(taken from Vegan-L's Frequently asked questions
Veganism may be defined as a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practical, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.
In dietary terms it refers to the practice of dispensing with all animal produce - including meat, fish, poultry, eggs, animal milks, honey, and their derivatives.
Abhorrence of the cruel practices inherent in dairy, livestock and poultry farming is probably the single most common reason for the adoption of veganism, but many people are drawn to it for health, ecological, spiritual and other reasons.
"Land, energy and water resources for livestock agriculture range anywhere from 10 to 1000 times greater than those necessary to produce an equivalent amount of plant foods. And livestock agriculture does not merely use these resources, it depletes them. This is a matter of historical record. Most of the world's soil, erosion, groundwater depletion, and deforestation -- factors now threatening the very basis of our food system -- are the result of this particularly destructive form of food production" (Keith Akers, p. 81, "A Vegetarian Sourcebook", 1989).
Vegan: excludes animal flesh (meat, poultry, fish and seafood), animal products (eggs and dairy), and usually excludes honey and the wearing and use of animal products (leather, silk, wool, lanolin, gelatin...). The major vegan societies all disallow honey, but some "vegans" still use it.
Strict vegetarian: originally meant vegan, now can mean vegan or vegetarian. Pure vegetarian: as per strict vegetarian.
Vegan Nutrition, a Survey of Research by Gill Langley MA PhD Vegan Nutrition, Pure and Simple by Dr. Michael Klaper Friendly Foods by Ron Pickarski The Vegan Cookbook by Alan Wakeman and Gordon Baskerville Diet for a New America by John Robbins The Gourmet Vegan by Heather Lamont Power of your Plate by Neal Barnard Animal Liberation by Peter Singer Recipes from an Ecological Kitchen by Lorna Sass Pregnancy, Children and the Vegan Diet by Dr. Michael Klaper Compassionate Cook by PETA The Seventh-Day Diet, by Chris Rucker and Jan Hoffman
In order to get laying hens you have to have fertile eggs and half the eggs will hatch into male chicks. These are killed at once or raised as table birds (usually these days in broiler houses) and slaughtered as soon as they reach an economic weight. So for every free-range hen happily scratching around the garden or farm who, if she were able to bargain, might pay rent with her daily infertile egg, a corresponding male from her batch is enduring life in a broiler house or has already been subjected to slaughter or thrown away to die. Every year in Britain alone more than 35 million day-old male chicks are killed. They are mainly used for fertiliser or dumped in landfill sites. The hens are also culled as soon as their production drops. Also be aware that many sites classed as free range aren't really free range, they're just massive barns with access to the outside. Since the food and light are inside the chickens rarely venture outside.
The battery hen, from which the vast majority of all eggs are produced and almost all products containing eggs (especially cakes) suffers an even worse fate. The battery hen is an anxious, frustrated, fear-ridden bird forced to spend 10 to 12 months squeezed inside a small wire cage with up to nine other tormented hens. There are usually many tiers of these cages in gloomy sheds which hold a total of 50,000 to 125,000 birds. Caged for life without exercise while constantly drained of calcium to form egg shells, battery hens develop the severe osteoporosis of intensive confinement know as caged layer fatigue. Calcium depleted, millions of hens become paralyzed and die of hunger and thirst inches from their food and water. Battery hens are debeaked with a hot machine blade once and often twice during their lives, typically at one day old and again at seven weeks old, because a young beak will often grow back. Debeaking causes severe, chronic pain and suffering which researchers compare to human phantom limb and stump pain. Between the horn and bone of the beak is a thick layer of highly sensitive tissue. The hot blade cuts through this sensitive tissue impairing the hen's ability to eat, drink, wipe her beak, and preen normally. Debeaking is done to offset the effects of the compulsive pecking that can afflict birds designed by nature to roam, scratch, and peck at the ground all day, not sit in prison; and to save feed costs and promote conversion of less food into more eggs. Debeaked birds have impaired grasping ability and are in pain and distress, therefore eating less, flinging their food less, and "wasting" less energy than intact birds.
