WELLINGTON - A new school curriculum in New Zealand that tells students how to tackle climate change deniers and advises them to eat less dairy and meat has upset its farming community, which makes up the backbone of the country's economy.
It points to intensive agriculture as one cause of greenhouse gases and includes advice to eat less dairy and meat, have meatless days each week, eat more fruit and vegetables, drive less, recycle and buy second hand when possible."If they are going to continue to bite the hand that feeds them, and farming feeds New Zealand, then they are going to lose out in the long term," said dairy farmer Malcolm Lumsden from the country's northern Waikato region.
"What we are seeing currently around proposals where people should be looking to have Meatless Mondays or that dairy farming is terrible for the climate, those sorts of things are very opinionated and don't have a clear scientific basis," he said. The course is not compulsory and the education ministry has asked schools to consult with parents and the community before including it.