Philippe Cousteau Empowers Youth To Change Food Choices With What's On Your Fork? Action Guide

Explorer, social entrepreneur and environmental advocate, Philippe Cousteau is the 31-year-old son of Jan and Philippe Cousteau Sr., and the grandson of Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau. Philippe is continuing the work of his legendary family through EarthEcho International, the non-profit organization he founded with his sister and mother to empower youth to take action that restores and protects our water planet.

EarthEcho recently launched the What's On Your Fork? as part of their Water Planet Challenge. Youth are equipped with an information-packed action guide that they can use to organize a Meatless Monday campaign in their schools, homes and communities. Support and content was provided by the Toyota USA Foundation, Discovery Education, Participant Media and the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future.

I had an opportunity to speak with Philippe about our food system, the health of the planet's water and how he hopes to empower young people to become agents of change.

Peggy Neu: It's been over 10 years since you and your sister Alexandra founded EarthEcho in order to inspire the next generation to restore and protect our water planet. Are young people rising to meet the challenge?

Philippe Cousteau: Over the last ten years, it has become increasingly obvious that youth are indeed stepping up to the cause. From passing laws, to raising money, to adopting energy efficiency programs that change their communities to protecting land and conserving water, there is no end to what young people can do. Young people not only influence their peers, they also have a tremendous influence over the buying and voting habits of their parents. At EarthEcho, we engage youth to become advocates of our work and empower them to influence their parents and decision makers, much like the successful seat belt and anti-smoking campaigns did.

PN: When I think of "Cousteau", I think of oceans and fish. Why the focus on reducing consumption of animal protein?

PC: Now more than ever the world is interconnected and the ocean serves as a critical link. Coal dust from China lands on the shores of the Bahamas and industrial and agricultural pollution from the Midwest ends up in the Gulf of Mexico. The oceans are the life support system of our planet and water is its single most precious substance and both of these critical resources are in serious trouble. Waste from industrial agriculture is a major contributor to water, ocean and air pollution. Making small changes in our eating habits is one way we can have a positive impact on the health of our oceans.

We've already launched resources for youth to take action around water, energy and pollution - we hope the What's On Your Fork? action guide will encourage young people to think about how the food choices they make impact their health, the health of their communities and the health of the planet.

PN: What's behind your decision to make Meatless Monday a focus of the What's On Your Fork? service-learning project?

PC: Meatless Monday is a great service project for students because it's an easy ask that can make a big difference. An astounding 173,000 miles of national waterways are impacted by agricultural runoff, which can create "dead zones" where no marine life can survive. Research has shown that current animal farming practices contribute more than 30% of the nitrogen and phosphorus found in our drinking water. While these are complex challenges that require focus and solutions at multiple levels, each of us has the power to have a positive impact just through everyday choices and by making small changes. That's what Meatless Monday is all about.

PN: Do you think EarthEcho's youth advocates can get healthier food choices on their lunch trays?

PC: It's no secret that the food available to most students in school is a far cry from the ideal for healthy and balanced nutrition. The USDA actually counts tomato sauce on pizza as the equivalent of a vegetable serving. And Congress just recently declined more stringent standards for school lunches. So what seems like such a straightforward concept--providing healthy meals at school--is a hotly debated subject in our "adult" world. I hope that inspiring students to take responsibility for their food choices and advocate for change can be a powerful tool in challenging the status quo.

PN: What advice would you give kids as they embark on their service project?

PC: My advice is always to find something you're passionate about and have fun while you're doing it. I have seen youth change the face of their communities and the world -- anyone can do it. Water Planet Challenge's service-learning projects are a great starting point to investigate interests and passions and make a plan to take action. Just take one step at a time and before you know it you are on your way to making a big impact for yourself and the planet.

PN: What's your favorite meatless dish that would appeal to a high school student who loves burgers?

PC: One of my favorite easy dishes is:
Take a corn tortilla and warm it in a frying pan on med/low heat. Turn the heat to low and shave a few slices of Parmesan cheese into the center of the tortilla and allow it to melt slightly. Keep an eye on the pan or your tortilla will burn. Remove the tortilla from the pan and add fresh Pico de Gallo salsa (recipe follows). Also add slices of avocado and/or a little sour cream on top and eat. Black beans are another great topper and an excellent source of protein and fiber for this dish.

