101 Reasons Why I'm a Vegetarian
The Mighty Convincer 101 Reasons Why I’m a Vegetarian twenty-year ANNIVERSARY • Ninth Edition • 2011 • by Pamela Rice
Above images are of Veggie Pride Parade NYC 2008, 2009, 2010 & 2011. Picture credits can be found on the back page. No laws stop institutional cruelty on farms The federal-level Animal Welfare Act is projected to rise by 30 percent, pro- strain. However, there are six other 1does not apply to farmed animals, duction of agricultural crops will need E. coli strains that infect 30,000 people despite the name. And many state anti- to increase by up to 100 percent, thanks every year as well, but few public health cruelty statutes for livestock were conve- to another doubling of world meat con- labs in the country test for them. niently stripped of any teeth in the 1980s sumption. Such a prospect is truly sober- A U.S. meat-inspector-turned-whis- and 1990s, just as large-scale intensive ing, since meat production plays a 7tleblower testified in 2010 that pigs farming was getting a foothold. The dominant role in just about every envi- in the slaughterhouse where he worked Humane Slaughter Act does not apply to ronmental problem on the planet. were being shackled and bled out while chickens, which represent over 95 per- World fishing has brought 29 - per still conscious, and the animals were cent of all farmed animals, and, in any 4 cent of fish species to utter collapse, regularly being unloaded from trucks so case, is rarely enforced. The Twenty- that is, to generally 10 percent of histori- aggressively they were forced to tram- Eight Hour Law says that livestock may cal levels. A 2006 report predicted that ple one another. Considered a trouble- not be confined in a vehicle or vessel for essentially all wild edible fish will be maker, the inspector was harassed and more than 28 consecutive hours without gone from the ocean by 2048. Still, local then shunted off to another plant where being unloaded, fed, watered, and given supermarkets display plentiful supplies. conditions were even worse. Meanwhile, rest. This law is not effectively enforced And global catches continue to stay sta- a U.S. Government Accountability Pro and does not apply to birds. Farm cruelty ble, though made up from fish at lower ject survey of USDA inspectors across is not regulated at the federal level; at trophic levels. How can this be? Accord- the country confirmed that enforcement the state level it is dealt with as a crimi- ing to a 2010 study, fish stocks would of the Humane Methods of Slaughter nal offense. But local police rarely moni- have long ago crashed outright if not Act is woefully lax. Inspectors often err tor it, let alone obtain a warrant to step for the industry’s steady plunder of new on the side of inaction when confronted onto a private farm. Since the majority fishing grounds, primarily in the south- with a violation. And only about one per- of states specifically exempt “common,” ern hemisphere. A 2011 report from the cent of the Food Safety and Inspection “customary,” “normal,” or “accepted” International Programme on the State of Service budget had been designated for farming practices, there is essentially the Ocean warned that ocean life is at enforcement of the HMSA. nothing to stop the institutional cruelty high risk of entering an unprecedented A tiny percentage of all the water on that is all-pervasive on today’s farms. phase of extinction. We must ask, what 8Earth is potable, that is, fresh. About Major studies in England and Ger- shall we say to our descendents when 70 percent of this precious store is used 2many have shown that vegetarians the fish are all gone? in agriculture. Yet, because of increasing are about 40 percent less likely to develop Incredibly, 81 million Americans live meat consumption, global water demand cancer compared to meat eaters. In the 5with some kind of cardiovascular is forecast to go up by 40 percent by U.S., studies of Seventh Day Adventists disease, thanks to the standard Ameri- 2030. It’s important to realize that half have shown significant reductions in can diet. Heart disease alone costs the of all the world’s cultivated grain is fed cancer risk among those who avoided U.S. economy over half a trillion dollars to livestock. So, when people hear the meat. Studies at Harvard have shown per year. But hope is far from lost. Stud- word “agriculture,” they largely need that meat eaters have about three times ies show that 82 percent of those who to think animal agriculture. Production the risk for colon cancer as those who changed to a low-fat, low-processed- inputs for a single hamburger amount rarely eat meat. Clues to why? Meat is food vegan diet were able to reverse to 634 gallons of water, 25 times that high in saturated fat and animal protein. their CVD symptoms entirely. Virtually needed for the equivalent in wheat. It’s devoid of fiber. It contains certain all heart diseases are a function of ani- In what is still the most comprehen- carcinogens (HCAs and PAHs), formed mal-based and processed foods, includ- 9sive investigation of diet and life- as meat is cooked at high temperatures. ing bottled vegetable oils. Keeping style ever conducted, The China Study Red and processed meats especially are stress levels down is important as well. found that the consumption of surpris- linked to cancer risk, notably colorectal Cattle today are typically “finished” ingly small amounts of animal pro- cancer and cancers of the oesophagus, 6in excrement-replete feedlots. Cow tein is linked to chronic disease. The lung, pancreas, stomach, endometrium, feces is the carrier of the deadly E. coli many findings from this grand epide- and prostate. On the other hand, plant strain O157:H7, which sickens 73,000 miological study are especially compel- foods are rich in antioxidants and other Americans every year. Thanks to break- ling because they allowed meaning- anti-cancer compounds. neck line speeds of 400 animals per hour ful comparisons between populations The world’s total meat supply was at the slaughterhouse, caked-on manure with similar genetic backgrounds yet 3 71 million tons in 1961. By 2007, will migrate to edible portions during de- with nonhomogeneous diets. All in all, this amount had quadrupled. In parts of hiding. A single ground-beef patty may The China Study provides the ultimate the developing world, meat consump- contain the flesh of hundreds or even vegan vindication. tion rose by sevenfold in just the past 20 thousands of animals. The USDA has a Slim profit margins in poultry pro- years. By 2050, when world population zero-tolerance policy for the O157:H7 10 cessing compel giant slaughter- Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice Livestock contribute 51% of climate gases houses to turn to cheap, often illegal, cific sheep from two years prior when was part of a closed, multi-use opera- labor. Poultry-line work is difficult, dirty, presented front- and side-view images; tion where everything was utilized. and dangerous. Generally, no one stays they prefer a happy human face to a sad That’s all changed. According to a 1997 on worker payrolls for more than a year. one. And a cow will experience “eureka USDA report, America’s farms generate Companies simply refuse to offer higher moments”—kicking up her heals and 1.37 billion tons of livestock waste every wages and better working conditions. tossing her head when she discovers that year, which equates to 5 tons for every Laborers work in a milieu of