning any scientific source.

THE GHG AND THE PARIS AGREEMENT ISSUES From a policy perspective, vegan and environmental movements always legitimate their position against meat by justifying their statement with the Paris Agreement, the international climate accord to mitigate global warming. As a consequence of the reasoning, it is easy to lead policy makers that encouraging the development of innovative plant-based food companies is a priority as well as reducing the total number of animals raised for food.

CONSUMER MISLEADING THE “MAYO CASE” IN USA The naming of egg-free mayonnaise caused a stir in the United States last year when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning letter to the plant-based food company Hampton Creek, stating that its vegan spread Just Mayo was misbranded, as the legal definition of “mayonnaise” involves eggs. Hampton Creek was ultimately allowed to keep using the name Just Mayo after making some changes to its label. According to the wordings of the Humane Society International Executive Director, the EU currently lacks legislation concerning the naming of plant-based meat products and it is harming the ability of plant-based food companies to market their products as viable choices in comparison to meat and to capture more of the market share for protein. Limiting the growth of green companies contradicts the EU’s established sustainability goals.

THE MEAT SUBSTITUTE MARKET According to Allied Market Research, Europe is the world’s largest market for meat substitutes. Globally, the market is projected to grow 8.4% annually by 2020. https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/press-release/global-meat-substitute-market.html

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By 2054, according to Lux Research, alternative protein sources could claim up to one-third of the protein industry globally. http://www.luxresearchinc.com/news-and-events/press-releases/read/alternative-proteins-claim-third- market-2054

IF YOU CAN’T BEAT THEM, JOIN THEM The enlightened attitude of „if you can’t beat them, join them‟ is now seeing forward-thinking companies developing vegetarian variants on traditional meat products. Unilever is a case in point with its leading brand Unox recently joining forces with The Vegetarian Butcher to market vegetarian meatballs on Dutch supermarket shelves alongside its usual animal-based processed meat products.

HUMAN SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL AND MEPs UNITED TO REDUCE MEAT CONSUMPTION

With a letter sent on 14th November 2016, addressed to:

- President Jean-Claude Juncker; - First Vice-President ; - Commissioners: o Karmenu Vella; o Vytenis Andriukaitis o Phil Hogan o Neven Mimica o Miguel Arias Cañete the Executive Director of Human Society International in cooperation with 24 MEPs (you will find below a detailed chapter) undersigned a call to take concrete steps towards addressing the overconsumption of animal source foods in the EU. People involved in that call state that such kind of diet could lead to serious and negative impacts on our environment, human health, and .

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The concerns of the given policy recommendations were articulated during the Brainstorming Lab hosted by Humane Society International/Europe at the European Development Days 2016, entitled ‘Creating the Right Climate for Reducing Meat Consumption’ where the following keynote speakers were invited: - Marta Zaraska, science writer and the author of “Meathooked, The History and Science of Our 2.5-Million-Years Obsession with Meat” - Laura Wellesley, research associate at Chatham House and lead author of ‘Changing Climate, Changing Diets’ - Hans Van Scharen, political advisor and publicist, - Pat Thomas, Founder and Director of Beyond GM, former Director of Meat-Free Mondays - Bernard Cino, Senior Policy Maker, Directorate for Sustainability, Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment.

The letter sent to the Commissioners reads that “animal agriculture accounts for 14.5 percent of human- induced greenhouse gas emissions globally, and even greater percentages of some of the most potent greenhouse gases such as Methane (35-40 percent) and Nitrous Oxide (65 percent). It also reads that a 2014 study predicts that reducing consumption of meat, dairy, and eggs across the EU by 50 percent would decrease the EU’s GHG emissions by 19-42 percent.“

The signatories of the letter attest that “a shift towards more plant-based diets would significantly reduce the pressure on European river basins. Indeed for them farm animal sector is also a major consumer of scarce water resources, animal products generally have larger water footprints than non- animal products. Compared to cereals or starchy roots, it takes about 20 times more water per calorie to produce beef, 6 times more to produce chicken meat, over 4 times more to produce pig meat or eggs and over 3 times more to produce milk.“

The group led by Ms. Schwabe underlines that: “Numerous other studies and models strongly suggest additional benefits to the environment, from improved air quality to decreased stress on arable land, as a result of reducing meat, egg, and milk consumption in the EU.