Ener-G Egg Replacer, which is make from potato starch, tapioca flour, leavening agents (calcium lactate (vegan), calcium carbonate, and citric acid) and a gum derived from cottonseed. It's primarily intended to replace the leavening/binding characteristics of eggs in baking, but it can be used for nonbaked foods and quiches.
Alternative replacements (quantity per egg substituted for)
2 oz of soft tofu can be blended with some water and substituted for an egg to add consistency. Or try the same quantity of: mashed beans, mashed potatoes, or nut butters.
1/2 mashed banana
1/4 cup applesauce or pureed fruit
One Tbsp flax seeds (found in natural food stores) with 3 Tbsp water can be blended for 2 to 3 minutes, or boiled for 10 minutes or until desired consistency is achieved to substitute for one egg.
1 tsp. soy flour plus 1 Tbsp. water to substitute for one egg.
Dairy cows are made pregnant yearly to ensure they produce adequate milk. In nature the calf would suckle for almost a year but nature, like the calf, is denied by the dairy industry. Some calves may be separated from their dams on the first day of life; others might remain for just a few days. But as the inevitable by-products of relentless milk production each will have to endure one of several possible fates. The least healthy bobby calves will be sent to market to be slaughtered for pet food; to provide veal for veal & ham pies; or for rennet to be extracted from their stomachs for cheesemaking. Some females will be reared on milk substitutes to become dairy herd replacements and begin, at 18-24 months of age, the cycle of continual pregnancies. Some will be sold at market at 1-2 weeks of age for rearing as beef in fattening pens and slaughtered after 11 months, often without sight of pasture. Up to 80% of the beef produced in the UK is a by-product of the dairy industry. Over 170,000 calves die in the UK each year before they are three months old, due largely to neglectful husbandry and appalling treatment at markets. A few will be selected for rearing as bulls, spending their lives in solitary confinement serving canvas 'cows' and rubber tubes. Artificial insemination is now responsible for 65-75% of all conceptions in the dairy herd. In the US the vast majority of unwanted calves are reared for veal, all but around 12% of them spending their short miserable lives in narrow crates (5'x2') on wooden slats and without straw. Whilst none suffer such a fate in Britain they are now exported for the purpose. In solitary confinement, unable to turn around or groom themselves they must drink the only diet they are allowed - a milk substitute gruel. Deliberately kept short of the iron and fibre which would redden their fashionably white flesh, they will suffer from sub-clinical anaemia and gnaw at the crates and their own hair for the roughage they crave. Fed large doses of hormones and antibiotics to promote growth and prevent the onset of infections caused by the stress of confinement and malnutrition, they will suffer scours, pneumonia, diarrhoea, vitamin deficiency, ringworm, ulcers or septicaemia. After 14 weeks, barely able to walk, they are taken over long distances to slaughter.
In 1905 the Lord Mayor's Cup at the London Dairy Show was won by a 24 year old cow. Today it is impossible to find a dairy cow of that age. The cow is usually sent for slaughter at five to six years, less than one quarter of their expected lifespan. Ketosis, laminitis, rumen acidosis, bse, mastitis, milk fever, staggers, liverfluke, lungworm and pneumonia are just some of the diseases facing the short life of the dairy cow.
Just as the meat manufacturers would have you believe that you need to eat meat, the egg and dairy producers are now spending vast amounts of money promoting the healthy aspects of eggs and dairy products. Eggs and dairy products contain large amounts of cholesterol and saturated fats, which is considered a major cause of heart disease. In a 1985 study published by the J. Am. Med. Ass. dairy products were the major source of saturated fat and cholesterol for 75 adult vegetarians living in the USA, whose blood levels of cholesterol were higher than those of vegans who ate no dairy produce. Dairy products contain lactose, a milk sugar which the majority of the world's population is actually unable to digest and is often found to be the cause of digestive problems. Casein, the milk protein, has been shown to cause iron deficiency anaemia from internal bleeding in many infants and is suspected of causing juvenile diabetes. Milk products can also be a cause of eczema, rash, mucous buildup, wheezing, asthma, rhinitis, bleeding, pneumonia and anaphylaxis in children and adults.