flying fatty a lever will allow her into a pasture. American. Such gargantuan quantities fleshy pieces, roaring racing conveyors, The chemical process that con- of manure came about for one reason: and the constant fear of fellow employ- 13verts atmospheric nitrogen into the trend toward farm specialization. ees wielding sharp knives in close quar- fertilizer is considered by some to be By-product has no purpose on farm sites ters. Thirty thousand knife motions per the most important discovery since the anymore; it becomes pollution. day by one employee is not uncommon. advent of agriculture. In 1905 it ush- Industrial agriculture is environ- Nearly 15 percent of workers face debil- ered in a world of food and feed in great 17 mentally unsustainable in terms itating injuries on the job each year, abundance, allowing man to not only of water, topsoil, and fossil-fuel. It turns mostly because of repetitive trauma of feed himself to excess but his livestock arable land into desert and forest into the wrists and fingers. as well. Indeed, the discovery allowed eroded wasteland. Yet, the level of meat Today, more meat is produced humans to become habitually carnivo- production—the hidden purpose for 11on fewer farms. No trend in agri- rous. Unfortunately, it also brought a sur- industrial agriculture—grows steadily culture is more all-pervasive than this. feit of “nutrients” into the environment. across the globe. And worse, tragically, Hundreds of thousands of small oper- The water, air, and land across the globe while half of the world’s harvest is fed ations have been put out of business are choking under their polluting bur- to animals, approximately 925 million while industry concentration has placed den. Dead zones, harmful algae blooms, people worldwide (1 in 7) are under- total control in the hands of a few king- and acidification are everywhere on nourished. No matter the species, feed- pins who dictate production methods. Earth. Climate change must be counted to-flesh conversion is wastefully inef- Traditional price discovery is no longer as a consequence as well. ficient—beef, 8:1; pork, 3.5:1; chicken, in play. Prices are set by an entrenched Genetics is as important a com- 3:1; and farmed fish, 2:1. Just as with vertically integrated supply-chain, con- 14ponent of today’s intensive farm- guns and butter, the world must choose. trolled by supermarkets, packers, and ing as drugs and confinement hardware. Feed human beings. Or feed animals to processors, forcing farmers and ranchers The animals themselves, right down to feed a select number of human beings. into low-profit contract arrangements for their DNA, must stand up to the rigors American farmers administer 29 which they have no say. Pig and poul- of the industrial process, both in life and 18million pounds of antibiotics to try growers, in particular, have been rel- in carcass form. They must produce and their livestock each year. The drugs are egated to serf-like status. Down the line, reproduce quickly and do so on minimal routinely given in low doses to healthy animals are transformed into produc- feed. And the particular output that they animals to promote faster weight gain tion units, the environment near farms unwillingly give forth must please the on less feed and to counter the effects of and slaughter plants is destroyed, and consumer in texture, taste, uniformity, typically crowded and unsanitary condi- the consumer is left with a product laced convenience, and price. Today, mutant tions. The amount represents eight times with health and contamination risk. genes that would never have survived the antibiotics taken by humans. Giv- We humans share 99 percent of in the wild are cultivated in the labora- ing antibiotics to livestock has increased 12our DNA with chimps—with mice, tory to monstrous ends. Entire herds and steadily since the 1940s, despite warn- cows, dogs, and daffodils, 90, 80, 75, and flocks will be comprised of animals with ings from scientists that the practice puts 33, respectively. Scientists are asking all nearly identical genes. human health at risk. Bacteria mutate to new questions, and they’re discovering In 2006, the Food & Agriculture acquire antibiotic resistance, potentially that animals, including farmed animals, 15Organization/U.N. surprised the nullifying the effectiveness of the antibi- have high-level cognitive and commu- world with a report (Livestock’s Long otics humans need to fight disease. nication abilities. Animals express a full Shadow) declaring that livestock produc- Dietary fiber is the indigestible range of emotions: fear to curiosity to tion contributes 18 percent of the world’s 19part of food that absorbs water in glee. They will express compassion and human-caused greenhouse gases, not- the intestines, bulks up, and nudges on act proactively to rescue or even nurse an ing that all the world’s transport vehicles vital processes. Only plant-derived foods individual from another species. Some contribute just 13 percent. Soon after, contain it. Each person should consume animals are artists. The roots of moral- Worldwatch Institute said that 18 per- a minimum of 35 grams of fiber per day. ity (fairness awareness) go well beyond cent was a gross under-assessment, with Otherwise, one risks the onset of consti- the human milieu. In a specific sense, 51 percent being closer to the mark. pation, colitis, colon cancer, and hem- pigs can readily understand the concept Historically, manure never pre- orrhoids. Just look up the diaries of the of a mirror. Sheep can recognize 50 spe- 16 sented a problem for farms. It famed Lewis and Clark. Their 19th cen-
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice No end to industrial ag’s POP foodchain S p o n s o r s tury expedition was rife with frostbite, veal stockyard auction: hundreds of one- dehydration, sunburn, boils, colds, and flu. day-old calves penned together—prodded, But the worst of it was the never-ending confused, terrified, often subject to brutal constipation, due to a diet of mostly wild weather conditions, each desperately cry- game. Today’s meat-loving Americans, ing for his or her mother, destined for bob ingest only about 12 grams of fiber per day. veal (slaughtered immediately) or fancy A Well-Fed World Feedlot meat is a product of the oil veal (reason #94). Some will be lame or 20age and a driver for the oil wars. sick (reason #79). Such a fate! Feeding Families When cheap oil is gone, cheap meat will be Diabetes rates in the U.S. are among Saving Animals history. A pound of beef takes three-quar- 25 the highest and fastest growing in We provide immediate ters of a gallon of oil to produce. A 1,250- the world. A new clue to why could very vegan hunger relief pound steer essentially embodies a whop- possibly indict a common practice on and help save animals ping nine barrels of oil. About 40 calories America’s industrial farms: recycling. Cow from factory-farm and of fossil fuel are needed to produce a sin- and chicken fat is fed to pigs and chickens, gle calorie of beef protein. By comparison, dead chickens and chicken litter (includ- slaughterhouse atrocities. only 2.2 calories of fossil fuel are required ing manure) is fed to cattle, and meat and Join Today—It’s FREE! to produce 1 calorie of plant protein. bone meal is fed back to the chickens, and Plus, we’ll donate $20 Fishers today employ trawlers, on and on. Meanwhile, with each feeding on YOUR behalf to the 21dredgers, longlines, and driftnets cycle, highly