Meat still has an important place in our diet – we just need to gradually reduce the amount we eat

Sustainable food, which is kinder for the planet and good for our health, needs to balance a range of factors, writes Janet Street-Porter

Meat and dairy substitutes can be more expensive than the real thing (PA)

Food and diet has become highly politicised, and daring to admit you still eat meat has become – in some company at least – akin to confessing you think bashing kittens should be an Olympic sport. Or smacking your children.

Meat has become weaponised – loaded with meaning, no longer an allowable sustenance, and eating it is seen by some vegans as the ultimate expression of belligerence and ignorance. An affront to the senses.

And vegans are winning the battle for our hearts and minds. Meat consumption is gradually coming down, along with that of dairy products. Butchers are going out of business with fake meat stores taking their place in trendy neighbourhoods in London and our major cities. There's no middle ground in this war on meat.