Pico de Gallo.
2 large heirloom tomatoes
1 small onion
1 small jalapeño pepper (optional)
Small bunch of fresh cilantro
tsp. of salt
tsp. of pepper
Juice of half a small lime
Chop all the ingredients and mix together. Voila...easy salsa.

 

Follow Peggy Neu on Twitter: www.twitter.com/meatlessmonday

Comments

[SanJoaquinValleyGrower]

01:31 PM on 12/07/2011

Due to ethanol, corn for animal consumption is down to 40% of supply. 40% (and rising) of corn goes to ethanol and 20% to direct human use. The vast majority of soy is processed for it's oil first, for human use. The waste of that process, called soy meal, is what is fed to animals. Soy meal is not very tasty byproduct for human consumption, but animals do love it.

To me, the way to heal the portion of the earth's problems that are due to animal agriculture is through a modern, efficient grass/pasture based production of meat, some benefits of which are explained here: http://www.soilcarbon.com.au/case_studies/pdf/08TL_SCCPPP_En.pdf

Meat isn't the problem, it's how we are farming meat that is,
a fact the meatless monday folks continually refuse to accept, and now it seems, earth echo as well..

[honeybear64]

12:02 PM on 12/07/2011

Why is that when it comes to conventional plant agriculture, environmentalists argue for improving it, but when it comes to conventional animal agriculture, many of them argue, not for improvement, but simply for reduction? I AGREE with Mr. Cousteau that current conventional methods of animal agriculture are unsustainable, but then again so are current conventional methods of plant agriculture. Would he try to get people to reduce their consumption of plant foods the broad scale industrial production of which is unsustainable as well by promoting ideas like "Saladless Saturday" or a national "Banana-Free Month"? "Meatless Monday" is just as arbitrary. If the answer is, "well, you could be eating locally grown organic fruits and vegetables", then you could be eating locally raised grassfed meat as well. It seems to me that we should be focusing on improving ALL aspects of agriculture, and promoting better systems through our purchasing decisions, rather than just singling out one particular aspect of it.

And before anyone accuses me of being anti-vegetarian - no, I'm not saying you SHOULD eat meat if you don't want to, and I think reducing or eliminating consumption of conventional, industrially produced meat is a good thing. I just think that there are sustainable non-vegetarian alternatives.

And by the way, it's odd that Mr. Cousteau gives a recipe that uses parmesan cheese and sour cream, without even acknowledging that unless you're actively sourcing your ingredients, those items likely come from conventional industrial animal agriculture as well.

[I-US]

01:20 PM on 12/06/2011

According to the FAO, in 2005 over 40% of the earth's surface was being used for agriculture, so this number does, in fact, change and often as a result of deforestation for the production of crops used for livestock feed. As Amato Evan, a researcher for the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment, said, "If current trends continue, we should expect to see increased agricultural production at the cost of increased tropical deforestation...And the production that is really driving the tropical cropland expansion are crops that are used as feed for cattle." So thank you to Mr. Cousteau and Ms. Neu for bringing attention to these issues and encouraging the younger generations to be more aware of how their food choices impact us all.

"Farming Claims Almost Half Earth's Land, New Maps Show"
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/12/1209_051209_crops_map.html

[Mary Cote Buetow]

02:50 PM on 12/06/2011

I agree...eat locally sourced, grass fed/pastured meats for better health.

[I-US]

10:21 PM on 12/06/2011

I am the only member of my family who is vegetarian, but I do wish the remaining members would think more about their food sources.

[FaunaAndFlora]

01:07 PM on 12/07/2011

Are you referring to these maps?
http://www.pnas.org/content/104/31/12585.full

Or this map?
http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/AG.LND.AGRI.ZS/countries?display=map

How about this graph?
http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/AG.LND.AGRI.ZS/countries?display=graph
Notice that the percentage of agricultural land claim close to 40% circa 1992 then dropped back to 37.5% a year or two later. It has remained fairly close to the percentage since then.