toxic substances called POPs Ethiopian Feeding Program with the help of sonar, GPS, and satel- (persistent organic pollutants, such as PCBs lites. The fish don’t stand a chance. The and Organochlorine pesticides) are getting www.AWFW.org world’s longliners, for example, set 1.4 bil- more and more concentrated in the mix. lion hooks every year. Their lines could It’s long been known that POPs are every- encircle the world 550 times. The mouth of where in the environment and lodge spe- the largest trawler net can accommodate cifically in animal fat. Now, industrial agri- thirteen 747 jets. Global fishing capacity culture is creating a toxic food chain that could actually haul in the current world never ends. Alas, studies show a strong link American Vegan Society catch times four. Add to this, a quarter of between the onset of diabetes and POPs. Compassionate living • Since 1960 the harvested fish is estimated to be “by- A 2009 Oxford University study dis- catch,” that is, from nontargeted species. It covered that vegetarians and veg- 856-694-2887 • www.americanvegan.org 26 will be shoveled off ship decks, back into ans had body weights 3–20 percent below the water—stressed, mutilated, or dead. those of meat eaters. These researchers Animal Ashram To satisfy humanity’s ravenous had previously discovered that the lowest www.animalashram.com 22appetite for frogs’ legs, a billion weight gains over time could be found in “May all beings have peace.” frogs are taken from the wild each year. people with high intakes of carbohydrate The collective pillage is helping to classify and low intakes of protein. Some years ear- amphibians as a whole the most threat- lier, a Swedish study of 55,000 women and Janet Bloor ened animal group on Earth. a British study of 65,000 men and women Costume designer Two facts contradict the conven- both found vegans to have lower BMIs Penelo Pea Pod 23tional wisdom. Osteoporosis is rare (body mass index) and to suffer less often in Japan where people eat almost no cal- from obesity. Vegan food tends to be lower cium-rich dairy products; and osteoporotic in calories by volume, and it usually con- ORGANIC VEGAN CUISINE fractures are highest where people eat the tains abundant dietary fiber and so satiates Candle 79 most dairy products, namely in the U.S. quicker. Early in 2011, President Bill Clin- 154 East 79th St., NYC and Europe. New research tells us that the ton announced he had lost 24 pounds by 212-537-7179 best way to reduce the risk for osteoporo- switching to a low-fat, near-vegan diet. sis is, in fact, to eat more alkalinizing fruits A 2006 U.N. report declared live- and vegetables and less acidifying animal 27stock production worldwide accounts Candle Cafe protein, cereal grains, and coffee. for 70 percent of all agricultural land and 1307 Third Ave., NYC 212-472-0970 The dairy industry has an unrelent- 30 percent of the land surface of the planet. 24 ing need: a steady supply of lactat- Grazing occupies 26 percent of the ice-free ing cows. This requires constant impregna- terrestrial surface of the planet. About 20 Christian Vegetarian tion—typically via artificial insemination. percent of the world’s pastures and range- Association Surplus female calves and all male calves land (73 percent of dry pastures and range- P.O. Box 201791, Cleveland, OH 44120 must go somewhere. Witness your typical land) have been degraded to some extent, www.Christianveg.org Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice World’s meat addiction linked to peak water mostly through overgrazing, compac- Clean-out is a humongous process heard of grain-fed beef, but this rapid tion, and livestock-specific erosion. 31that takes place between herd or growth-promoting diet sickens the ani- The American Dietetic Associa- flock deliveries at today’s factory farms, mals with bloat and liver abscesses; vet- 28 tion states that “vegetarian…or a process that operators would rather erinary drugs must be administered. vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally consumers never see. First, the excre- Europe has suffered several disturb- adequate, and may provide health ben- ment must be removed with bulldozers ing continent-wide dioxin-in-feed cri- efits in the prevention and treatment of to dumpsters or mini-mountains outside. ses. Then there’s the massive amounts certain diseases. Well-planned vegetar- Then starts the intense, meticulous pro- of plastic trash that is contaminating the ian diets are appropriate for individuals cess of scraping, power washing, and oceans. Its microscopic poisons inevita- during all stages of the lifecycle, includ- disinfecting. The animals, while resi- bly travel up the food chain. ing pregnancy, lactation, infancy, child- dent in the barns, must be protected by In 2010, new FDA rules went into hood, and adolescence, and for ath- strict measures of “biosecurity,” so frag- 35effect that require egg produc- letes.” No argument here. ile are their immune systems. Disease ers with 50,000 or more laying hens to A New York Times story about outbreak is a constant threat. Like a establish measures to control rodents 29 a rural Idaho family describes quarantine ward, outsiders must shower able to pass salmonella on to the birds. an increasingly common situation. The up and walk through disinfectant before They also establish testing require- Kudlows drank from a private well at entering a room full of animals. ments for poultry houses and eggs. The one time but now spend $150 a month Today, gigantic open-air cess- rules theoretically prevent up to “79,000 on bottled water. They live within two 32pools or holding pits of urine and illnesses and 30 deaths” per year. But miles of 30,000 feedlot dairy cows. The feces are typically situated adjacent to or the rules were instituted slightly too animals generate as much sewage as beneath barns that hold thousands and late to counter a salmonella outbreak, a medium-sized city, but, as is typical, even millions of factory-raised animals. which turned into a recall of a half-bil- treatment of the manure is not required. They emit more than 160 volatile com- lion eggs. An inspection found chicken Bacteria, pathogens, and pharmaceu- pounds contributing to an overwhelming manure piled 8 feet high, brown excre- ticals associated with feedlots con- stench—one that cannot be compared to ment seeping through foundations to taminate the water. Nitrate levels six everyday farm odor. It will hammer you the outside, access doors to pits bulging times those set by the EPA as safe were like nothing you’ve ever experienced. out from the weight of chicken waste, detected. The federal Clean Water Act Abundant dust at such facilities conveys mice in laying houses, and massive remains silent about groundwater pollu- toxic gases, endotoxins, and pathogens infestations of flies and maggots. tion, and state agriculture departments many miles away. Particles of manure, Less than one percent of the tend to side with the polluters. feed, soil, and bacteria can lodge in 36world’s water is suitable for agri- Broiler chickens—those raised for the lungs. And endotoxins can inflame cultural use and human consumption. 