There has been internal wrangling in the Spanish government over whether or not to promote plant-based meals. The amount of meat consumed by the Spaniards has raised many concerns but has had the Prime Minister of Spain, Pedro Sanchez, jumping to the defense of carnivores. Other members of the cabinet however disagree with him on his chosen side as they think it is better to discourage their locals from eating so much ham, beef, and other forms. Groups in that faction have been sending messages on the health and environmental benefits of plant-based diets.
The internal debate ballooned to the point that the prime minister waded in from Lithuania while on an official visit there on Thursday.
“To me, if you give me a rare, ribeye steak, that’s unbeatable,” Mr Sanchez said, stating his unequivocal position.
Since coming to power in early 2020, Mr. Sanchez’s Socialists and the ministers representing the coalition’s junior partner, United We Can have clashed over how to respond to issues like transgender rights, spiralling rent prices, tax hikes, and social benefits for the most vulnerable Spaniards.
“I am worried about the health of our citizens and the health of our planet”, minister Alberto Garzon, a leader of United We Can, while calling on people to consider putting less meat on their plates.
According to Mr Garzon, over 70 million cows, pigs, sheep, chickens, and other farm animals are slaughtered for food each year in Spain, a country of 47 million, adding that beef production, in particular, requires disproportionate amounts of water and releases greenhouse gases responsible for global warming.
“This doesn’t mean that we can’t have a family barbecue once in a while,” he added.
“We just need do it with a bit more restraint and make up for the days when we eat meat by following them with eating more salad, rice, legumes, and vegetables.’’ UPA, a small farmers union and livestock breeders, said it was outraged. Their main statement is that they eat well in Spain.
“Our Mediterranean diet has placed us as the world’s third country in terms of longevity,” Roman Santalla, a union representative, said.
Over 70 million animals are slaughtered annually when the country has just 47 million citizens.
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