Why I Veg

I decided last April that I would make a conscious effort to become a vegan. Since then, I have done a pretty good job, if I say so myself. I have indulged in meat a few times since April, most times it’s been entirely worth it. I also have been eating dairy when it’s more convenient that foregoing it.

It took me a while to come to terms with the fact that I’m not going to be a perfect vegan. It takes time, and one cannot give up because of a few slips. If I were to get frustrated and punish myself for every piece of delicious cheese and cup of yogurt that I’ve consumed, I wouldn’t have made it this far. I’ve come to find that this diet is my own, and it doesn’t matter what I eat as long as I am satisfied and feel like I’m not compromising myself and beliefs.

Speaking of beliefs, I think it is worth mentioning why I chose this lifestyle change after so many years of loving meat-especially red meat. I guess it all started with Michael Pollan. I first read Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma three years ago in a Rual Sociology course that covered society and the environment. Pollan’s research into where exactly the food we eat comes from is fascinating. He traced his meat and vegetables to the farm and does an amazing job of describing the state of agriculture in today’s society. He also detailed the process of turning corn into meat and all the inputs in between. (I’m not going to go here for fear you’ll lose your stomach and stop reading.)

After taking into account the high impact of agriculture on the environment and understanding the ways industrial farming degrades our air, water and land, I was angry. I didn’t make any changes to my diet, however. After all, I was a college student living on mostly frozen foods and Juicy Burgers!

My mom gave me a few great books for my graduation. Finally time to read for me! One was Pollan’s follow-up to The Omnivore’s Dilemma, In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto. In this book, Pollan goes deeper into the history of the American food system and offers insight into why we eat the way we do. He also gives some advice for changing our American patterns of consumption. His advice to, “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants,” spoke to me.

I didn’t change my ways immediately after closing the back cover of this short read. I did some online research, checked out a stack of books from the library on vegetarianism and made sure I knew the nutritious value of the foods this new diet would require. With my newfound knowledge of the vegetarian/vegan lifestyle, I started my journey. My first week were great. I ate vegan. No meat. No dairy. Mostly local.

This brings me to my reasoning for going vegetarian. It was really an unravelling process. At first, I was mainly concerned with my carbon footprint and the fuel I was putting into my body. As I researched, I came to many websites of organizations who preach the vegetarian lifestyle for the sake of the animals. The inhumane meat industry is something no one wants to witness, even through a grainy viral video. I came to feel for the animals I’ve been consuming all my life and, now, animal welfare is another reason I’ve steered away from animal food products.

These reasons are really only the tip of the iceberg. I also believe a vegan lifestyle is better for my health. Dairy is not something humans were naturally made to digest. Eating locally is important to me. Meat has become an issue of food safety lately; I do not trust the governing bodies that monitor the quality of industrial farming operations.

My vegetarianism can be summarized by the term Environmental Vegetarianism. Take a look at this wikipedia entry for more information and read Pollan! You can also check out the following websites for more information and some great recipes for getting your own vegetarian diet started.

I want to leave you with one last thought. Vegetarianism doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Improvement counts no matter how small!

For more information visit:
FARM (Farm Animal Rights Movement)
GoVeg.com
Vegetarian Times