30 meat—are incubated and hatched respiratory tissues and trigger asthma, Yet, to feed a seemingly uncontrolla- by machine by the millions. Each is bronchitis, and allergies. ble desire for meat, countries around mechanically conveyed from hatch- A British study in 2002 involv- the world have given in to profligate ery to shipping box and eventually into 33ing 11,000 meat eaters, fish eat- pumping of trillions of gallons of aqui- massive windowless sheds with tens of ers, vegetarians, and vegans showed fer water annually. Tables are drop- thousands of other chicks for grow out. non-meat eaters, especially vegans, to ping by 3–20 feet per year in countries None will ever know his or her mother’s have a lower prevalence of hyperten- such as China, India, Iran, Pakistan, and protective wing. Naturally programmed sion (the arterial disease that causes Yemen. In some cases, wells are half a to seek a pecking order in small flocks, high blood pressure) than meat eaters, mile deep. Under Texas, Oklahoma, and the birds are kept perpetually stressed. largely, it was concluded, because of dif- Kansas, the fossil water table is down by Meanwhile, thanks to intensive single- ferences in body mass index. The study 100 feet. Since over-pumping is a global trait selection and antibiotics, their bod- echoed other peer-reviewed studies in phenomenon, key shortages could occur ies will grow rapidly to five pounds in the 1980s. Plant products generally con- all at once, creating a sudden and poten- 45 days, an accelerated rate that results tain less fat and sodium and have no tially disastrous episode of food scarcity. in heart and painful orthopedic disor- cholesterol at all. Vegetables and fruits The USDA’s new food diagram ders. Flip-over and other diseases and are also rich in potassium, which helps 37 (ChooseMyPlate.gov) recom- infections from ammonia-soaked air lower blood pressure. mends nearly half of one’s diet consist cause five percent to die before slaugh- Humans eat animals, but what of fruits and vegetables. Amazingly, the ter—about 2,000 birds per shed. Those 34are the animals eating?: rendered meat group no longer exists; we now that live go to slaughter with their baby- parts of their own species, manure con- have the protein group, which could blue eyes. A chicken in the 1950s grew taminated with hormones and antibiot- imply soy or other legumes. Unfortu- to three pounds (market weight of the ics, and roughage in the form of plas- nately, the diagram still has a blue circle time) in 84 days. tic pellets, just to name a few. We’ve all for dairy, a class of foods that at best are
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice 700 CAFO manure spills in Iowa alone S p o n s o r s a poor nutrition source (see #43). Nutrition An undercover employee video expert Marion Nestle said it best: “Why 41of a massive sow gestation facil- City Swiggers do we have a milk group? Because we ity revealed breeding pigs crammed have a National Dairy Council.” inside crates so small they could hardly BEER SHOP • VEGAN FOOD Defined in terms of manure out- move. (Typically, such conditions con- 320 E. 86th • NYC • cityswiggers.com 38put, 1,000 head of cattle, 700 dairy tinue over the course of repeated preg- The root word of Humane is Human. cows, 125,000 broiler chickens, and 2,500 nancies.) In frustration, many sows had Please be a Humane Human. grow-out pigs are all “equivalent” mini- bitten their bars till blood dripped from mums for CAFO designation (confined their mouths. Half-dead pigs were seen Craig & Cherie Cline animal feeding operation). The U.S. has thrown into dumpsters. Premature pig- Salem, Oregon about 19,000 CAFOs, and each has its own lets were strewn in manure pits below manure pit. A typical one may be several stall slats. The company, Smithfield, the Duane Cornella acres and 22 feet deep. These “lagoons” largest pork producer in the world, had can and will rupture. Iowa, alone, has had pledged three years prior that such con- azuritepress.com 700 manure spills over the last 15 years. ditions would be phased out. One massive breach in North Carolina in Twelve hundred head of cattle—a 1995 spewed 22 million gallons into the 42relatively small feedlot—produce Eternal Treblinka New River, killing 10 million fish. 54 tons of manure every 24 hours. Faced by Charles Patterson Aquaculture manifests all the envi- with so large an accumulation, produc- www.powerfulbook.com 39ronmental drawbacks of indus- ers everywhere are apt to just let the stuff trial agriculture on land, and then some. pile up and be tamped down by the cows. Fish farmers crowd the animals in cages, The piles, however, can actually sponta- Franchia forcing a heavy reliance on genetics and neously ignite due to the natural compost- Vegan Cafe pharmaceuticals. Catastrophic mortalities ing process. Once a manure fire starts, it’s from disease, natural disaster, and even hard to extinguish. It’s nothing but a huge 12 Park Avenue, NYC • 212-213-1001 power failure are ever-present concerns. densely packed mound of solid fuel. And The animal wastes present costs that pro- it will spew a mighty stench of polluting Leigh & Helayne ducers tend to externalize onto the envi- particulate for miles and for months. ronment and the public. Feed-to-flesh It’s a given that cow’s milk is a sta- Gaither ratios range between 3 and 15 pounds 43ple in the American kitchen. But to one. Over 50 percent of the world’s most of the world gets along fine with- Emanuel Goldman fishmeal is used in aquaculture, an obvi- out it. Indeed, it’s a foreign substance to the Vegetarian Cinophile ous stressor on wild fish stocks. Numer- the human body linked to childhood dia- and Naomi Weinshenker, m.d. ous instances exist of farmed fish escap- betes, anemia in infants and children, Adult, Child, and Adolescent Psychiatry ing into the wild, corrupting the genetic iron-deficiency, constipation, allergies, Clifton, NJ; 973-471-4448 purity of native species and spreading cramps, diarrhea, osteoporosis, obesity, disease. heart disease, cancer, and zits. It’s laden Lewis Goldstein —Member, exec. In the mid-1990s, when people with saturated fat and cholesterol and committee, NY State Democratic Committee. Proud of were going crazy about Mad Cow may contain artificial hormones, pesti- animal-rights resolution passed by State Committee and 40 the Humane Education Resolution voted on June 1, 2009. Disease, they wanted to get everything cides, and antibiotics. The claim that it is having to do with the cow out of their a good source of calcium is a dubious one. lives. But when they asked, “where’s the Cow’s milk is for calves. The Green Bean Café beef?” they learned, it’s everywhere! Cow Worldwide, fishers receive about 1413 York Ave., New York City fat makes cookies and salty snacks taste 44 $34 billion per year in govern- 212-861-8060 rich and lipstick glide smoothly. Cow pro- ment subsidies, which naturally encour- teins are in shampoo. Collagen, extracted ages overcapacity and unsustainable from hides, balms wounds and puffs lips. fishing practices. The U.S. spent $246.7 www.greencompassion.us Gelatin, made from hides and bones, is billion on farm subsidies between 1995 59 Chrystie, #B101 found in ice cream, gummy candies, and and 2009, much of it on corn and soybean New York, NY 10002 marshmallows. Add to these, cows are in price supports that lower the cost of feed paints, floor wax, asphalt, chewing gum, and increase the supply of low-cost meat. upholstery, juices, wines and beers, phar- Less than one percent of U.S. subsidies maceuticals, cosmetics, and brake fluid. goes to fruits and vegetables. “Conser- Suzy Richardson A huge meat industry translates into a vation” subsidies often go to U.S. farmers GREEN VISION hugely annoying by-products industry. to help them with manure management.
