Firstly, a little bug bear of mine. I think that we need to discuss what the difference is between Vegan and plant based. You can be plant based but not vegan but you cant be vegan and not be plant based. Clear? I thought not, there are plenty of people who believe that they are following a "Vegan diet" and this by default makes them vegan, this is sadly untrue. Here are a few examples of each and hopefully this will explain the difference.
Person 1, lets call him Bob, who wants to be called person 1 anyway? and person 2, lets call her Lucy.
First lets look at Bob:
Now lets look at Lucy
Can you tell the difference between Bob and Lucy? I hope I have made it as clear as possible. Bob only eats plants but has no consideration for the animal world around him. Lucy cares deeply about animals, their health and where possible and practicable avoids anything that will cause them to be used in any way. This is a key difference in people who only eat plants I.E. Plant based and Vegan. The difference is an ethical one.
Definition of veganism:
Ok, I got it, so why Veganism (or at least plant based) is the future?
The Western diet is killing us.
"The western diet is rich in red meat, dairy products, processed and artificially sweetened foods, and salt, with minimal intake of fruits, vegetables, fish, legumes, and whole grains."SRC
With a population of 65.64 million the figures for the UK can be extrapolated across other nations too. These would be average numbers for digestive tract cancers caused by red and processed meats.
- Germany's population 84 million, would have 11550 fewer cancer cases.
- Spain's population 46.5 million, would have 6325 fewer cancer cases.
- France's population 66.9 million, would have 9198 fewer cancer cases.
- USA population 325.7 million, would have 44783 fewer cancer cases.
- European population of 741.4 would have 101942 fewer cancer cases.
If we look at Europe as a whole
Between the US and Europe alone we are looking at almost 150,000 preventable cancer cases. That is just one type of cancer! When we look at coronary disease and stroke the figures get even worse. We have been sold a lie for generations. Thankfully the world is waking up to the damaging nature of animal based foods and indeed the inverse healing nature of plant based foods. The solution to so many health issues we see in our modern world is to simply stop eating animals and their products I.E. Milk and milk derived products. In fact, connections have been established by the British medical journal between the consumption of red meat to an increase in death rates from nine different diseases: cancer, type 2 diabetes, stroke, Alzheimer’s, infections and diseases of the heart, liver, kidneys and respiratory tract. SRC
So what if these people die? the earth is overpopulated anyway! Actually the earth could support a whole lot more! The human population could increase to simply mind boggling numbers and be able to sustain itself with essentially small holdings. In this post by @rieki they discuss this exact thing. A very worthwhile read. This also leads us on to our next topic
Current agriculture models are not sustainable.
Below is a graph, who doesn't love a graph? This graph indicates whole lifecycle total of greenhouse gas emissions for common protein foods and vegetables, expressed as kilograms (kg) of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) per kg of consumed product.
Did you know that animal agriculture causes more greenhouse gas emissions than that of all transportation? Lamb contributes 39.3 kg of carbon per 1 kilo of meat consumed[1], Beef contributes 39.3 kg carbon per 1 kilo of meat consumed[2] SRC 1 & 2. Conservative estimates put animal agriculture at 14 - 18% where as transportation is only 13.5%. That is just Co2, we also have to factor in Methane. Methane is 20 times more potent as a Co2 in terms of greenhouse gas. Methane accounted for about 16% of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2015, according to the IPCC (UN’s Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change)[3]SRC 3. When we look at the huge strides we take towards reducing our carbon footprint in the transportation sector we would be foolish at best to ignore the footprint or should I say hoof print of our food. But that is only some of the story....
Where are we going to keep all these animals?
Land usage for meat and dairy production is hugely inefficient. "Livestock is the world’s largest user of land resources, with pasture and land dedicated to the production of feed representing almost 80% of the total agricultural land. The sector uses 3.4 billion hectares for grazing and one-third of global arable land to grow feed crops, accounting for more than 40% of world cereal production. 26% of the Earth’s ice-free terrestrial surface is used for grazing."SRC. That was the 2014 numbers, or around 318.8 million tonnes of meat. The FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) Estimates puts meat production for 2050 at 455 million tonnes!
