Plants & Policies Podcast (Canadians for Responsible Food Policy)

In this episode of the Plants & Policies Podcast, we explored if Canadians can in fact, even adopt healthier eating habits when the prices of groceries have been skyrocketing since the not-to-be-mentioned-by-name-lockdown-causing-event of 2020. Prices are showing to slow down, but food is still very much expensive -- can we save money by eating plant-based? Let's see..

On the latest episode, we talked about our experiences at events, including the latest PlantedExpo Toronto that we hosted a booth at, Maddie's student-led conference. We talked about our experiences with access to plant-based foods and what it's like going to events that are supposed to be honouring sustainability!

For the first episode of the Plants & Policies Podcast, Ina Toncescu and Maddie Youngman go over what the atmosphere of the podcast will be, a bit about themselves and, what they'll be talking about!

In this latest episode, Maddie and Ina talk about the effects the food system has on biodiversity. Biodiversity — short for biological diversity — is the variety of all living things and their interactions. It often involves species richness and diversity of living things in an ecosystem. Everyone does their part to provide for the maintenance and health of the ecosystem/habitat. Biodiversity can also be defined as the maintenance of essential ecosystems including the plants, animals, and water systems, and as well as the preservation of the balance and diversity within these systems. This is good not only for the animals and plants that live in specific ecosystems and habitats, but also for the health and well being of humans and the planet as a whole. So how does what we eat impact the ever-important biodiversity? Links: https://foodpolicyforcanada.info.yorku.ca/biodiversity-loss/ https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/biodiversity/publications/why-biodiversity-is-important-to-you.html 

After almost a century of conditioning from the animal agriculture industry...we have an uphill battle to educate Canadians about the importance of eating plant-based and also decondition them from the propaganda that has been and continues to be fed to the public. Many accounts in Canadians doctors' offices of cow's dairy advertisements and pamphlets, despite dairy being linked to breast and prostate cancers and more.. It's time we gave the public the resources to make a much needed change for the planet and all of its inhabitants. Listen in on this week's podcast episode: Animal Agriculture: Propaganda and Conditioning

In the latest Plants & Policies podcast episode, we dove into Animal Agriculture's interaction with water -- use, pollution and more.

We explored how much water it takes to produce animal protein versus plant protein. We also dove into how Indigenous communities are affected by lack of access to clean water and water pollution, overall.

References quoted:

https://www.theindigenousfoundation.org/articles/indigenous-safe-drinking-water-crisis-in-canada-overview 

https://ourworldindata.org/environmental-impacts-of-food

https://madrebrava.org/

https://agriculture.canada.ca/en/agricultural-production/water/livestock-watering

https://agriculture.canada.ca/en/environment/managing-water-sustainably/agriculture-and-water-quality

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212371713000024?_ga=2.31064639.1849623447.1709775195-400701479.1709312278

https://foodpolicyforcanada.info.yorku.ca/water-and-the-food-system/

Music used: Johannes Grote x Fachhochschule Dortmund - Hammon Pop Rock courtesy of the FMA (Free Music Archive)

With the plant-based protein market expected to grow at 14% annually by this year (2024), and be a third of the protein market, we question why the Federal Government of Canada is not subsidizing this industry even MORE? We dive deeper into the plant-based protein sector statistics and compare the environmental impacts of animal proteins and the former. Then, we take a few moments to explore the Canada Food Guide petition that Canadians for Responsible Food Policy is running and the powerful voices we gain with your signatures!

In honour of International Women's Day, we dedicated this Plants & Policies Podcast episode to the women of the world, many of which will be affected by climate change. Works cited: “THE INTERSECTION OF GENDER AND CLIMATE(five facts ABOUT GENDER EQUALITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE ” by GABRIELA CARBÓ ZACK https://unfoundation.org/blog/post/five-facts-about-gender-equality-and-climate-change/ Five Reasons Why Climate Action Needs Women: https://unfccc.int/news/five-reasons-why-climate-action-needs-women Groundswell report: https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2021/09/13/climate-change-could-force-216-million-people-to-migrate-within-their-own-countries-by-2050 Climate Justice, Gender, and Intersectionality by Patricia Perkins https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/288470904.pdf 

Join us on the latest Plants & Policies podcast episode where we dive into the concerns around outbreaks -- scary times for wild and farmed animals AND humans! News of the Avian Flu, also known as HPAI, H5N1 or Bird Flu, spreading into cows' milk, goats, cats have us worried, but even more so as we hear of the spread inching towards the Canadian border. You can dive deeper into this subject by checking out our new blog on our website at www.responsiblefoodpolicy.ca

In the latest podcast episode, we broke down the planetary boundaries -- a concept that presents a set of nine planetary boundaries within which humanity can continue to develop and thrive for generations to come, but once passed, signal a concern for the Earth's ability to cope with humanity's demand. This Earth Day, you can take action by changing what you do at home and also begin to lobby for change. We can start helping the planet right at home and collectively work to change the system for the future generations to have an easier time living on this planet.