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice Less than 1% of subsidies to fruits & veggies In general, subsidies to the meat indus- Man has long threatened spe- which have already been bruised and try can be outright or carefully buried in 47 cies and ecosystems with elimina- broken by the gathering process. The the budget. Lists of them can go on and tion—in recent decades to an alarming electrified trough stuns just enough to on. But the greatest perq to the meat degree. Hunting alone is responsible for conveniently immobilize the birds, but industry of all is that which is entirely 23 percent of all known cases of animal not nearly enough to dull pain. Some hidden from view: the exemption from extinction since 1600. A sting operation birds miss the trough and the knife alto- animal welfare laws (see #1). at Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airport found gether and are burned to death in the According to the World Wild- 134 passengers on 29 incoming flights scald tank where feathers are loosened. 45life Fund, so-called Illegal, Unre- over a period of 17 days to be smug- Agriculture pollutes more than ported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing gling in fish or meat from livestock and 51100, 000 miles of rivers and streams describes a complex but organized crim- wild animals. The researchers found 11 and 2,500 square miles of inland lakes inal activity that is professionally coor- different illegal “bushmeat” species, in the U.S. Since 80 percent of Ameri- dinated and truly global (see #98). A including Nile crocodiles, red river hog, ca’s grain is fed to livestock (vs. 50 per- pirate vessel may seemingly be owned primates, porcupines, and pangolins. It cent, worldwide; see #8), agriculture in by a company in the Caribbean but is estimated that over 11,000 pounds of the U.S. must be thought of as primar- really be owned by someone in Spain. contraband bushmeat passes through ily animal agriculture. Just three days’ It might have a Russian skipper and a the airport in luggage each week. worth of our nation’s chicken dinners crew from the Philippines or mainland Twenty-five percent of all primate spe- produce over a billion pounds of litter China. Its flag, that of Togo. The ven- cies today are at risk of extinction. and manure. The “nutrients” inevitably tures use various strategies to evade Fruit is richly imbued with health- get into the environment. The Chesa- apprehension and avoid laws, all to dis- 48giving phytochemicals, antioxi- peake Bay is just one example. Only 10 guise the origin of the illegal catches. dants, vitamins, and fiber. Fruit is indeed percent of it contains adequate levels IUU fishing undermines efforts to actu- synonymous with life. The human hand of dissolved oxygen during the summer ally manage dwindling fish stocks. Ulti- is a dexterous appendage fashioned by months because of algae blooms “nour- mately, it’s the result of a ravenous world nature to perfection for picking, hold- ished” by chicken and dairy operations demand for fish. ing, peeling, and conveying these foods in the watershed. Shorelines become so Approximately 38 million cat- to the human mouth. Apples, avocados, inhospitable that some animals will lit- 46tle, calves, and sheep; 117 mil- blueberries, cranberries, flax, grapes, erally leap out of the water to breathe lion hogs; and 9 billion chickens are kiwis, prunes, and nuts of all kinds are during episodes now dubbed “jubilee.” slaughtered for food every year in the some of the most nutritious foods you Beef cattle are best suited to U.S. These numbers do not include hun- can eat. Each tends to specialize in spe- 52moist climates, such as those in dreds of millions of livestock (mostly cific health-giving attributes, such as Europe where their ancestors evolved. chickens) who die from stress and dis- lowering cholesterol, preventing kidney But ranchers in America’s West continue ease before transport to the slaughter- stones, or inhibiting inflammation. the destructive tradition of grazing their house. Farms regularly bury, inciner- Roots, stems, and leaves, just animals on the nation’s most arid land. ate, landfill, and compost the carcasses, 49 like fruits (see #48), are sources Grazing destroys ecologically regenera- often polluting the environment and for anti-aging and anti-cancer proper- tive riparian zones. According to a 2006 potentially spreading disease in the ties. Vegetables contain chemicals that U.N. report, “the livestock sector may process. Rendering is thought to be less protect them from disease as they grow, well be the leading player in the reduc- environmentally invasive, although the and these can be passed along to the tion of biodiversity…as well as one of the processing plants emit odor and deadly humans who eat them. Broccoli, carrots, leading drivers of land degradation, pol- gasses such as hydrogen sulfide. About garlic, greens, kale, and sweet potatoes, lution, climate change, overfishing, sed- 47 billion pounds of raw animal mate- respectively, fight cancer, improve lung imentation of coastal areas, and facilita- rial per year—mostly inedible trim- function, fight flu, clot wounds, coun- tion of invasions by alien species.” mings from the slaughterhouse but also ter depression, and protect eyes. The Undercover videotapes of chicken roadkill and shelter animals—is boiled, deeper the color of the veggie, the more 53plants show it every time: employ- centrifuged, siphoned, and refined into protection you’ll receive. ees caught inflicting egregious cruelties 18 billion pounds of soap, pharmaceuti- Nine billion broiler chickens per upon the birds, essentially out of bore- cals, personal care products, chemicals, 50 year go through America’s fac- dom or frustration. Workers at a Pil- and animal feed. Stray ingredients, such tory-farm system. In highly concen- grim’s Pride plant in West Virginia in as cattle ID tags, insecticide patches, trated, dust-filled, toxic environments, 2004 were seen “tearing beaks off, rip- syringe needles, flea collars, euthanasia they suffer leg, lung, heart, and respi- ping a birds’ heads off to write graffiti in drugs, pesticides, and Styrofoam trays ratory disorders. Terrified, they are sent blood, spitting tobacco juice into birds’ (from unsold supermarket meats), regu- to slaughter where they are painfully mouths, plucking feathers to ‘make it larly get into the rendered mix. shackled upside down by their legs, snow,’ suffocating a chicken by tying
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice Human/animal sex (AI), routine on the farm S p o n s o r s a latex glove over its head, and squeez- forward and upward. ...Contractions will A cat’s eyes are windows, enabling ing birds like water balloons to spray suck the semen out of the flat pack.” us to see into another world. feces over other birds.” Workers made Every year in the U.S., 30 million —Irish legend a game of throwing chickens against a 56head of cattle are fattened in feed- Margaret Halley & Jim Blackman wall. In mid-2008, workers at a Gemperle lots with nearly all receiving growth-pro- Enterprises farm in California were vid- moting synthetic hormones. Downstream, eotaped stepping on chickens or twist- researchers have recorded disturbing Hangawi ing their necks and inflicting protracted anomalies. In one study, wild female fish a vegetarian shrine in another space and time acutely painful deaths. According to one were observed to display male traits and 12 East 32nd St., NYC • 212-213-0077 veterinarian, “There are multiple shots of wild male fish were observed to display moribund chickens with ailments ranging female traits. Needless to say, the repro- Meat kills. It kills the animals, it from broken limbs to abscessed cloacae ductive capacities in these fish became kills you, it kills everyone else on to illnesses so severe the birds are unable grievously compromised. A university the planet, and it kills the planet. to open their eyes or stand.” The video investigation found multi-drug-resis- —Nick Kyriazi showed hens being stuffed as young pul- tant bacteria was more than three times lets into file-drawer-sized cages only to be greater in streams near factory farms than retrieved months later for the throat slit- in streams not impacted by the farms. Lantern Books ter when “spent”—barely recognizable as Heavy demand for animal-based vegetarianism, animal advocacy birds or being alive. 