Op-Eds

At the 77th Golden Globes Awards last week, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association publicized their commitment to combating climate change and “saving the world” by way of an anti-meat crusade. For the first time in the award show’s history, the HFPA offered a menu that completely snubbed real meat. The association’s president said in a statement that the plant-based menu raises awareness around “small changes that have a greater impact.”

The claim promotes a meatless diet as a north star for a world-conscious, sustainable, and morally noble lifestyle. But stunts like this are not only hypocritical, they are overly simplistic and lead people further away from real practices that could help reduce carbon emissions.

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Make no mistake: climate change is a real and serious issue. It deserves the kind of thoughtful, bipartisan solutions that agriculture producers are familiar with. 

Advances in technology have produced significant improvements to crop yields, irrigation techniques, and fertilizer management. Innovators in Nebraska have developed a tool that connects to center pivot irrigation systems and remotely controls water output based on the amount needed for a particular field. It’s estimated that since this tool was launched, it has saved over 21 billion gallons of water, over 34 million kilowatt hours of energy, and over 57 million pounds of carbon dioxide emissions around the globe.

Farmers in Nebraska, who depend on a healthy environment to be successful, are already good stewards of our land, air, and water and continually are improving their practices.

I respect the decision of those who personally choose to adhere to a vegan diet, but Hollywood Hypocrites need to stop using America’s farmers and ag producers as a scapegoat.

Click here to read the full opinion piece.

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