A new hospital at UC Irvine is opening its doors—an all-electric landmark, the largest of its kind in the nation, and a beacon of what sustainable care can look like. And yet, there’s one more step that could make this visionary project even more aligned with its mission of healing: offering only vegan meals.
Nothing shapes the environment as profoundly as what we choose to eat. We use enormous amounts of land and water to grow feed for animals, and the animals themselves release massive quantities of methane, carbon dioxide, and waste that pollute our air and waterways. And in the U.S., raising animals for food uses about 80 percent of all agricultural land and drives a significant share of freshwater consumption—mostly through irrigation for feed crops—making animal agriculture one of the most resource-intensive systems we have.
Still, the highest cost is paid by the animals themselves. These living beings aren’t “products”—they’re someone.
For a hospital built to heal, serving vegan-only meals is the healthiest path forward. So please, let’s go vegan.
Rebecca Libauskas
The PETA Foundation
Norfolk, VA
This article appears in 2025 Year in Review.
If we are not supposed to eat animals, why are they made out of meat?