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Excessive consumption of animal products across the EU is contributing to serious chronic health problems. Individuals who eat a plant-based diet are likely to have a lower body weight and a decreased risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and some cancers, even as chronic diseases account for 80 percent of deaths in the EU. Plant foods may even have protective properties against many chronic illnesses. A 2008 study published in the Bulletin of the World Health Organisation calculated that turning the tap off on EU Common Agricultural Policy subsidies for dairy and meat would avoid 12,844 deaths from stroke and heart disease, assuming saturated fat consumption dropped just 1 percent. This is a conservative estimate. If halting such subsidies affected consumption more, as was observed in Finland (5 percent) and Poland (7 percent), the life savings could be many fold higher.” More recently, a 2016 UNEP report advised in its Twelve critical shifts towards environmentally- sustainable food systems that we need to “Reorient away from resource-intensive products such as meat, ‘empty calories’ and ultra-processed food”. Refusal to act on meat consumption at a government level has left us in what Chatham House identified in its 2015 report as the ’Cycle of Inertia’. This self-reinforcing cycle begins with inaction by governments and other stakeholders, which leads to low levels of awareness, which in turn leads to it being a low policy priority. As Chatham House emphasises: “Breaking this cycle must be a clear policy priority.”

THE POSITION OF THE GROUP ABOUT THE EU SUSTAINABLE FOOD POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS

For the group, the European Commission must show global leadership and act to mitigate the negative impacts of overconsumption. With this in mind, and to address this policy gap it is recommended that the EU Commission: - adopts an EU target for a 30 percent reduction in consumption of animal-based foods by 2030, and implements pathways to meet this target; - establishes a task force – involving DGs AGRI, CLIMA, ENV, SANTE, DEVCO and the JRC – to assess the economic impact of current and projected animal product consumption patterns, along with the associated rise in climate change and other environmental impacts, antibiotic resistance, and the incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs).

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SUGGESTIONS GIVEN TO SUSTAINABILITY GOALS

In order to include a target to reduce the animal agricultural sector’s emissions in the EU's current and future Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs), in line with the Paris Agreement, which includes meeting sustainable development goals and animal welfare improvements, the group suggests to: - incorporate the climate, environmental and health impacts of current, unsustainable diets within the framework of the next Common Agricultural Policy reform, and establish a cross-DG task force to consider how the CAP may be adjusted to foster lower consumption of animal products; - assess the steps needed to align the EU food system with the sustainable development goals, and particularly SDGs 2, 3, 12, 13 and 15; and issue a plan of action for addressing production practices and consumption patterns that are contrary these goals; - produce sustainable and healthy dietary guidelines that address the environmental and climate burdens of current European diets, while promoting animal welfare and improved public health; and encourage adoption at Member States level; - encourage a discussion on the advantages and disadvantages of the introduction of a meat tax at a Member State level; - reconsider current structure for agricultural subsidies, and consider alternative systems that incentivise consumption of fruit and vegetables over meat; - consider tax incentives for healthy, unprocessed plant-based foods; - encourage greater transparency in the food industry’s lobbying of the European Parliament and Commission.

GREEN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT SUGGESTIONS

- Include criteria that encourage more plant-based and less animal-based foods in the revised Green Public Procurement guidelines; - Encourage plant-based catering at European Commission events, particularly those focused on health, climate change and the environment;

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- Recommend national governments offer plant-based lunch options for children in state schools.

STEERING THE RESEARCH

- Undertake a consumption-based emissions inventory to assess the climate impact of current European consumption of animal products; - Assess the opportunities for reduced consumption of animal products to contribute towards emission reduction targets as laid out in the revised Effort Sharing Decision; - Assess nudge techniques that may be introduced across Member States to encourage behaviour change and drawing on lessons learned from the energy and transport sectors; - Publish the long-awaited ‘Communication on Building a Sustainable European Food System’ to provide the EU with a long-term plan for achieving a sustainable food system; - Fund research into the protein requirements for health at every stage of development.

EDUCATION PROGRAMME

- Encourage Member States’ national governments to implement public awareness raising campaigns on the negative impacts of overconsumption, including by issuing sample campaigns and guidelines; - Consider an EU ban on the advertising of processed meat products, particularly in light of the World Health Organisation’s recent classification of processed meat as a carcinogen and red meat as a probable carcinogen.

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The group refers furthermore to a 2015 Eurobarometer poll, where the 95 percent of European citizens feel that protecting the environment is an important issue, over half of Europeans think the EU is not doing enough to protect the environment, and almost one quarter are particularly concerned by our consumption habits. By taking into account that subsidiarity is very often an adequate reason not to act, for the group the European Commission must take concrete actions to reduce the consumption of animal-based foods.

EXAMPLES TO BE FOLLOWED

The signatories suggest to take into consideration some Member States’ initiatives, such as one of the . In the letter sent to the Commissioners, they also express their concerns for Commissioner Hogan’s pledge to release an additional 15 million Euros per year to promote meat consumption across the . For the MEPs and Ms. Schwabe, that kind of behaviour goes against the grain of the scientific community and is at odds with meeting the EU’s international climate commitments. Therefore they request that the additional funds should be put to better use, i.e. promoting healthy and sustainable plant-based diets.