57 foods has brought giant meat pro- www.lanternbooks.com When the meat industry impris- cessors, such as Smithfield, IBP, Murphy, 54 ons massive numbers of animals in Tyson, and Purdue, to the marketplace. “If one person is unkind to cramped, stress-inducing confinement, it Each of these companies has bullied its an animal it is considered to provides the perfect breeding ground for way to enormity in recent decades. But deadly pathogens that infect the meat. none has committed crimes so terrible as be cruelty, but where a lot of Technologies to kill these pathogens DeCoster Egg. Examples include: stinking people are unkind to animals, have become big business. We have tri- barns full of filth and chicken carcasses especially in the name sodium phosphate, acidified sodium chlo- left to rot (in one case, 100,000 chickens of commerce, the cruelty rite, hypochlorite, bacteriocins, iron che- burned to death in a fire); a nearby town is condoned and, once large lating compounds, electrolyzed oxidizing plagued by beetles (the company brought sums of money are at stake, water, chlorinated hot water, organic them in to tackle its massive fly infesta- will be defended to the last by acids, steam chambers, hot water dips, tion); discrimination against Mexican lactic acid dips, high-pressure processing, workers (a lawsuit was actually brought otherwise intelligent people.” UV and pulsed light, copper ions, electro- by the Mexican government); employ- —Ruth Harrison, author static spraying systems, and irradiation. ees forced to live in slave-like barracks Lisa Lindblom, sponsor Such a waste! (a slew of labor and OSHA violations Bestiality is integral to today’s were reported as well); several massive 55farming operations. Numerous and deadly salmonella outbreaks; and, of Web sites instruct in the craft of artificial course, animal cruelty. insemination of pigs, turkeys, and cows. Cold, hard cost analysis will show AI for pigs follows. Collection (male): 58you that it is more profitable to Loving Hut “Allow the boar to mount the dummy maintain one cow than four, if one cow 348 7th Avenue, NY, NY 10001 (hobby-horse-type furniture). ...Grab and gives as much milk as four. Indeed, after 212.760.1900 extend the penis to display the erection. just a few decades of selective breeding, Delicious Affordable Vegan Cuisine ...With your strong hand, gently massage Dine In, Pick Up, Delivery, Catering exactly this kind of “efficiency” exists. www.LovingHut.com sheath back and forth until he starts to Today’s cow yields a staggering 9 tons of thrust. ...Never allow your grip to relax, milk per year. A cow’s udder can weigh as Tom Lyons & Joan Zacharias particularly during ejaculation, which on much as a full-grown man, causing pain- average requires 5 to 6 minutes. ...Sperm ful leg problems. The cows must endure “Animals are not edibles.” is collected in a ‘vagina’ or lined plastic tremendous stress. Five hundred gallons —Henry Spira cup.” Insemination (female): “The stock- of blood have to circulate through a cow’s person must mimic some of the stimu- udder to provide the nutrients for a single Mid-Hudson lation normally provided by the boar, gallon of milk. It takes 350 udder squirts i.e. back pressure and flank and udder to accumulate a gallon, as well. Vegetarian Society rubbing. ...The head of the catheter is More than 95 percent of animal SOCIAL EVENTS / SOCIAL ACTION inserted into the vulva and gently pushed cloning attempts fail. Horrible out- www.MHVS.org • 845-876-2626 59 Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice Vegans get safe levels of protein, iron & zinc comes, such as oversized heads, twisted by privately owned ranches. The pro- tis, a painful udder infection, prompt- limbs, bloated fetuses, malformed inter- gram, Wildlife Services, employs highly ing farmers to administer antibiotics. nal organs, and faulty immune and toxic poisons (Compound 1080 and The FDA approved rBGH in 1993 after respiratory systems are the norm. Some sodium cyanide M-44), aerial gunning, just one small, initially hidden, study by 6,000 animals alive today are the prod- steel-jawed leghold traps, and other the manufacturer. Health Canada even- uct of cloning, not including the fail- inhumane kill methods, often indis- tually learned and revealed the study’s ures. The technology is a radical depar- criminately. Non-target wildlife—some questionable results, itself putting forth ture from conventional trait selection, threatened and even endangered—get other significant issues. The EU, Japan, which has already made farmed animals caught in the cross hairs. In some cases Australia, and Canada all outlaw the use into freaks. In 2008, the FDA declared the government spends more money on of rBGH. Labels stating “rBGH-free” that cloned meat was safe to eat. Soon it the program than any losses that might are prohibited in the U.S. will be in markets everywhere, without otherwise have been incurred. And, by Around 60 percent of human identifying labels. the USDA’s own statistics, most livestock 66pathogens are transmissible from Necessarily excessive cultivation losses do not come from predation but animals; among new diseases, the rate is 60 of feedgrains to supply flesh foods from weather, disease, illness, and birth- about 75 percent. Scientists theorize that to a meat-eating world has, with its ing problems. Non-lethal methods to humans are more and more acquiring exorbitant fertilizer needs, transformed ward off unwanted animals exist, but animal diseases because increasingly coastal areas into “dead zones”—one of ranchers generally don’t consider them. larger flocks and herds are being kept the world’s greatest emerging environ- Worldwide, 60 billion animals are closer to larger and larger human popu- mental challenges. A scientific inquiry 63 processed for human consump- lations. Scientists are spotting one new in 2006 found that a nationwide dietary tion each year, not counting fish. Most disease roughly every four months. Most shift in America away from grain-fed are transported at least once in their are insignificant; others, such as SARS, beef to vegetarianism could reduce lives. Filthy, crowded, cramped, noisy, bird flu, Nipah Virus, and Mad Cow Dis- total land and fertilizer demands of Mis- and terrifying conditions over extended ease are grave indeed. sissippi Basin crops by over 50 percent, periods are the norm. Stress and crowd- Protein is readily obtained by with no reduction in total production of ing facilitate the transmission of disease. 67vegans, particularly when there human-food protein. Ultimately, such a Some animals are forced on numerous is plenty of variety in the diet. Tem- change could diminish the dead zone in trips as owners respond to favorable peh, seitan, veggie burgers, beans, the Gulf of Mexico—the third largest in prices. Cull animals, by definition, are and whole grains, such as quinoa, are the world—to small or non-existent. “spent.” Their transport experiences good sources. Iron can be obtained with Thousands of domesticated ani- are particularly cruel. International a vegan diet. Good sources include 61mal breeds in poor countries are commerce in live animals—with ship- cooked soybeans, blackstrap molasses, today at risk of extinction. The threat: ping distances often over a thousand lentils, tofu, cashews, dried apricots, commercial breeds imported from miles—is routine. and dark leafy veggies. Meat sources of industrialized countries genetically Virtually all of America’s 280 mil- iron more easily allow absorption, but fashioned for intensive production. The 64lion egg-laying hens are rele- vegans are more apt to get iron’s com- new breeds require high-tech manage- gated to tortured lives in cramped bat- panion nutrient, vitamin C. Zinc can ment techniques and costly inputs such tery cages (48–77 square inches) until be obtained from a vegan diet. Good as high-protein feed, medication, and “spent,” about 12 months. Debeaking— sources include sprouted seeds, grains, climate-controlled housing. But, as the a painful procedure—is a standard legumes, tempeh, and sourdough price for oil creeps higher, these indus- industry practice employed to mitigate breads. New research actually suggests trial breeds will no longer be viable. pecking damage between cage mates. that high amounts of iron in the blood Meanwhile, the old breeds with local Today’s hen has been selectively bred are associated with atherosclerosis and immunities that tolerated local weather to lay an egg nearly every day, about free-radical damage. Zinc overdoses can conditions may by this time be extinct. 