First off thanks for all the replies so far, nice to see weve got a discussion going now
It is grown in a huge vat of oxygenated nutrional broth and then shaped to the right dimensions, flavour is also added if necessary. As opposed to decent steak, which is cut from a cow, grilled for 8 minutes and served with a bit of peppercorn sauce. Quron is 100% manufactured so of course it is going to be more processed than meat. Do you even know how it produced?
I wasnt aware that this is how its produced, no. However i probably could have guessed, i mean im not naive enough to think it grows in those nice ham flavoured circles on a tree somewhere
I am struggling to see a major problem with this though. Indeed pollution will be created by processing the quorn in a factory but I seriously doubt it would parallel the pollution created by a cow in its life time, if you factor in all the fertilisers used to grow the food it eats etc etc.
In my opinion, merely seeing meat production as the 'end product' ie what it takes to turn living cow into a tasty steak, rather than what had to happen to get that cow to that state in the first place, completely negates the vast majority of the damage done in the production/growing process. Yes a steak does not require a factory, however it does require a calf to be born and raised and fed and watered and grazed and finally to be processed in some manner (albeit a much less chemical process driven one). It also takes much much longer to grow a cow than it does to produce a fungus, thus increasing the damage caused. Furthermore, this ignores any animal welfare issues completely, something which does not bother me as much as the environmental damage, but surely something which must be considered.
Surely the best solution is to recycle as much as is possible. That way we can change our wasteful ways more slowly, and have less of an environmental impact. How recyclable are all types of plastic? I imagine almost anything can be recycled with the right facilities.
Of course this is ONE PART of the solution but it cannot be a solution it itself. Whenever plastics are recycled there is a toxic waste product left behind. The size of this varies between plastics, however it can seldom be completely eradicated. Surely it would be better not to make the thing in the first place, then we wouldnt need to recycle it! Also we all have to admit that sometimes we simply throw stuff that can be recycled away, into the rubbish, into the landfill. However if we changed our habits,for example we took a flask rather than buying bottled water, then we would negate this issue. Finally, this also ignores plastics which cannot be recycled, or which require such specialized facilities that they are recyclable in theory, but seldom in practice. Increase the facilities i hear you say. Well yes, but this might simply not be economically feasible and would interfere with peoples' lives far more than a habit change. Simply changing habits would be far cheaper, fairer and more effective.
Hahahah, the usual suspects spouting the usual uninformed or misinformed garbage
The energy and resources in a paper bag are higher than those that go into a plastic bag. Although a plastic one won't biodegrade or oxo-degrade unless it has certain additives it is the better option, environmentally. If it's re-used then it's even better again. Use it as a binbag and it's even better.
Sadly true. There are scores of lifecycle analyses backing this up.
I removed your signing comment since I'm not a hippie but probably know a lot more about the subject than most
This is interesting, thanks. Again it reiterates what I have been saying really. The culture and habits of people need to change to make a difference. A paper bag (even if it was less wasteful than plastic) merely falls into the "use once, throw away" culture which does so much damage. We need to reuse or not use at all, rather than finding different ways of consuming too much. Unbleached Cotton shopping bags all the way!