Can you see where this is headed? We are going to raise and slaughter Billions more animals every year by 2050. The knock on effect of this is catastrophic to our environment. Is that cheese burger really worth not having a planet to live on?
If we look at the graph above we can see that in 2011 50% of habitable land was used for agriculture, 77% of this was used for animal agriculture. Yet only 17% of the total calorific food supply comes from meat and dairy. This is a totally unsustainable model of generating a food source for a global population. If we continue down this route we will have no habitable land left for people with the entire habitable land mass taken up by "food" animals. Not forgetting that every increase in food animals also increased their greenhouse gas emission. If we move to at least a plant based model we will not only reduce our need for land which simply is not available but we could also mitigate the effects of animal agriculture on our climate. It is a win win situation.
The graphic above shows the land required for diet type by country. I have had to copy the image but you can visit the interactive map here The red countries indicate the land required if the world ate as that country. If we look at the US we would need 137.65% of the entire habitable land just to raise "food" animals. If we look at New Zealand we would need 191.2% almost double of the available land on the earth just to raise "food" animals. But if we look at a more plant based country I.E. India we would only need to use 22.2 precent% Even my home country of Ireland fails, it would require 105.8%. This is not to mention the huge live export trade that Ireland has.
So cant we just eat fish instead?
With industrialised fishing decimating dwindling fish stocks we are set to have more plastics in our oceans by 2050 than fish. This report predicts that, on the current track, oceans will contain more plastic than fish by 2050. Recently a team of scientists at NUI Galway, Ireland, found 73% of deep water fish had ingested plastic particles. The full study can be found here. This is really bad news for the fish that are left in our oceans. The team examined the stomach contents of the 233 deep sea fish they had gathered, which ranged in size from 3.5 to 59 centimetres. One small Lanternfish, just 4.5 centimetres long, had 13 microplastics in its stomach. These smaller fish are a food source for larger fish, who eats the larger fish? You guessed it people do. We are in the process of poisoning the oceans at an alarming rate. Did you know that land animal agriculture is also responsible for oceanic dead zones?
Dead zone is a more common term for hypoxia, which refers to a reduced level of oxygen in the water. Aquatic life that is mobile can move but aquatic life that is not, suffocates. The video below is from NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). It shows how dead zones are created and what effects that these zones can have on all life, not just aquatic life.
LIKE WHAT YOU SEE?
I guess this is your first article that i came across but i really enjoyed reading it! so informative, good work! 💪🏻 totally worth time reading it, upvoting and resteeming! 😃 there are more and more people who start to understand the need of eating less meat/becoming vegan. But the process is so sloooow... I really enjoyed that you highlighted the ethical part of the topic - some people remain hypocrites and they should be aware of it. I recently tried to persuade my old-school dad to become more "plant-based", but i failed. For many a meal without meat isn't a real meal. period. 😐 anyway, i hope to read more of your articles as good as this one. 😊 🍀
Hey @k-a-s-i-a, thanks a million for checking it out, the resteem and indeed taking the time to leave such a detailed reply. I totally hear you! Change is a long time coming and it is a slow process. I find that the best ways through to peoples brains is their stomachs, I do my best to create delicious food that can trick onmis as far too many believe that being Vegan is all salads etc. Couldn't be further from the truth.
As for the ethical side of things, I became Vegan for the animals, Vegan is quite hot right now and that is great, don't bet me wrong. But as you say there are a lot of hypocrites out there. For many I genuinely believe that they are unaware of the reality of animals in the food supply systems, entertainment and or cosmetics / medical industries. I think that highlighting this is a really important step so those who are plant based can make an informed decision on the road they want to take.
Don't worry I am from Ireland and I totally get the whole meal isnt a meal thing. I was one of them too. So if I can change so can everyone!
Hi @k-a-s-i-a! I just wanted to comment on this because I had the same problem with my father ;) He came to visit me for 3 months and he was just so persistent about not changing it was incredibly challenging and pushed my buttons on more than one occasion :)
Thing is, it's all about knowledge and understanding. Once we can show people the alternative way or information, they are much more willing to listen and hear the points we're making.
