Tunbate
Tunbate
Tunbate is a new debate column in Tuntreet, inspired by a debate magazine Tuntreet had in the 70s called Tunrapp. In this column, two parties with differing opinions on a topic are invited to debate, with each side being given a page to present their arguments.
In our first edition of Tunbate, we have invited Ås Center Students and Ås Green Students to debate the issue of Ås Green Students advocating for the Bikuben cafeteria to become fully vegan. Let the debate begin!
Meat or life?
CLIMATE
The production of ruminants leads to significant methane emissions (farts and burps may be our downfall), and this gas is 80 times more insulating than CO2. However, livestock production of small ruminants and fish requires a large amount of feed production and import. Due to the way animal biology works, you always end up with less protein and calories in the final product than what you put in. This means that even imported plant-based burgers emit fewer greenhouse gases than locally produced meat burgers. The same principle explains why fried rice and falafel are so much cheaper than steak and cheese, even after subsidies.
The production of animal feed forces humans to cultivate larger areas of land, threatening both biodiversity and carbon storage in places like the rainforest. This requires a lot of fertilizer and produces waste in the form of manure, both of which create a risk of runoff.
In our local Årungen, the water was unsafe for many years due to manure runoff from ruminants, and this is a leading cause of fish deaths and algae blooms in waters around the world.
These are some of the reasons why major organizations like the UN, EU, and Greenpeace consider a more plant-based diet the most important thing a person can do to contribute to sustainability. NMBU aims to be a sustainability university, and therefore, making the food sold in our cafeterias sustainable is a natural choice.
HEALTH
Today, around 28 Norwegians die each day from cardiovascular diseases—just over one every hour. Did you know someone who became part of this grim statistic? The primary cause of cardiovascular diseases is a diet high in saturated fats and cholesterol, which come from eggs, meat, and dairy. Plant-based sources of fat (think nuts and olives—yum) are mostly unsaturated and contain zero cholesterol.
This frightening connection is especially sad when you realize that there isn't a single nutrient we need to eat animals to obtain. A timely example of this is that athletes on a plant-based diet have already won two gold medals and one silver in the Olympics. It is completely unnecessary to expose ourselves to this risk of diseases that kill 23% of us, as well as an increased likelihood of cancers like stomach and colon cancer. Bikuben should not sell cigarettes, and for the same reasons, they should not sell sausages.
SELF-SUSTAINABILITY
The fact today is that producing one kilogram of beef requires an average of 4.5 kg of feed, and even for sheep, the number is 2.2 kg. Turning several kilograms of food into just one kilogram is not food production, it’s food reduction. We could hope for an agricultural system where meat is produced solely on grass, but since this leads to more methane emissions per kilogram of product, this is also not a favourable solution.
The argument for maintaining cultural landscapes is often used, but it ultimately becomes subjective—some prefer forests, others meadows. However, should we accept environmental damage, heart attacks, and poor food self-sufficiency just because some people (center students) prefer meadows?
Written by Ås Grønne studenter (Ås Green Students)
Illustrator: Isabel Horntvedt
Yes to Choice in the Cafeteria!
The Green Students apparently want a fully vegan cafeteria at Bikuben. We in Ås Center Students, however, believe that it’s obvious that consumers should have freedom of choice in their daily lives and not be forced into a climate-confused ideology that curtails people's choices regarding diet and health.
On what grounds these so-called Green Students want to limit the offerings to only include lentils, beans, and oat milk is unclear to us, but cutting out meat for the sake of the environment is certainly a trend these days.
It is an undisputed fact that meat has a higher climate footprint per unit of energy produced. However, the fact that meat is produced using resources that would otherwise rot away seems to be forgotten in this debate.
In Norway, only 3% of the land is cultivated, and only half of that is suitable for growing grains and vegetables. However, 45% of the land is suitable for grazing, where ruminants can transform grass into butter, cream, and meat.
We don't know, but perhaps Green Students, like sheep, head to the mountains to fatten up on clover and timothy grass during the summer months?
We believe that meat production based on resources and land that humans otherwise wouldn't be able to use is sustainability in practice. This is also an act of solidarity with the rest of the world’s population, as every nation should strive to feed its own people. It is also an important contribution to the fight against climate change!
All life begins with photosynthesis, including the grass that gives us milk from cows and the grain that the pig turns into ham. If students at Norway’s self-declared sustainability university fail to see that meat production based on Norwegian resources is actually sustainable for a grassland country like Norway, perhaps the university should reconsider its slogan.
Regarding animal welfare and animal health in Norwegian livestock production, we recommend that Green Students take a study tour to the fabulous professional environments found in the Livestock Science Building and the Veterinary School.
We believe you should be able to find something in the cafeteria whether you want meat and cheese in your baguette, vegetarian lasagna, or dairy- and gluten-free options.
If you eliminate butter, eggs, milk, and other animal products, the group of people the cafeteria caters to will be significantly reduced, which could, in turn, impact both prices and opening hours. It’s also possible that food waste could increase as a result.
We believe it’s more important to focus on ensuring that the ingredients are local, Norwegian, healthy, and seasonal, rather than limiting choices in the cafeteria based on a climate-confused ideology!
A healthy and varied diet that considers climate, environment, and sustainability includes both animal-based and plant-based ingredients. That’s why we say no to a fully vegan cafeteria, and yes to choice and common sense!
