Meatless Monday and Social Responsibility











9 comments so far

  1. Ian Welch on

    I wrote a blog about McDonald’s in hospitals. I would appreciate your thoughts on this topic.


    • Chris MacDonald on

      I have mixed feelings about McDonald’s in hospitals. I was visiting a relative at a hospital yesterday, and the food for visitors was so terrible (quality and availability) that I honestly wished there were a McDonald’s there, even though I don’t eat meat. Chains like McD’s provide highly consistent, tasty food, and such food isn’t going to hurt you if consumed in moderation. I’d be *very* concerned of course if McD’s were running the food for the hospital itself, or if it were the only food option in the building. But I’m not entirely convinced that their very presence is so terrible.

      • Ian Welch on

        Thanks. I took a tough stance yesterday and softened up on it. Just found your site and appreciate it. Ian

  2. Michelle on

    Don’t forget that are very distant ancestors lived on a diet of meat and wild berries and vegetables. I like reading your blog but you forgot about those of us who raise animals. We supply a very vital part of society’s food needs. The price of meat would be less, but people in the middle want to be paid well for little work. Another reason meat prices are rising is the unceasing need for gasoline by the Western world. As a farmer, it is easier to raise corn and sell it than to raise corn, feed it to our animals, and then sell the animals. Animals take lots of labor. As farmers, we work long hours and strive to make our animals comfortable. My husband and I don’t raise our animals in confined buildings. Meatless Mondays hurt more sectors of the economy than you stated. Also, people need to stop trying to tell others how to eat. If they want to kill themselves by food before 40, let them. It is their choice.

    • Chris MacDonald on

      Sorry, but how our ancestors lived isn’t at all relevant. And while I’m sympathetic to the farmers who currently earn a living raising animals for meat, the fact that they make their living that way is not a very convincing reason for supporting the product. The same goes for tobacco farmers, etc. And the beautiful thing about Meatless Monday is precisely that no one is “telling others how to eat.” No one is being forced into anything.

  3. Jeffery on

    Presumably Sodexo has some economic latitude here to experiment with the program; ultimately, however, if the costs are immediately high, or intractable over a trial period, it seems unlikely that Sodexo can make the the case for its continuation. Not all actors bear responsibility for the multitude of social problems that we currently face; the presence of meat in our diet is so thoroughly entrenched in consumer habits that it would be hard to fault Sodexo for abandoning a well-intentioned effort of this sort, if it couldn’t be properly funded through its operations. This stands even if someone (in or out of Sodexo) is inclined to give a lot of weight to anti-meat arguments.

    But I wonder what kind of educational efforts went into the program. This may have an impact on how well its perceived, whether consumers really understand the principle at stake, etc. If it was sprung on consumers without much notice and without some well-placed communication, I can imagine easily how it impacted sales.

    (Side note; When the food service provider Bon Appetit offers “low carbon” day at our university cafeteria everyone seems to flock to the sandwich stand nearby, which offers the regular high carbon foods. I guess this is because there is virtually no meat offered on “low carbon” day. So Sodexho is not alone in this kind of problem.)

    • Chris MacDonald on


      I think your point about economic latitude is important, as is the point about the magnitude of the problem. Of course, we need to differentiate between a) big problems about which individual companies can do literally nothing, and b) big problems about which individual companies can do something concrete. If a company’s program reduces meat consumption even a little, it thereby reduces the total amount of animal suffering, which is prima facie good. (In other words: meat consumption isn’t a ‘prisoner’s dilemma’ — unilateral action CAN help.) But generally I think your point is right: meat is part of our culture, and while that isn’t self-justifying, it does make it hard to justify putting much of a burden on individual companies.


  4. mary on

    is Sodexo granted a monopoly franchise like at most hospitals? if so, i can’t see how you say that “no one is “telling others how to eat.” No one is being forced into anything.”

    a hospital is not a place that offers many eating alternatives. when faced with an emergency situation, you can’t leave the premises. if there’s no alternative restaurant, then how is that not forcing someone by categorically banning the option? i assume they don’t delete meat entres on the menu board every monday. i assume that whatever meat options that are normally offered are still on display. if a person (not knowing it’s meatless monday) asks for a cheeseburger and is refused, then it seems to me you are forced to pick another option.

    • Chris MacDonald on


      The story cited says that on Mondays, Sodexo “offers more plant-based meal options.” It doesn’t say that meat was entirely unavailable. Beyond that, most cafeterias do vary their selection from day to day. If you prefer lasagna, but ask for it on Thursday, you may be disappointed.


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