Don't give up, we make little ripples that can turn into a wave when we don't expect it! <3
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Bwahahahaha! Good article buddy.
meep
Cheers! Meep
Thanks a million, I try to throw some jokes in there to keep the reader engaged.
What a brilliantly written and super informative post!
But one thing is still not very clear to me when you said:
Is that because of animal-tested life-saving medicines that vegans may use? Else, how will you explain this?
When you take it in the full context it might be easier.
"You can be plant based but not vegan but you cant be vegan and not be plant based. "
So the thing is that you could only eat plants, but still buy animal skins, furs or go to entertainment that uses animals eg horse or dog racing. in that scenario you would not be vegan.
To be vegan is as you know to avoid where possible and practicable anything that would cause exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose so it is only possible to be plant based whilst being vegan.
I don't think in this scenario I would use the animal-tested life-saving medicines part as any animal would do what is necessary to survive, even if that includes killing another animal. To me the key is to live as practicably as possible in avoiding anything that would hurt, enslave etc animals. We just don't need to kill animals for food, nor exploit them for our gain.
Advances in testing of drugs / medicines will soon put an end to animal testing too and that will be a great day for all life on this little rock.
Here is a little quote that I like to reference from time to time that kind of explains the depths of depravity that man stoops to in order to maintain the status quo of carnism.
"We have enslaved the rest of the animal creation, and have treated our distant cousins in fur and feathers so badly that beyond doubt, if they were able to formulate a religion, they would depict the Devil in human form. "
William Ralph Inge
Thanks so much for taking the time to read it @xyzashu, I really appreciate it, I know that you too are a passionate advocate for animal rights and I salute you for your work. Do not fear my friend, our day will come and the animals will be liberated. We will look back on these times in disgust.
Absolutely brilliant article! With all this overwhelming evidence, it's difficult to understand why meat is still being produced at such as crazy rate. Why, for example, we're encouraged to eat meat morning noon and night (i'm looking at you, fast food outlets!). Oh yeah, because someone's making money from it. Just like someone's also profiting from diet-related illnesses. At least this information is getting out there, veganism is growing, and there's a glimmer of hope on the horizon :-) Massive thumbs up for your writing!
Thanks a million for your detailed response @melbee, its totally true. When you look at the information that is there, just not publicized, then you can clearly see that is an unsustainable future that we are building. Forgetting completely about the billions of souls that are killed each year.
Funny you mention fast food outlets too as there are many who have or will be bringing "vegan" products online in the coming months / years, Mc Vegan anyone? Hell no! We need to get back to basics to ensure optimal health and keep the junk for the weekend etc. We concentrate on a whole food plant based diet for weekdays, and have some junk at the weekend.
Thanks again, and welcome to Steemit. Are you Vegan? if so there is a great discord group. Let me know if you are on discord and I'll hook you up with a link. 😉😉
Hey @melbee :) I'm chiming in because this is my biggest WTF in life lol. I just do not understand why with the overwhelming evidence against animal products, it's not even slowing down in production. I was mentioned in an article today poking a little bit of fun at the vegan movement, you know reading some of the comments just got me lost in this world of YOU NEED TO KNOW THE TRUTH! ;)
I'm happy to see that there are people hanging around that understand because together we can make a huge difference and it's articles like this one of @moonunit's that can make people stop and think.
Let's stick together to change the course of the future! <3
Wow! Bravo on all the hard work you put into this! I can tell you took so much care to not only back up all of your points, but also craft this so it reads well and looks appealing. You definitely deserve a bowl of vegan chili to replenish yourself after a job well done! ;)
Oh Katie, thank you! I really can't thank you enough for all your support. You are so kind, thanks for taking the time to read it and give such a supportive reply. I've had a crazy couple of weeks and I have missed out on so many of your posts. I will have to catch up on them all!! 😀
I'm happy to be in your cheering section! 📣👏
@moonunit @plantstoplanks this is so amazing to see! I love you guys! <3 Our little community here is amazing!