This article discusses the loss of cropland due to soil erosion, salinization and the depletion of aquifiers. Much of it is focused on China. Note that it says, "This relatively small amount of cropland provides the Chinese people a primarily vegetarian diet."
http://www.worldwatch.org/node/554

China is still losing cropland. So what do they do? Decide they should devise local diets that don't require as much grain? Nope. China is now trying to buy or lease lands in Africa and South America. Never mind that people are already using those lands to raise their own food. And never mind that these are marginal lands that should never be subjected to intensive crop production.

[I-US]

03:20 PM on 12/07/2011

In addition to the pollution from livestock that Mr. Cousteau mentions, that final article notes that "Livestock are also responsible for 18 percent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as meas­ured in carbon dioxide equivalent, which is higher than the share of GHG emissions from transpor­tation. They produce 37 percent of methane, which has more than 20 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide, and they emit 65 percent of nitrous oxide, another powerful GHG, most of which comes from manure.

Another environmental problem is water use: livestock operations are major water users and polluters. The irrigation of feed crops for cattle accounts for nearly 8 percent of global human water use. The large amount of waste pro­duced on factory farms exceeds the capacity of nearby cropland to absorb it. As a result, manure goes from being a valuable agricultural resource to what is essentially toxic waste. Nitrates, heavy metals, and antibiotics present in manure can seep into groundwater and pollute surface water, threatening public health."

http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5443

[I-US]

05:09 PM on 12/07/2011

The maps were created by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2005. The FAO also says that 11% of agricultural land represents a little over 1/3 of potential crop land.

The article you cite from the World Watch Institute notes that less land is used to feed "the Chinese people a primarily vegetarian diet" compared to the amount of per capita land used in the US. Deforestation, misguided farming practices, overgrazing, and overpopulation are considered China's major sources of land degradation. In fact, the government has had to implement a subsidy program after banning grazing in severely degraded land. Several estimates put China's rangeland degradation at 90%.

China is partnering with Brazil for soybeans for livestock feed due to an increase in meat demand and consumption.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/05/business/worldbusiness/05iht-soy.4.5164446.html?pagewanted=all

[Karl Wilder]

12:22 PM on 12/06/2011

Be very careful about that corn tortilla. Most corn is Monsanto GMO corn and should not be eaten by humans or animals.

[FaunaAndFlora]

12:06 AM on 12/06/2011

If Ms. Neu or Mr. Cousteau knew anything about farming they would realize that eating less meat will do nothing to improve water quality or prevent climate change if we're still growing the same crops using the same chemical fertilizers. The answer is not to replace the calories from meat with corn, wheat or other crops while continuing to rely on the arid Southwest (California, Mexico and Arizona) for 70% or more of the fruits and vegetables in our diets. Nor is the answer to continue eating a standardized diet regardless of where we live. It would be better if we began relying on grass-based meat and dairy production while recreating regional diets based on those foods that can be produced where we live. And for some of us that will mean eating more meat, not less.

Just 37% of the land surface on Earth can be used for agriculture. Only 11% can be used to grow crops and most of that land can't support crop production all year long. The rest can only be used for pasture or forage crops (hay) for livestock. Nothing can be done to change this.

(Continued)

[FaunaAndFlora]

12:36 AM on 12/06/2011

Then there is the "meat free" recipe. It starts with a corn tortilla, made with the same corn that is grown to feed livestock. Add ingredients that can only be raised in the Southwest or Florida for all (avocadoes, limes) or part of the year (tomatoes, jalapeno chilis, cilantro). And then there is the cheese and sour cream. Apparently, Ms. Neu and Mr. Cousteau don't realize that dairy animals must birth before they can produce milk and that half of their offspring will be males that can only be raised for meat. It only takes one male to breed a herd of cows or goats. That's why it makes no sense to use resources to support a large population of bucks, bulls, rams or boars when those resources can be used to support does, cows, ewes and sows.

[TomP100]

08:49 PM on 12/06/2011

As you and I both know, those that have a "meat free' agenda to promote tend to be averse to facts and the realities of feeding the world. Wish I could fan you again.