Bees are often killed in the production of honey, in the worst case the whole hive may be destroyed if the keeper doesn't wish to protect them over the winter. Not all beekeepers do this, but the general practice is one that embodies the attitude that living things are mere material and have no intrinsic value of their own other than what commercial value we can wrench from them. Artificial insemination involving death of the male is now also the norm for generation of new queen bees. The favoured method of obtaining bee sperm is by pulling off the insects head. Decapitation sends an electrical impulse to the nervous system which causes sexual arousal. The lower half of the headless bee is then squeezed to make it ejaculate. The resulting liquid is collected in a hypodermic syringe.
Gelatin (used to make Jell-o and other desserts) is made from the boiled bones, skins and tendons of animals. An alternative substance is called Agar-Agar, which is derived from seaweed. Another is made from the root of the Kuzu. Agar-Agar is sold in noodle-like strands, in powdered form, or in long blocks, and is usually white-ish in color. Some Kosher gelatins are made with agar-agar, most are not. Some things that are vegan that are replacing gelatin are: guar gum and carrageenan. Only some 'emulsifiers' are vegan. Gelatin is used in photography. Although the technology exists to replace photographic film, its price is currently prohibitive and there is insufficient demand. Hopefully, with the growth of vegetarianism and veganism, this situation will soon change.
Scientists over the years have bred a Merino sheep which is exaggeratedly wrinkled. The more wrinkles, the more wool. Unfortunately, greater profits are rarely in the sheep's best interests. In Australia, more wrinkles mean more perspiration and greater susceptibility to fly-strike, a ghastly condition resulting from maggot infestation in the sweaty folds of the sheep's over-wrinkled skin. To counteract this, farmers now perform an 'operation' without anaesthetic call 'mulesing' in which sections of flesh around the anus are sliced away, leaving a painful bloody wound.
Without human interference, sheep would grow just enough wool to protect them from the weather, but scientific breeding techniques have ensured that these animals have become wool-producing monstrosities.
Their unnatural overload of wool (often half their body weight) brings added misery during summer months when they often die from heat exhaustion. One million sheep die in Australia alone each year from exposure to cold after shearing.
Every year, in Australia alone, about ten million lambs die before they are more than a few days old. This is due largely to unmanageable numbers of sheep and inadequate stockmen.
Of UK wool, 27% is "skin wool," pulled from the skins of slaughtered sheep and lambs.
It is the practice to boil the cocoons that still contain the living moth larvae in order to obtain the silk. This produces longer silk threads than if the moth was allowed to emerge. The silkworm can certainly feel pain and will recoil and writhe when injured.
The process of live-plucking is wide spread. The terrified birds are lifted by their necks, with their legs tied, and then have all their body feathers ripped out. The struggling geese sustain injuries and after their ordeal are thrown back to join their fellow victims until their turn comes round again. This torture, which has been described as "extremely cruel" by veterinary surgeons and even geese breeders, begins when the geese are only eight weeks old. It is then repeated at eight week intervals for two or three more sessions. The birds are then slaughtered. The main countries using this cruel process are China, Poland and Hungary, where some 60 per cent of down produced is live-plucked. The down market in the UK alone is worth around 2.6 million pounds per year. The "lucky" birds are plucked dead, i.e. they are killed first and then plucked.
Cochineal is a bright red colouring matter made from the dried bodies of a Mexican insect Dactylopius coccus. Billions of these insects are raised and destroyed each year for a red colouring that is used in desserts, some strawberry soya milks, clothing, etc.
Why kill even insects if we don't have to? The same applies to using killed insects for broaches, crushed insect wings for irridescent eye shadow, or dying insects in jumping beans. Why promote even at this level a callous disregard for living things around us?
I think for good reason, based on ethical intuition, that we are more impressed by the kind-hearted soul who nets the flies to let them out of the house alive versus the person hunting them down for certain chemical death with a bottle raid. Even if our great White Suburban hunter of houseflies uses a fly-swatter for ecological reasons, the more admirable course pertains to the person who uses a butterfly net to simply capture the fly for relocation outside.
