My position is that all life is valuable. We live in an ecosystem we're literally destroying and yes animal agriculture is a massive part of that. That's why anyone who can reduce the amount of meat they eat should, and they should understand that when they take a plants life they're not "better" or more morally upstanding for eating the plant instead of the animal.

We don't have a choice, as living things, to not participate in the murder and consumption of other life. Life must feed on life. We cannot eat rocks. Only plants can synthesize solar energy. Thus we must have respect for all the life we consume to sustain us, including vegetables. Just because they don't have eyes ears nose and a face that makes us think of ourselves doesn't mean we are any more moral, it just means on some level we've realized that we must murder to stay alive, and that's step one to respecting the life we take.

I agree with vegans, that under our current scientific understanding of the world, that we simply don't know anything about plant consciousness or pain, but we know a great deal about the consciousness and pain of animals, because their cognition works like our own. Under that framework, it makes sense to limit meat consumption to limit suffering.

However, science is always changing, and I will not say unequivocally that plants, bugs, bacteria and so on don't feel pain or suffering. As such while I am more than happy to cut meat out of my diet, it doesn't necessarily make me feel more moral, upstanding, or clever. It just means I've made a choice that "some ~~animals~~ living things are more equal than others."

Thank you for at least asking a question and engaging with the position.