12 times the natural rate. Depending on lead to nausea, vomiting, headaches, In Europe, half of all breeds of domes- market conditions, a farmer may elect to fatigue, and diarrhea. tic animals that existed in 1900 are gone. force-molt the birds—sometimes repeat- One answer to today’s ocean fish Worldwide, 30 percent of breeds are edly—to eke out a renewed laying cycle. 68plunder and the many crashed classified as endangered and critical. To this end, the hens are kept in dark- populations of fish across the globe The U.S. federal government ness and starved for 5–14 days. is a now time-tested solution: marine 62spends about $60 million per year Up to a third of U.S. cows are reserves. Relatively tiny areas of the to exterminate coyotes, mountain lions, 65dosed with the genetically engi- ocean bear this designation today. But wolves, and other predator species neered dairy hormone rBGH, which everywhere fishing is placed off limits from the American landscape, because boosts milk production by 10–40 percent. (e.g.: the North Sea during World War II they are considered nuisance animals The drug tends to give the cows masti- and Cape Canaveral after the Challenger
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice List of livestock diseases is never ending S p o n s o r s disaster), fish populations rebound in that he’d continue to help reverse or miti- spectacular displays. In a sobering indi- gate trade bans because of Mad Cow Dis- cation of the scope of the damage, biolo- ease and hormones in beef. gists are proposing banning fishing from, In 2001, an entrepreneurial com- no less, a third of the ocean in a system 72 pany said it had developed a way of marine reserves, monitored by naval to neutralize deadly E. coli in meat: A Well-Fed World patrols and GPS. ammonia injections! The company Feeding Families A seemingly endless list of dis- declared the process safe, especially for 69 eases and infestations afflict ani- trimmings often susceptible to contami- Saving Animals mals raised for human consumption. Just nation and otherwise relegated for use in We provide immediate to name a few: Marek’s disease, Nipah pet food. The meat might stink of ammo- vegan hunger relief virus, Swine flu, Newcastle Disease, Poult nia, but those trimmings offer savings as and help save animals Enteritis and Mortality Syndrome, H5N1, filler for hamburger patties. The USDA from factory-farm and Johne’s Disease, Pseudorabies, Mad approved the process and for a while slaughterhouse atrocities. Cow Disease (MCD), Bluetongue, Foot & even stopped bothering to test meat from Mouth Disease (FMD), Swine Fever, Fli- the company that utilizes the technique. Join Today—It’s FREE! pover Syndrome, and Screwworm. An Sure enough, samples kept coming up Plus, we’ll donate $20 entire industry is there to help farmers positive for E. coli and salmonella. None- on YOUR behalf to the and ranchers battle them all. Pharmaceu- theless, ammoniated trimmings continue Ethiopian Feeding Program ticals will be administered production- to legally be sold in fast-food chains, gro- line style, sometimes haphazardly, often cery stores, and to the National School www.AWFW.org preemptively. Vets hope for the best. It’s Lunch Program. often more cost-effective to just destroy an Except for the llama/alpaca, all 13 entire flock or herd. Catastrophic regional 73 of the world’s large domesticatable outbreaks (e.g.: MCD, FMD, H5N1, & animals originated in Eurasia. The pig, Nipah virus), which do happen periodi- cow, sheep, goat, and others must, there- cally, will require state intervention often fore, all be considered invasive species Millennium on a massive scale involving thousands of to the New World. And, of all that were Gourmet Vegan Cuisine government workers called into a grisly transplanted into the Americas, none 580 Geary St., San Francisco task of mass extermination. becomes more feral more easily or repro- 415-345-3900 • www.MillenniumRestaurant.com Methyl mercury is formed when duces more rapidly or better survives the 70 inorganic mercury—primarily from wild than the hog. Today, wild-hog popu- coal-fired power plants—is transformed lations exist in at least 35 U.S. states. They Joe Passaretti by microorganisms in the environment. are considered by some to be a problem Exposure causes irreversible damage to and even a menace to farms and pub- the central nervous system and is tied lic parks. But their numbers continue to to mutations and cancer. Official health grow and expand, thanks to escapees Norma Ramos, Esq. warnings tell women intending to some from overturned trucks transporting hogs day become pregnant to avoid eating cer- to the slaughterhouse (about 60 per year, Ecofeminist tain top-predator fish, species that lodge nationwide, involving some 10,000 hogs). the poison in their bodies in great con- Okanawa is home to the longest- centrations. About 60,000 U.S. children 74 lived people in the world, having Rawstar are born each year at risk for neurologi- the highest percentage of its population Live Raw Vegan Cuisine cal development problems due to methyl living to 100 years old. For one thing, the 718-975-0304 • Brooklyn, NY mercury overexposure in the womb. country treasures its old people. Regular www.facebook.com/rawstar.live Every U.S. presidential adminis- exercise and sensibly sized meals also Richard H. Schwartz 71tration in recent decades has been play a part. But how Okanawans eat also Author of Judaism and dedicated to coercing trading partners to factors in significantly: low fat and pri- Vegetarianism and Judaism open markets to American meat. In a typ- marily vegetarian. Most of the diet con- and Global Survival ical, if not robotic, statement, U.S. trade sists of vegetables, tofu, and miso with [email protected] • jewishveg.com/schwartz representative Ron Kirk told the Meat very little meat and fish. It’s a sad fact that From Crisis to Peace Export Federation in 2009 that he was in the 1980s Okanawa’s sons and daugh- The Organic Vegan Way is the Answer using every legal tool at his disposal to ters adopted the fast-food diet, which has keep pork markets open despite a swine- ushered in the current era where parents —Supreme Master Ching Hai flu outbreak at the time. He also noted oftentimes outlive their children. www.GodsDirectContact.org Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice Alt omega-3 sources: hemp, flax, walnuts Russia and Japan remain treaty- (skinning of sheep hind ends), pinioning doubles the risk, and failure to consume 75less because of fishing disputes (wing-joint removal), tail docking, teeth vegetables regularly nearly quadruples in the southern Kurile islands. The Rus- cutting, and tongue removal, among the risk. According to the Cancer Proj- sians even killed a man in 2006 when other painful mutilations. The opera- ect of PCRM, vegetarian and vegan they fired upon a Japanese fishing tions are commonplace and performed diets tend to be low in circulating levels boat in the area. In 2010, the Libyans routinely on a mass scale. They’re done of Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF‑1). sprayed bullets on an Italian fishing to increase productivity and/or to com- Clinical case studies have shown that boat after chasing it across the Mediter- pensate for severe overcrowding and those subjects with the highest levels of ranean. And the Canadians once fired stressful conditions. In order to perform IGF‑1 had a 3.5-fold increase in breast- on a recalcitrant Spanish fishing boat in these procedures, laborers typically cancer risk, compared to those with the the Outer Banks of Newfoundland, later employ restraint not anesthesia. lowest. Also, according to PCRM, the bringing the illegal driftnets they confis- When a cow is unable to walk to process of breaking down lactose (milk cated to the U.N. North Korea regularly 79 her own slaughter, red flags need sugar) into galactose makes