Talking about being vegan or vegetarian makes people nervous?

When I watched Cowspiracy I wasn't really convinced that talking about becoming a vegetarian or vegan (gasp) for the sake of the environment would make good people uncomfortable, but it is true. I am thinking more and more that such talk raises to the surface feelings that people have consciously or perhaps unconsciously buried in order to continue eating meat and dairy. At some level of consciousness people are aware that it is not the best for their bodies, for the environment and certainly not for the animals involved.
Raising one's consciousness to injustice of any kind is always uncomfortable. Twice in the last month I have been told by leaders in groups that have enormous influence that it is not possible to talk about the relationship of meat eating to the environment because it would make constituents unhappy.
This seemed at first to be unreal (or perhaps surreal!) but I have begun to experience this discomfort myself from people that I know well. When I bring up the subject there is a complete silence followed by a change of topic. 
One response was that being vegan would be a hardship for poor people since being vegan costs more. Wow!
All around the world poor people have little or no access to meat. In developing nations people strive toward a western diet based on animal products because it is a sign of wealth. Beans and rice, pasta and corn have been the staple foods of the poor. These foods are cheaper yet, as we have been learning bit by bit, they are also better choices for many reasons. In The China Study, (a decades long study of eating habits begun in the 1950's), it was shown that with increasing income people began to add more and more meat and dairy into their diets, and as they did, heart disease, cancers and diabetes entered into the population as well. 
I think people suppress concerns for their health and for the poor along with their natural compassion for animals in order to eat high on the food chain. The suppression of feelings creates dissonance that is played out in other ways, especially when values are in conflict. 
Time to go fix some lovely quinoa and vegetables.