It really is!!! Hugs all around!
THERE NEEDS TO BE A WAY TO SAY ARTICALS TO READ LATER ON STEEMIT!!
From what I read I love the article! Following you now!
Hey hey @cryptoj215 if you are on android you can download Esteem it is a steemit app that allows you to interface with the steem blockchain. I use it with no issues whatsoever. There is a super handy bookmark option in there too. The steemit interface wrecked my head for a while too with this feature lacking.
Glad to hear you liked the article, and delighted to have you on board!
Hey @cryptoj215 ;) Just wanted to let you know that there is a way. It saves my life ;) Busy.org has a bookmark feature, hope this helps you! <3
Great article brother, resteemed etc
Cheers @tonysayers33 compliling these articles takes so much work but they are always great to keep my focus. Really appreciate the resteem too my man. 😉
This was super infomative.... like super informative, I am sure the headmistress would love this post.
I am confused though why would someone be 100% plant based but wear leather and enjoy animal entertainment like the tiger on the ball. I mean what would make them consider being 100% plant based do they just generally love celery that much??
Thanks a million @crazybgadventure, I think that if someone goes plant based for their own health and or environmental reasons that they could still not really care about animals. I for one can't do that but I have had conversations with folk who believe that they are vegan but do just that. The animal entertainment one is a big one, like people go on nights out to greyhound racing not even thinking about the huge levels of animal abuse that occurs behind the scenes.
Its true I do think that the headmistress would have enjoyed this post for sure, I would almost say its a shame that we have left the classroom. I have a few to catch up on in the playground now too. This post took an age to properly source and report information.
I think I need a nap!
A well deserved one enjoy my friend.
Really liked the article! Thanks for taking the time to break this subject down with Bob and Lucy...
so glad to hear that @bettercookies, phew, I was not sure if I should leave bob and lucy in or take it out. If it helps one person then its totally worth it.
great article, @Moonunit! I think people are slowly waking up, and realize they need to change their diet. And thanks for the clarification of plant based vs. vegan, I didn't know!
Thanks a million @evecab, I think that lots of people believe that they are vegan when they still wilfully and where there is a different choice, continue to support animal abuse. I just wanted to show Veganism is not about diet, the diet is a part of the ethics of veganism.
I love that you put so much time and effort into this @moonunit! I trolled your comments just now because I was feeling especially empowered today promoting our NO MEAT EATING movement ;) This is a really crucial distinction to understand and I'm really glad you brought it up because I was recently letting my friends coax me into using the term plant based and so I just kind of started dropping it instead of vegan. The reason was because VEGAN is getting a shit ton of flack right now and I didn't want to go down with all the people shouting and making problems for the 'label.' I'm also a rebel and hate labels so all that together I was feeling lost with how to explain to people what I believe in.
Although OF COURSE I already know the difference, this article really reminded me that I am not just plant based. I'm super vegan and I really support that whole movement so I'm proud of it and have been re-empowered to tell everyone to f-off that tells me not to associate with a label I believe in. At least by definition, perhaps not what's going on in the movement itself sometimes ;)
You are awesome- thanks for the incredibly well written article!
HUGE HUG!
Ah thank you so much @heart-to-heart, There certainly polarizing people within the Vegan movement, as with all movements. I do find that they can sometimes be put forward as "the voice" for the Vegan movement which is obviously incorrect. I believe that this is done so carnists can just say " hey look at that crazy person saying crazy things" the reality of the movement is of course that we want to end pain and death for billions and not just sit comfortably back etc.
I am so glad to hear the my writing has given you the boost to identify once again as Vegan, I mean we should, that is what we are. Fuck the haters! I am not a big one for labels myself, but if we live in line with our ethics we should wear it with pride. Unlike so many other groups, veganism has no head, no principal, no funding, no structures per say. We are just individuals who want to stand up for what we see as morally correct.
Thanks for taking the time to write such a detailed and indeed inspiring reply. When people view this post in the future I hope that replies like yours and others will also inspire them too.