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WHO ARE THE MEPs INVOLVED IN THE ACTION

The letter was signed by the following 24 MEPs (in alphabetical order):

Marco Affronte - IT - Movimento 5 Stelle - Group Member of /European Free Alliance ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety PECH Committee on Fisheries Klaus Buchner - DE - Group of the Member Greens/European Free Alliance - Ökologisch- AFET Committee on Foreign Affairs Demokratische Partei DROI Subcommittee on Human Rights SEDE Subcommittee on Security and Defence Substitute INTA Committee on International Trade Karima Delli - FR - Group of the Greens/European Chair Free Alliance - Europe Ecologie TRAN Committee on Transport and Tourism Vice-Chair EMIS Committee of Inquiry into Emission Measurements in the Automotive Sector Member CPCO Conference of Committee Chairs Substitute EMPL Committee on Employment and Social Affairs Pascal Durand - FR - Group of the Member Greens/European Free Alliance - Europe Ecologie IMCO Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection AFCO Committee on Constitutional Affairs PANA Committee of Inquiry to investigate alleged contraventions and maladministration in the

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application of Union law in relation to money laundering, tax avoidance and tax evasion Substitute JURI Committee on Legal Affairs Stefan Eck - DE - Confederal Group of the Member European United Left - Nordic Green Left – ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Independent Health and Food Safety Substitute AGRI Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development FEMM Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality Linnéa Engström - IT - Group of the Vice-Chair Greens/European Free Alliance PECH Committee on Fisheries Substitute ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety FEMM Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality Eleonora Evi - IT - Europe of Freedom and Direct Member Democracy Group - Movimento 5 stelle PETI Committee on Petitions EMIS Committee of Inquiry into Emission Measurements in the Automotive Sector Substitute ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety - NL - Confederal Group of the Member European United Left - Nordic Green Left - AGRI Committee on Agriculture and Rural

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Member of the European Parliament for the Dutch Development Party for the Animals Substitute ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

PECH Committee on Fisheries

Maria Heubuch - DE - Group of the Vice-Chair Greens/European Free Alliance - Bündnis 90/Die DPAP Delegation for relations with the Pan-African Grünen Parliament Member DEVE Committee on Development Substitute AGRI Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development PECH Committee on Fisheries Yannick Jadot - FR - Group of the Vice-Chair Greens/European Free Alliance - Europe Ecologie INTA Committee on International Trade Substitute ITRE Committee on Industry, Research and Energy PECH Committee on Fisheries Benedek Javor - HU - Group of the Vice-Chair Greens/European Free Alliance ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Substitute CONT Committee on Budgetary Control ITRE Committee on Industry, Research and Energy Eva Joly - FR - Group of the Greens/European Free Vice-Chair Alliance - Europe Ecologie PANA Committee of Inquiry to investigate alleged contraventions and maladministration in the

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application of Union law in relation to money laundering, tax avoidance and tax evasion Member LIBE Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Substitute ECON Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs Rikke Karlsson - DK - European Conservatives and Member Reformists Group ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety PETI Committee on Petitions Florent Marcellesi - SP - Group of the Member Greens/European Free Alliance FEMM Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality Substitute DEVE Committee on Development AGRI Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development Sirpa Pietikäinen - Suomi Finland - Group of the Member European People's Party (Christian Democrats) ECON Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs PANA Committee of Inquiry to investigate alleged contraventions and maladministration in the application of Union law in relation to money laundering, tax avoidance and tax evasion Substitute ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public

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Health and Food Safety FEMM Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality Frédérique Ries - BE - Group of the Alliance of Member Liberals and Democrats for Europe – Mouvement ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public reformateur Health and Food Safety Substitute INTA Committee on International Trade CONT Committee on Budgetary Control Michèle Rivasi - FR - Group of the Member Greens/European Free Alliance - Europe Ecologie ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Substitute ITRE Committee on Industry, Research and Energy PETI Committee on Petitions Bronis Ropė - LT - Group of the Greens/European Member Free Alliance AGRI Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development Substitute REGI Committee on Regional Development EMIS Committee of Inquiry into Emission Measurements in the Automotive Sector Helmut Scholz - DE - Confederal Group of the Member European United Left - Nordic Green Left - DIE INTA Committee on International Trade LINKE AFCO Committee on Constitutional Affairs Substitute AFET Committee on Foreign Affairs Molly Scott Cato - UK - Group of the Member

