Prince Fielder’s diet very Earth-friendly
By Paul M. Banks
Thursday June 5th was “World Environment Day,†a holiday not very well known in America. Chicago played a special role, serving as the United Nations North American host city. On this day, I attended the International Climate Change Forum at the beautiful Botanic Garden in gorgeous Glencoe, Illinois. (see footnote 1) United Nations Environmental Programme Regional Director Amy Fraenkel personally explained to me exactly what WED is: “World Environment Day is definitely, like you said, less known here as Earth Day, but it is celebrated all around the world every year on the same exact day June 5th. The day was selected by the UN general assembly back in 1972, the same year that UNEP, the organization I work for was founded. And we use it to send a global message about key environmental issues of the day. This year it’s about how we can kick our carbon habit.â€
 
So what’s the best thing we as individuals can do to reduce our carbon emission and help avert the climate crisis? Stop eating beef! According to a study published in Animal Science Journal last August, creating a pound’s worth of beef releases the same amount of greenhouses gases—the equivalent of 36.4 pounds of carbon dioxide—as driving a car 155 miles at 50 miles per hour.
Think it’s a just too hard a sacrifice to make? Well, Milwaukee Brewers star Prince Fielder has made the conversion. Read this excerpt from a New York Times feature to learn more:
Fielder, a first baseman who walloped 50 home runs last season, has become more than the face of the young and improving Milwaukee Brewers — he has become a lightning rod for his off-season decision to spurn meat and fish, including the bratwurst that tailgating Milwaukee fans hold so dear. His hitting only one home run through 20 games only accentuated the intrigue. As the last player most would have expected to go granola, Fielder and his diet have become as delicious for critics as the rib eyes he used to love.
“Fans last year were yelling at me, ‘Hey Prince, eat a salad!’ †Fielder said during dinner at a Milwaukee restaurant last Tuesday. “This year they’re saying, ‘Eat a steak!’ I feel like going: ‘Keep yelling, buddy. You’re still in the stands.’ â€
One of the most gregarious young stars in the sport, Fielder has begun to feel a bit like a circus seal, balancing the ball of vegetarianism on his nose while, all things being equal, still appreciating a good rack of ribs. Fielder, 23, decided to make the switch over the winter after reading how cattle and chickens were treated and “was totally grossed out,†he said. His wife, Chanel, preferred a no-meat diet as it was, so he embraced a new approach.
Fielder had been as carnivorous as your average puma — pushing 200 pounds since he was 12, he scarfed down a 48-ounce porterhouse as a teenager and had barely slowed down since. (He played last year with 270 pounds on his 5-foot-11 frame, not all of it muscle.) But he figured he could get his protein from beans and shakes instead of meat and fish, leading to conversations since the beginning of spring training that have grown quite tiresome.
To read the full article:
https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/sports/baseball/27fielder.html?_r=1&ref=sports&oref=slogin
1. I know all of you are dying to borrow my personal copy of the 200 page UN Guide to Climate Neutrality. Did you know Copenhagen, Denmark is the world’s best city for bicyclists?