This doesn't mean we have to let our houses be over-run by pests or let our gardens be destroyed either. Common sense should prevail.
For sure. If a manufacturer can stick some part of an animal in something, chances are they probably will. Learn to be a fastidious label reader and avoid products not properly labelled unless you know for sure that they are suitable for vegans. Buy products from companies who make their stance on animal products known. Look out for ethically vegan companies and support them when possible. Some foods have "E" numbers listed in the ingredients, with no mention as to the source of these E numbers. Ones to definitely avoid include:
120 - cochineal 542 - edible bone phosphate 631 - sodium 5'-inosinate 901 - beeswax 904 - shellac 920 - L-cysteine hydrochloride
Un-numbered:
calcium mesoinositol hexaphosphate, lactose, sperm oil, spermaceti
Un-numbered:
calcium hepatonate, calcium phytate, diacetin-glyceryl, glyceryl diacetate, glyceryl triacetate, glycine, leucine, monoacetate, monoacetin, oxystearin, triacetin and any unspecified flavourings.
There are vitamin supplements which do not contain animal products.
To quote Vegetarian Times (August 1992, p. 60):
"Iron deficiency, unlike protein deficiency, sometimes is a real problem, but meat is not the answer. The American Dietetic Association said in 1988 that vegetarians don't have a higher incidence of iron deficiency than nonvegetarians."
If you are concerned about getting enough iron, avoid eating iron- rich foods along with substances that inhibit iron absorption: phyates (found in high-bran and unmilled cereals), polyphenols (such as tannins in tea) and calcium. Eat iron-rich foods along with foods containing vitamin C, which aids absorption. Good sources of iron include dried figs and prunes, dark-green leafy greens, legumes, certain whole grains such as quinoa and millet, blackstrap molasses, nuts and nutritional yeast. Acidic foods cooked in cast-iron pans are also good sources of the mineral."
Green leafy vegetables such as kale are as good or better than milk as calcium sources. Other good sources include: White/Wholemeal bread, Taco Shells, Oats, Soyabeans, Tofu, Almonds, Brazil Nuts, Pistachios, Sunflower Seeds, Sesame Seeds, Flax Seed, Carob, Carrots, Cabbage, Garlic, Parsley Spirulina, Chives, Seaweed, Cauliflower, Okra, Cassava, Figs, Papaya, Rhubarb, Molasses...
The National Research Council itself (which set the RDA values in the first place), acknowledges that people have been able to maintain calcium balance on intakes as little as 200 - 400 gm/day. They recommended the 800 mg/day because of the excessively high protein diet of most Americans (see NRC, Recommended Dietary Allowances, 9th Ed., 1980, p. 120-29)
Preformed vitamin A is not needed by the body, it can be synthesized by ingestion of carotene (often called provitamin A). Excess consumption of pre-formed Vitamin A can be dangerous. Good Carotene sources include: Green leafy vegetables, yellow fruits and vegetables.
Tofu, or Soy Bean Curd, is essentially curdled soymilk minus the liquid (a parallel is the way cheese is made from dairy). Its natural flavor is quite mild, but its natural ability to absorb the flavors of other ingredients has led it to be called a culinary chameleon. It's found in several varieties, from soft (silken) to extra-firm style. Soft tofu is often used to make frostings for cakes, dips for chips and vegetables, while the firmer styles are often found in stir-fries and soups. Frozen tofu is an excellent substitute for ground beef in many recipes. Tofu is usually found in the refrigerator sections of stores, near the vegetable or dairy sections.
Textured Vegetable Protein (or TVP) is a meat-like substance that is used to boost the nutritional content of meals, while still remaining relatively attractive-tasting. TVP usually contains "defatted" soya flour, and is very low fat. It is quite often sold in mixes for meat substitute dishes, and can often be found in bulk bins in health food stores. It is sold in a dehydrated form and requires re-hydration before using.