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Greens/European Free Alliance ECON Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs PANA Committee of Inquiry to investigate alleged contraventions and maladministration in the application of Union law in relation to money laundering, tax avoidance and tax evasion Substitute AGRI Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development Bart Staes - BE - Group of the Greens/European Member Free Alliance - Groen CONT Committee on Budgetary Control Substitute

ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Keith Taylor - UK - Group of the Greens/European Member Free Alliance TRAN Committee on Transport and Tourism Substitute ENVI Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Gabi Zimmer - DE - Confederal Group of the Member European United Left - Nordic Green Left - DIE BCPR Conference of Presidents LINKE Substitute EMPL Committee on Employment and Social

Affairs Marco Zullo - IT - Movimento 5 Stelle - Europe of Member Freedom and Direct Democracy Group IMCO Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection AGRI Committee on Agriculture and Rural

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Development Substitute ITRE Committee on Industry, Research and Energy REGI Committee on Regional Development FEMM Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality EMIS Committee of Inquiry into Emission Measurements in the Automotive Sector

THE ITALIAN GOVERNMENT’S INITIATIVE TO RESTORE MEAT CONSUMPTION TRUST

In a question for a written answer sent on 19th December 2016 to the European Commission, some MEPs stated that “Lifestyles and consumption patterns are changing, especially among young people. Figures for the first nine months of the year show there was a fall in purchases of meat (-5.6%), cold meats (‐5.2%), and milk and dairy products. Young people born between 1980 and 2000 are affected the most by this, to the extent that 25% say they do not eat red meat and 67% believe meat is harmful to health. At the convention of the ‘Associazione Industriali delle Carni e dei Salumi’ *Meat and Processed Meat Industry Association] in Milan on 22nd November 2016, the Ministry of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies presented a communication plan (worth EUR 3.8 million) to curb the flow of ‘alternative information’ on meat that appears to be flooding the Internet and influencing ‘millennials’ in particular. The World Cancer Research Fund recommends limiting the consumption of red meat and processed meat, and the IARC has classified cold meats as ‘definitely carcinogenic’ and red meat as ‘probably carcinogenic. In view of this and the fact that Italy, unlike many other Member States, does not list red/processed meat among the risk factors for cancer:

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— Does the Commission consider this communication plan to be compatible with seeking to achieve the highest possible levels of health and consumer protection pursuant to Articles 168 and 169 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union?

— Will it seek clarification from the Italian authorities?”

MEPs involved in that action against meat (all belonging to the ‘Movimento 5 Stelle’ party) are:

Isabella Adinolfi - Europe of Freedom and Direct Member Democracy Group - Movimento 5 Stelle CULT Committee on Culture and Education

Substitute REGI Committee on Regional Development

JURI Committee on Legal Affairs Marco Affronte already mentioned in the Human Society International initiative here above

Fabio Massimo Castaldo - Europe of Freedom and Member Direct Democracy Group - Movimento 5 Stelle AFET Committee on Foreign Affairs

AFCO Committee on Constitutional Affairs

Substitute INTA Committee on International Trade

IMCO Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection

LIBE Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

SEDE Subcommittee on Security and Defence Eleonora Evi already mentioned in the Human Society International initiative here above

Laura Ferrara - Europe of Freedom and Direct Vice-Chair Democracy Group - Movimento 5 Stelle JURI Committee on Legal Affairs

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Member LIBE Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

Substitute AFET Committee on Foreign Affairs

DROI Subcommittee on Human Rights

Dario Tamburrano - Europe of Freedom and Member Direct Democracy Group - Movimento 5 Stelle ITRE Committee on Industry, Research and Energy

Substitute TRAN Committee on Transport and Tourism Marco Zullo already mentioned in the Human Society International initiative here above

WHAT IS THERE BEHIND THE VEGANISM, A GROWING BUSINESS?

Ms. Schwabe mentions in her article of October 2016 published on Euractive that “entrepreneurial food companies are developing plant-based products that consumers in Europe and around the globe find to be great alternatives to their meat, egg and dairy counterparts. These products are often healthier and more sustainable, and companies are working to make them available at the same or lower cost to animal-based equivalents. Many of these companies have garnered investment from the likes of Bill Gates, Peter Thiel, and the founders of tech companies like Yahoo and Google.”

Considering the statement of Ms. Schwabe, it is interesting to see that Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the pharmaceutical industry Sanofi (producing vitamin B12, an essential chemical compound assumed through animal based diets- http://www.sanofi.fr/l/fr/fr/layout.jsp?cnt=D7419B63-436D-49AA-98AA-298F48F402AB) are amongst the financial sponsors of EURACTIV.

In Italy the “Movimento 5 Stelle” has started to take into consideration the vegan cause since the request to deal with the issue of Ms. Di Lenge, a well-known animalist representative in the Italian panorama for her political campaigns against meat consumption.

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