Our Values

Foodoffset is guided by three core values:

• Sustainability
• Empowerment
• Transparency and no gimmicks

Sustainability

In presence of mostly indifferent or easily mislead consumers, food producers’ profit-seeking and exposition to price-competition result in billions of food animals being utterly exploited, living and dying under the worst imaginable conditions. Furthermore, food, and in particular animal based food, is one of the largest contributors to climate change and desertification, especially if induced land-use change and energy usage are properly accounted for, to name only a few environmental problems associated with our way of feeding the current population. And not only the increasing population but maybe even much more their growing appetite for meat as societies become richer, risk to aggravate the problem further in future if nothing changes. We want to show how one can avoid contributing to these problems, helping the system to become more sustainable for all involved; from an animal, environmental and human perspective.

Empowerment

Any non-vegan with a minimal amount of concern for animal welfare and the world will regularly, or at least occasionally, have the feeling that she cannot eat certain food products that she might have enjoyed if it were not for the amount of animal cruelty almost certainly contained in it. Furthermore, with more than a minimum of concern one may wish to contribute to alleviate food animal suffering independently of one’s own consumption. We want to bring this possibility to the fingertips of anyone. Sorry everyone, no excuses left for simply not caring for caged animals & co.! Ultimately we think major political and cultural changes are necessary to put the food industry in order. As an individual group we are infinitely too small to ourselves make a significant dent in the food sector’s negative externalities, but by empowering the public to contribute, we see the possibility for something substantial to happen.

Transparency and no gimmicks

The modern food industry tends to advertise even the worst-held animals as being of superior standards. The worst for our project would be to follow the same route. Everyone who cares a bit about animal welfare knows that the area is full of controversies, not only because campaigners in the area can distort studies and opinions, but simply also because it is difficult to understand what is important for animals and how one might reasonably weigh animals quantitatively against humans or even the environment. We can only embrace discussions in this area and commit to being transparent about all our activities in order to deserve trust and to become a valid contributor to the discussion and improve the system’s conditions.