Vegan vs. Non-Vegan Thanksgiving

Every year, households across America prepare decadent feasts in celebration of Thanksgiving, a day for reflecting on the things for which we are most grateful. Merry indulgence is an embedded part of holiday traditions, but can sometimes allow us to forget the ways that we impact our world, in spite of our appreciation for it. Roughly 300 million turkeys are slaughtered each year in the US, with about 45 million killed just for Thanksgiving. From an environmental perspective, turkey also has five times the carbon footprint of tofu, according to the Environmental Working Group. Plus, the toll on our own health of excessive gobbling can’t be ignored. Using highly rated recipes from Epicurious.com, Allrecipes.com, and VegWeb.com, our editors compared the saturated fat, calories, and cholesterol of a typical holiday menu. All of these unsavory facts should make one thing clear—a plant-based Thanksgiving is reason for the planet, its animals, and your body to be thankful.

Click here to check out the Thanksgiving Nutrition Throwdown!