From The Straits Times    |

How to eat green for Earth Hour -- and beyondOrganisers of Earth Hour have recruited a constellation of chefs to act as food ambassadors and teach people how to eat for the planet — a plan that will put carnivores on high alert.

One of the main pillars of green eating is to reduce red meat consumption in addition to using local ingredients and eating sustainable seafood — three direct changes that are being promoted in the run-up to Earth Hour on March 31.

According to the United Nations, raising livestock for human consumption is responsible for 18 percent of greenhouse gas or carbon dioxide emissions — more than worldwide transportation.

This is particularly worrying considering that red meat consumption is expected to rise exponentially in China in parallel with their growing affluence, environmentalists say.

Likewise, according to the State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture, more than half of the world’s fisheries are fully exploited, while a third are either depleted or recovering from depletion.

Organisers of Earth Hour have enlisted celebrity chef Bill Granger to act as the Australian ambassador for Earth Hour 2012, and other chefs around the world have also contributed recipe ideas that are largely vegetarian and, by extension, pack a healthy punch.

BBC presenter Ching-He Huang, for instance has lent her recipe for red cabbage and edamame salad, seasoned with soy, sesame oil and rice vinegar. British chef, cookbook writer and TV presenter Rick Stein also uses common, sustainable ingredients for his orange caramel cream.

In step with the event’s campaign slogan ‘I Will if You Will campaign,’ meanwhile, food writer for environmental blog Treehugger Jerry James Stone has pledged to follow a vegan diet for a month if 5,000 fans swear to convert for one week.

Meanwhile, the Monterey Bay Aquarium offers both a mobile and pocket guide outlining the best and worst seafood choices for the planet at http://bit.ly/dR3WSp.

For more info on Earth Hour, including recipe ideas, visit http://www.earthhour.org/page/cooking-storm.

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