Episode 79: Eleanor Boyle on Rethinking Factory Farming to Stop Avian Flu

In this episode of the Plant-Based Canada Podcast, we sit down with Eleanor Boyle. She’s a Vancouver-based writer who focuses on food policy and sustainable diets. A long-time journalist and former college instructor, she has written many articles on ways to improve our food systems. She has two book – “High Steaks: Why and How to Eat Less Meat”, and “Mobilize Food: Wartime Inspiration for Environmental Victory Today”.

In our conversation, Eleanor discusses the recent news that avian flu has been detected in dairy cows in the U.S., and how scientists here in Canada are now sounding the alarm about staying ahead of an outbreak here at home. She delves into the issues around factory farming, and how these kinds of zoonotic diseases can become larger threats with pandemic potential.

But besides highlighting the concerns, Eleanor also outlines the complicated path to alleviating the massive impacts our food systems have on everything from planetary health… to our own individual health.


Resources

Eleanor’s article in the online National Observer, outlining evidence that poultry farming is a major factor in the rise and spread of bird fluEleanor’s introductory 2024 blog post on avian fluPeer-reviewed scientific article showing that avian-flu viruses mutate into lethal form most often among poultryComprehensive and expert bird-flu report (2023) from Compassion in World Farming, entitled Bird Flu: Only Major Farm Reforms Can End ItDr. Michael Greger’s Bird Flu: A Virus of Our Own HatchingUnited Nation’s Scientific Task Force on Avian Influenza and Wild BirdsEleanor’s book “High Stakes: Why and How to Eat Less Meat”

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