Why go Vegan?
Although most people find it easy to understand why someone would choose to be a vegetarian (because eating meat kills animals), many don't understand why a person would take the step to become a vegan. Hopefully, since you've clicked on this page, you've already thought about the idea of going vegan, but want to find out more. As you'll read below, there are very compelling reasons for becoming a vegan. See 'Advice to Make it Easy' to find out how going Vegan really is a piece of (vegan) cake.
The Truth about Milk
Even though you were probably brought up with the idea that cows just naturally produce milk, so why not drink it, the truth is very different. Cows, just like any other mammals, only produce milk for their calves. A cow has to have a calf every year to continue to produce milk. All those calves can't be allowed to drink the milk, so they are taken away from their mothers at a few days old and either go to the slaughterhouse or end up going in to the dairy herd.
Again, unlike the childhood stories of cows having a cruisey life munching on grass, they suffer years of hard labour! They are specially bred to produce about ten times the amount of milk they would naturally for their calves, which puts huge strain on their bodies. The commonly suffer a range of diseases, including painful swelling of their udders (mastitis) and lameness. When their milk production falls below what the farmer wants, the cows are sent to slaughter. This is at less than a quarter of their natural lifespan. To find out more, contact SAFE for their factsheet 'Dairy Farming for Milk'. However, don't worry, there are many alternatives to dairy foods (milk, butter, yoghurt, cheese, ice cream), that avoid cruelty to animals, are healthier than the dairy version and very tasty. Click here to find out more. |
What is the difference between vegetarians and vegans?
Vegetarians avoid any food that comes from a dead animal including all meat (red and white flesh), poultry (birds) and fish. They also don't eat so called animal "by-products" including gelatine and rennet (list of animal ingredients) and generally avoid leather.
Vegans (sometimes called Pure Vegetarians), in addition to not eating animal flesh, also don't eat anything that can be obtained from a live animal such as milk and eggs. They also don't wear clothing made from animals including leather, wool and silk, and avoid animal tested products such as toiletries and cosmetics. |
Surely Eggs are OK
Many people who are against cruelty to hens, start by avoiding battery eggs and think that's all they need to do to no longer be contributing to animal suffering. However, they haven't taken the time to find out why eating eggs, even if they are free range, causes suffering and death of chickens.
In New Zealand, there are two types of chickens that are raised in farms - egg layers and those raised for meat. The latter are bred to grow to slaughter weight in 6-8 weeks of age. The egg layers, on the other hand, are bred to grow slower and produce lots of eggs (approximately 300 per year compared with her wild ancestors who lay about 20 per year). Obviously (you've done biology), the male chickens don't lay eggs, so millions of day old male chicks are killed. Even the girls on free range farms (and free range farms have welfare problems of their own, including many "de-beak" their hens) only get to live a tiny proportion of their natural life span, before ending up in a slaughterhouse.
To find out more, contact SAFE for their factsheet 'Chicken Farming in New Zealand'.
Again, don't think that you will miss out on anything by avoiding eggs (apart from contributing to animal exploitation). Click here for cruelty-free alternatives.
In New Zealand, there are two types of chickens that are raised in farms - egg layers and those raised for meat. The latter are bred to grow to slaughter weight in 6-8 weeks of age. The egg layers, on the other hand, are bred to grow slower and produce lots of eggs (approximately 300 per year compared with her wild ancestors who lay about 20 per year). Obviously (you've done biology), the male chickens don't lay eggs, so millions of day old male chicks are killed. Even the girls on free range farms (and free range farms have welfare problems of their own, including many "de-beak" their hens) only get to live a tiny proportion of their natural life span, before ending up in a slaughterhouse.
To find out more, contact SAFE for their factsheet 'Chicken Farming in New Zealand'.
Again, don't think that you will miss out on anything by avoiding eggs (apart from contributing to animal exploitation). Click here for cruelty-free alternatives.
What about leather, wool and honey?
Some people excuse the use of leather by by saying that it's just a by-product of the meat industry. However, skin accounts for more than 55 percent of the total byproduct value of cattle. Other animals are killed only for their skins, such as kangaroos killed for sports shoes. Leather production is also very hazardous to the environment.
Wool production is associated with massive exploitation of the sheep. Males are castrated without pain relief. Sheep commonly have no shelter, and suffer the extremes of harsh sun and snow/cold. Hypothermia kills millions of lambs every year.
"To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious that that of a human being." Mahatma Gandhi
Honey bees also undergo cruel practises. The queen bee is generally killed and replaced every two years and also if she starts laying drones rather than workers. The drones are commonly killed to collect their semen. When the hive is checked or honey is harvested, bees are often crushed. Diseased hives or hives with aggressive bees are burnt.
Wool production is associated with massive exploitation of the sheep. Males are castrated without pain relief. Sheep commonly have no shelter, and suffer the extremes of harsh sun and snow/cold. Hypothermia kills millions of lambs every year.
"To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious that that of a human being." Mahatma Gandhi
Honey bees also undergo cruel practises. The queen bee is generally killed and replaced every two years and also if she starts laying drones rather than workers. The drones are commonly killed to collect their semen. When the hive is checked or honey is harvested, bees are often crushed. Diseased hives or hives with aggressive bees are burnt.
New Zealand Facts and Figures
If you want to know more about the practises used to exploit animals in New Zealand and the numbers of animals involved, you can download a copy of the book Clean, Green and Cruelty Free. Although it was written in 2008, the facts and figures are still very relevant today; great for school projects and for countering anyone who tells you that animal cruelty is only something that happens overseas.