Food and cooking website Epicurious made a big announcement on Monday, with some critics saying it's a "drastic" one. "Epicurious is cutting out beef," the site, which falls under the Conde Nast umbrella, posted in a tweet, explaining that beef will no longer be included in any of the brand's new recipes, articles, or other collateral, per the Takeout. Epicurious explains the move is an effort to "encourage more sustainable cooking," and to help combat the effects of climate change, as nearly 15% of greenhouse gas emissions around the world emanate from livestock, with the majority of emissions traced back to cows and beef. The site notes it actually stopped publishing most beef-centered recipes about a year ago, and that readers seemed receptive to the alternatives it's been publishing instead.
Epicurious also acknowledges that nixing beef isn't a "silver bullet"—other animals raised for consumption pose their own environmental issues within our "broken" food system—but the publication believes even small steps toward sustainability make a difference. "This isn't a vendetta against cows or people who eat them," Epicurious noted in its tweet. "It's a shift about sustainability; not anti-beef but pro-planet." While much reaction has been positive, not everyone agrees it was a necessary move, with some chefs and readers decrying the decision, per Insider. "One of the most short sighted, idiotic things I've ever seen," New York chef Angie Mar wrote in the comments under Epicurious' Instagram post about the change, adding it could hurt small local farms. For those who have a favorite beef recipe from the site, staff says not to worry: Existing recipes will remain available online. Check out the site's FAQ on what this decision means, and why. (More beef stories.)
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