When I was 13, I became the only vegetarian in my family. Then gradually, I became the only vegan as well. And since then, I've been asked many times why I did any of this. Why go against my family's wishes? Why make life harder for myself? What's wrong about what we were taught in school?
Well where do I start..
To put simply, veganism is a way of living that seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to humans, and animals for food, clothing and any other purpose.
- For the People
Yes, that’s right! Did you know veganism is the most sustainable way living? It takes up only one-third of the land needed to foster a conventional western diet. And quite frankly, we don’t have enough land to feed a growing population on an animal-based diet, considering 33% of land worldwide is occupied with growing livestock feed, while another 26% is being used to graze animals for consumption. And on top of that, westernized, meat-heavy diets are just plain wasteful because livestock consume much more protein, water and calories than they produce. With rising global food and water shortages arising due to a blend of environmental and socio-economic problems, adopting a vegan lifestyle has never been more suitable. The root cause of world hunger is a meat eating society. 65% of the world’s grains are set aside to feed 53 billion land animals that are killed on this planet, plus the tens of billions of marines animals. Instead of using those crops for 6 and a half billion people. According to a new UN DESA (United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs) report, by the year 2050, there will be up to 9.7 billion people on this planet. This means that if we want to feed everyone and continue business as usual, we’d need 50% more land! So let’s face it. Industrial livestock production is just plain unjustified.
And if saving those starving children in Africa everyone seems to be talking about is so important, then let’s actually take action to do something. Let’s take action for the people now, and for the future. Veganism is the simplest and easiest way to reduce the strain of food and water insecurity for the 800 million people who don’t have enough food in the world.
- For the Animals
Animals — sentient creatures that don’t deserve to die anymore than humans do. Life is a right, and humans don’t own the animal kingdom, we’re in it. Animal cruelty and exploitation is a huge problem, and it has been for much too long. In fact, more than 56 billion animals are killed every year for flesh, dairy, and eggs alone. Not to mention the tonnes of fish and sea creatures that are killed, or the millions of animals that get skinned alive and tortured to no end every day for leather and fur. Humans slaughter animals for sport, entertainment, fashion, and it’s a sick practice. Most of us have been brainwashed to think that animals are objects our whole life, and many of us don’t even realize where the fur or belts we wear come from. If consumers weren’t so detached from the violence, we’d see what really happens to our furry friends. Take charge to become an informed consumer.
Remember: Your dollar is your vote. So if you’re against animal cruelty, it’s important to show it. These days, fake leather is just as good as the real thing. So now you can look badass while being an altruistic angel.
And when you see someone making the choice to buy or eat animal-cruelty-free, always remember to thank them for making a compassionate choice!
I am leaving for a three month trip to India tomorrow so part 2 may have to come sooner rather than later, but part 2 WILL come! In the meantime, let's discuss in the comments! :)
xo
Belle