From the "things that don't sound true to me" file, Ezra Klein
reports some data that suggests that replacing beef consumption with pork consumption could have some dramatic environmental benefits.
Relatedly, I was in Baltimore yesterday at the
Lexington Market where they had this odd kind of pan-ethnic deli, selling pastrami, "Jewish salami," etc. like a kosher deli but also featuring tons of Italian pork-based cured meats. Kosher deli is a good thing, and so is
salumi but the combination is weird. Point being -- less pastrami and more ham = a healthier environment.
This article available online at:
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2008/07/the-case-for-pork/49251/