Nailed it! Resteemed. Now take a day off ;)
Yes, thanks a million! I think I need a lie down!
Poor Bob, he does mean well though at least. Excellent and thoughtful piece, I learned quite alot from this - it's not the usual post I would go in for but actually I really enjoyed it. Well resourced and backed up facts and figures, I'm not sure it's made me any less likely to have a steak - but I do understand the intent much more now.
#thealliance
Planting seeds @c0ff33a. Thanks a million for taking the time to read and indeed replying. There are loads of really great alternatives out there to meat, with more and more coming online almost daily. Even the huge meat producers of the world are bringing plant based product lines on stream or have them in the pipelines.
I genuinely believe that this will not be a choice for future generations, this choice is ours to make for their survival. As a parent, I want to leave the world in better shape than it was handed to me.
Hope that wasn't too deep. LOL Thanks again.
Wow, amazing post, so informative! Had to resteem it 😊
Thanks so much @jasmink, I hope you found it useful. Cant thank you enough for the resteem. 😉
Wow, a very good read indeed. I really like how you incorporated all of the graphs and visuals. Do you know that they put ‘milk products’ in almost everything? I read the labels of all that we consume and picking up a bag of chips on a road trip would seem safe but if you read the ingredients sometimes they put contains milk products. What is that? I mean it’s a potato chip, why does it need the extra fluff? Anyway, very informative post sir. I appreciate the time it must have taken you to put this together, thank you for that. We all have a responsibility to this planet of which we inhabit. I hope more people wake up to that reality sooner than later. ✌️
Thank you @puravidaville these type of posts really take a large amount of time, it is so important to have accurate information. I have seen so many opinion pieces that have nothing to back up the claims made in them. I would be big on scientific studies and feel that they are the best way to prove the information provided is accurate.
As for the milk think, I hear you. What the hell is that all about. Sometimes it's just lactose that is added. What the hell man, why would you put that in the???? 🤔
Don’t get me wrong, I like to read opinion based posts too. However, when you’re clearly trying to inform, credible sources which back up your statements are a must. And that, my friend, takes a lot of time to gather.
I think it’s the government attempting to poison all of us. If we don’t eat it, they’ll prescribe it, if we don’t take it, they’ll program us through reality tv and media. We are under seige from all directions. Haha… 🤪
Social conditioning is very real. It is on us to find the truth. All studies Re published you just have to look.
Thanks again @puravidaville 😊
Touché
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Thanks for sharing valuable post.
I continue follow your post.
I appreciate your contest
Thanks for this informative article! I'm a vegan myself and it makes me sad that people continue to still eat meat although they're probably aware of its consequences. If I tell people that I'm vegan, they try to justify why they are still eating meat. Sometimes I don't even want to tell people anymore that I have a vegan diet,because they just want to discuss which diet is better.
But I'm hoping that slowly humanity is waking up and I know there are enough vegans out there,I'm not alone...♥
Thanks for taking the time to read and reply. I know exactly how you feel. I do what I can to promote a vegan lifestyle whenever I can. 😊
Thanks for taking the time to read and reply. I know exactly how you feel. I do what I can to promote a vegan lifestyle whenever I can. 😊
Preach on <3 I've been vegan for two and a half years and have never looked back. I am now eating more raw food, which I'd never thought I'd do. With veganism becoming so popular, a lot of the food being produced now are not very healthy. I am glad to see more options available that make it easier for people to transition into veganism like the beyond meats!
Hi @alexa.janell, I am so sorry I didn't reply to your thoughtful reply. I totally missed it. It is true everyday there are new products for vegans, animal enslavement is slowly coming to an end. More and more countries are banning circus etc, major clothes labels are seeing the disgust that is fur and some day it will be leathers too. Just look at teslas the car of the future, fully vegan interior. Animal testing is going to be coming to an end also. Only the other day I read a piece about Unilever demanding a ban on animal testing world wide!
I am wholefood during the week and I let myself have some junk at the weekends. Our whole family are vegan so that makes life great plus I love to cook as you might have guessed from my profile.