Monday, November 12, 2012

No Meat on Mondays in Los Angeles




(CNSNews.com) - The Los Angeles City Council is urging all residents to observe "meatless Mondays" from now on.

A resolution adopted on Oct. 24 reads: "Be it resolved, that the Council of the City of Los Angeles hereby declares all Mondays as 'Meatless Mondays' in support of comprehensive sustainability efforts as well as to further encourage residents to eat a more varied plant-based diet to protect their health and protect animals."

Councilwoman Jan Perry, who introduced the resolution, also wants to ban new fast-food restaurants in South Los Angeles.

"While this is a symbolic gesture, it is asking people to think about the food choices they make. Eating less meat can reverse some of our nation's most common illnesses," press reports quoted Perry as saying.

The resolution makes 15 points in support of meatless Mondays, including U.N. recognition that "livestock are one of the most significant contributors to today's most serious environmental problems."

And if that's not enought, the resolution also mentions the growing obesity epidemic, the importance of reducing "our carbon footprint," health disparities in low-income communities, and animal cruelty.

The resolution plugs a vegetarian diet, noting that a nonprofit group in Los Angeles called Compassion Over Killing "encourages people to choose vegetarian foods as a way to help build a kinder, cleaner, and healthier world, and works with businesses throughout Los Angeles County to ensure vegetarian meals are readily available to consumers."


Los Angeles now becomes the largest city to endorse "meatless Mondays." The Washington, D.C., City Council also has designated "Meat Free Mondays," San Francisco has designated every Monday as "Veg Day," and a number of colleges and public schools also have adopted meatless Monday policies.

The text of the resolution endorsing "Meatless Mondays" in Los Angeles is printed below.
RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, in 2007, the City of Los Angeles adopted GREEN LA: a progressive action plan to lead the nation in fighting global warming, which includes the goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, promoting clean technology, reducing air pollution, conserving water, and more;

WHEREAS, the United Nations recognizes that "Livestock are one of the most significant contributors to today's most serious environmental problems"; and

WHEREAS, recent studies and reports have demonstrated that we can lower our carbon
footprint simply by reducing the amount of animal-based foods we eat; and

WHEREAS, more than half of the adult population is overweight or obese in Los Angeles
County. Statistics show that low-income areas in Los Angeles are at higher risk for preventable diseases linked to obesity, including, heart attacks, strokes, diabetes and even cancer; and

WHEREAS, poorer communities around Los Angeles have less access to healthy foods; and

WHEREAS, health disparities exist in various groups, with African-Americans and Hispanics at a higher risk of diseases linked to poor nutrition habits; and

WHEREAS, the American Dietetic Association recognizes that reduced meat consumption decreases the risk of various health problems, stating, "Scientific data suggests positive relationships between a vegetarian diet and reduced risk for several chronic degenerative diseases and conditions, including obesity, hypertension, diabetes mellitus and some types of cancer"; and

WHEREAS, a growing number of people are reducing their meat consumption to help prevent animal cruelty; and
WHEREAS, in 2008, Californians overwhelmingly supported Proposition 2, the Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act, which banned some of the cruelest forms offarmed animal confinement; and

WHEREAS, Compassion Over Killing, a nonprofit organization with an office in Los Angeles, encourages people to choose vegetarian foods as a way to help build a kinder, cleaner, and healthier world, and works with businesses throughout Los Angeles County to ensure vegetarian meals are readily available to consumers; and

WHEREAS, several colleges and universities in California and nationwide have added


Meatless Monday menus in their cafeterias including the University of California-Davis and the University of California-San Diego; and

WHEREAS, the Baltimore City Public School System in Maryland, became the first school district in the U.S. to adopt a 100% Meatless Monday policy in 2009, the Oakland Unified School District adopted this policy in 2010, along with other school districts in Arlington, VA, Oneida, NY, and Longmont, CO; and

WHEREAS, the Council of the District of Columbia has designated Mondays as "Meat Free Mondays" highlight the benefits of diets high in fruits and vegetables; and

WHEREAS, the City of San Francisco has designated every Monday as "Veg Day" to encourage restaurants, grocery stores, and schools to offer a greater variety of healthier and more sustainable plant-based options; and


WHEREAS, a growing number of cities, including Takoma Park, MD, Annapolis, MD, and Marin County, CA, have passed resolutions encouraging residents to explore vegetarian eating to help protect their health, the environment, and animals and the Green Cincinnati Plan recommends going meatless one day a week; and


NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Los Angeles hereby declares all Mondays as "Meatless Mondays" in support of comprehensive sustainability efforts as well as to further encourage residents to eat a more varied plant-based diet to protect their health and protect animals.

RESENTED BY
JAN C. PERRY
Councilwoman, 9th District
SECONDED BY:

CO-PRESENTED BY ED P .REYES
Councilman, 1st District
OCT 24 2012

ADOPTED
OCT 24 2012
LOS ANGELES CITY COUNCIL
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