Turin To Be Italy's First "Vegetarian City"

With the election of Chiara Appendino as mayor of Turin, Italy, a town that has long been accustomed to meat-heavy northern Italian cuisine, the country may be well on its way towards the creation of its first "vegetarian city."

A member of the Five Star Movement (M5S), Appendino plans to align her city with her party's platform and has pledged to "to promote vegetarian and vegan diets as a “priority” in her administration." "The protection of the environment, health, and the wellbeing of animals" is an essential part of M5S's progressive manifesto, and Appendino hopes to instill these values among her constituents through educational programs that target Turin's younger population. Beyond this, in-depth information on Appendino's strategy has yet to be revealed.

While this is fantastic news to the reducetarian movement, as the push for decreased meat-eating spreads around the globe, there is, of course, backlash to be expected. Having faced previous cries of "meat terrorism" from Italy's meat industry, Turin's municipal government may be facing a greater challenge in cutting out meat consumption from its people's diets than they might have hoped. Regardless, any step towards eating less meat is a step in the right direction, and we express solidarity with Turin in its reducetarian endeavors.

Written by Danika Lam