There would be an immediate surplus of meat producing animals and a great amount of slaughtering would have to be undertaken. The wild fish would just go on living but without the danger of being hoisted out of their environment. The farmed fish would probably be let loose by their 'caring' keepers instead of being slaughtered like the animals. Fungus based foodstuffs would get a real boost and life would go on.
Jack Hill, St Albans England UK
Humans need protein to stay alive. Plants, as a whole, are very poor sources of protein. Rice, for instance, the staple food of most of the world only contains about 5% protein. Moreover the need is not just for any protein, but protein containing the essential amino acids. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein; the body needs more than 20 of these to keep everything working efficiently. There are at least 8 which cannot be synthesised by the body and which therefore must be in the food we eat. Some of these are available in plants, but some are not. Conversely they are abundant in milk, eggs and fish. So the immediate result would be signs of malnutrition, particularly in those parts of the world where they don't get much meat anyway.
Terence Hollingworth, Blagnac France
It is a scientifically proven fact that vegetarians live longer and enjoy better health than carnivores. If everybody went vegetarian, not only would people in general live longer and in better health, but it would also be much easier to feed the world. This is because, on average, it takes about 10 kilogram's of vegetation to produce 1 kilogramme of meat. As anyone who has ever been a vegetarian for some time will know, a vegetarian diet provides more than enough of all the nutrients needed by humans. The future of human diet is vegetarian.
Pathik Strand, Sheffield England
My great-grandmother apparently used to claim 'If you don't eat sheep, they'll eat you.'
Jonny, York UK
Why on earth would we want to give up eating meat? I respect the choice of people who give up meat for a good reason, but a lot of vegetarians are 'closet vegetarians' who get in your face with their arguments, and then sneak a bacon butty at the truck stop on the way home! When I was 15 I asked my gran if I should become a vegetarian like my friend. She said "we had vegetarians years ago. It was just a polite excuse for those who couldn't afford to buy meat!"
Lian, Pate UK