USDA Retracts Meatless Monday Newsletter Blurb

image
Published: 26 Jul, 2012
Updated: 13 Oct, 2022
1 min read

meatless-monday

Reactions to the "news" USDA's encouragement of "Meatless Mondays" in an internal newsletter continue. Sen. Chuck Grassley, Rep. Steve King, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, PETA, and the USDA itself, have all responded.

Explanation: "Meatless Mondays" is a campaign started by the School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University to encourage Americans to give up eating meat one day a week. Among health benefits, the campaign believes cutting down on meat consumption limits cancer risk, reduces heart disease, helps fight diabetes, curbs obesity, improves longevity and lowers fat intake. Environmentally, switching to one meatless day per week can reduce your carbon footprint, cut down on water usage and reduce fossil fuel dependence.

Politico reports the initial fallout out from the Agriculture Department newsletter:

"As part of an internal agency newsletter, employers were given tips on how to reduce the environmental impact while eating at the department’s cafeteria. The department removed the posting after the beef association denounced it in a press release."

The news of the "Meatless Monday" pitch provoked a strong reaction from Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley on Wednesday via Twitter.

https://twitter.com/ChuckGrassley/status/228265186367262721

PETA, in response, has begun taking "informal bets" on when Sen. Grassley will die as a result of his increased meat consumption.

The USDA has retracted the newsletter as of today. They claim the newsletter was not properly cleared, adding, "USDA does not endorse Meatless Monday."

The meat industry...helping you enjoy your pink slime any day of the week.

Latest articles

Tyson points at Trump with a marijuana leaf behind him.
Mike Tyson Calls Out Donald Trump to Make Good on Cannabis Rescheduling Promise
Mike Tyson, the former heavyweight boxing champion known as “Iron Mike,” is calling on President Donald Trump to make good on a campaign promise to reclassify cannabis under federal law....
11 Jul, 2025
-
2 min read
Football in grass.
Texas, Football, Bobcats, Pac-12, and a Corrections Officer Who Performed a Miracle
Houston Chronicle and Hearst Newspapers Spotlight Kelly Damphousse, a Former Correctional Officer Who Transformed a University....
10 Jul, 2025
-
4 min read
Lorena Gonzalez with teamsters
Lorena Gonzalez, California’s Top Labor Leader, Blasts ‘Anti-Labor Left’ Over Abundance Movement
Lorena Gonzalez, one of California’s most influential labor leaders, entered the fray this week in a growing Democratic debate over the so-called “abundance” movement. ...
09 Jul, 2025
-
2 min read