cow’s milk a aims gunboats at fishers from South to go up. It’s a warning that an advanced risk factor for cancer of the ovaries. Korea interloping in its fertile waters. stage of Mad Cow Disease could have According to overwhelming sci- These two countries are technically still set in. U.S. law prohibits these animals, 82entific evidence, fish feel pain. at war, so such incidents can at any time known as downers, from entering the They also feel psychological distress and result in renewed hostilities. food chain. Such signs, however, were memory of that distress. Fish grieve and Large concentrations of pesti- blatantly and habitually ignored at a experience physical affection as well. 76cides, fertilizers, and farm chemi- large-scale California slaughterhouse They’re smart, too, remembering certain cals are seeping into America’s aquifers, with repeated incidences captured on predators for long periods of time. Other thanks to roughly 165 million acres of undercover videotape. When the foot- studies have proven that crustaceans, corn and soybeans that are planted per age became breaking news in 2008, which are typically cooked by being year primarily to feed the livestock to it led to the largest beef recall in U.S. boiled alive, also feel pain. regularly bring meat to America’s din- history, 73,500 tons! Stock hands were Farmed-animal disease can span ner plates. Some towns in the Midwest shown inflicting unspeakable cruelties 83entire regions and even across have consequently come to rely on their on non-ambulatory animals, prodding continents. When one is particularly neighbors for fresher, though expensive, them to slaughter. Later, it was learned, contagious and any existence of it puts supplies of water. But a recent boom in over a quarter of the suspect meat had a country’s disease-free export status cattle and pig operations has poisoned already been consumed via the National in jeopardy, unfathomable numbers these stores as well, prompting plans School Lunch Program. of animals may be designated to be for government-subsidized pipelines to Industrial factory production best destroyed. Emblematic of this scenario link towns with major rivers. With the 80 describes farming today. Sen- was the United Kingdom’s Foot & Mouth demand for meat continuing unabated, tient life is conveyed and processed Disease outbreak in 2001. As many as such plans of action have become using the batch method—tight confine- 10 million cattle, sheep, and pigs were strangely logical. ment of the “raw ingredients” by the exterminated and incinerated as a buf- The consumption of fish is gutting tens of thousands and even millions. But fer, though only 2,030 animals ever con- 77 the oceans of its biodiversity and things can, and do, suddenly go horribly tracted the disease. Cost borne by UK threatening consumers with mercury wrong and more often than one would taxpayers: £8.5 billion ($13.5 billion). and highly toxic persistent organic pol- imagine—think hurricane, snowstorm, Today’s behemothic factory farms lutants (POPs). But aren’t the omega-3 flood, tornado, heat wave, mechanical 84generate vast amounts of volatil- fatty acids found in fish vital to human breakdown, electrical failure, disease, ized ammonia, which is then redepos- health? Yes, but much better sources or fire. The April 2011 tornadoes that hit ited on the earth where it can damage exist. Fish, just like every food of animal Alabama, for example, demolished 200 the ecological stability of forests. On origin, strains the kidneys with animal chicken houses containing 3.2 million surface waters, it contributes to eutro- protein (see #9), adds cholesterol and birds, which all had to be destroyed. phication, a key human stressor on saturated fat to the blood, and lacks fiber News accounts of such events are typi- coastal ecosystems; algae blooms and for proper digestion and colon health. cally short and local, concentrating on mass fish kills can be the result. Ammo- The best sources for omega-3 fatty acids the economic losses to the farmers. nia toxins and volatile organic com- are plant-based foods, including green A diet rich in animal fat is asso- pounds are associated with deadly par- leafy vegetables, walnuts, hemp, chia 81ciated with hormonal cancers. ticulate pollution as well. In California’s seeds, and ground flaxseeds. The Physicians Committee for Respon- San Joaquin Valley, emissions from the Farmed animals endure branding, sible Medicine warns that daily meat region’s 2.5 million dairy cows mix with 78 castration, debeaking, dehorn- consumption triples the risk of prostate mountain-trapped car exhaust to create ing, desnooding, ear notching, mulesing enlargement, regular milk consumption a smoggy soup you can just about cut
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice 80% of cattle slaughtered by just four firms S p o n s o r s with a knife. Asthma is a major problem blood-vessel diseases kill more people for the area’s children. worldwide than all others combined. To Loving Hut An important decade-long study end the insanity, all it takes is a nutrition- Over 200 Locations Worldwide 85by the National Cancer Institute ally balanced low-fat vegan diet (includ- www.LovingHut.com looked at the diets of more than 500,000 ing regular omega-3 fatty acids and vita- people aged 50 to 71, and showed that min B12), regular exercise, and stress those who ate the most red and processed management. The researcher who proved Be Veg, Go Green meat carried the highest risk of prema- these statements, Dean Ornish, put it best: 2 Save the Planet ture death from all causes, including “I don’t understand why asking people to www.SupremeMasterTV.com heart disease and cancer. The study illus- eat a well-balanced vegetarian diet is con- trated in its 2009 report that if its num- sidered drastic while it is medically con- bers were extrapolated out into society as servative to cut people open or put them I’m 86, going on 100! a whole over the course of a decade, the on powerful cholesterol-lowering drugs.” Thank you, “101 Reasons...” premature deaths of one million men and Factory-farm lagoons emit pletho- —Ted Teisler half a million women could be prevented. 89 ric amounts of toxic gases, most The “chickenization” of the beef notably carbon dioxide, ammonia, meth- 86market is a trend that has mostly ane, and hydrogen sulfide. All together Happy 22nd run its course. Inconceivably, only four they cause headaches, shortness of bird day, Bobby firms control over 80 percent of all the breath, wheezing, excessive coughing, —Jean Thaler cattle slaughtered in the U.S. today. We and diarrhea for workers and residents actually have 200,000-head feedlots— nearby. When the contents of lagoons are as unfathomable as that is. Meanwhile, periodically sprayed onto fields, osten- USA Devanand Yoga Center between 1980 and 2010, the number of sibly as fertilizer, harmful substances Queens, NY • 718-426-4643 U.S. cattle ranchers went down from 1.6 spread into the air. Hydrogen sulfide is — Relax — million to 950,000—at the same time prod- especially dangerous even at low lev- uct output increased. Those who favor the els. Its effects range from sore throat to trend—as do all who shill for oligarchis- seizures to irreversible brain damage to Vegan Environmental Solutions tic control—argue using the word “effi- comas and even death. Hydrogen sulfide Podcast ciency.” But an oligarchy is an oligarchy, is also a sickening feature of the several h2opodcast.com/vsse.html and with it power of the people to advo- hundred rendering plants that today dot cate for animals, workers, and the envi- the nation (see #46). The Vegetarian Resource Group ronment is utterly smashed. (See #11.) Methicillin-resistant Staphylococ- P.O. Box 1463 Swedish researchers announced 90 cus aureus (MRSA) is one of today’s Baltimore, MD 21203 87 in 2008 that a gluten-free vegan emerging superbugs, sometimes called a 410-366-8343 • www.vrg.org diet full of nuts, seeds, fruits, and vege- flesh-eating bacteria. Antibiotics are use- tables appears to offer protection against less against it. By 2005, MRSA was kill- VegOut NYC heart attacks and strokes for people with ing more than 18,000 Americans a year, rheumatoid arthritis. These ailments, as according to the CDC. One strain of the The social group for LGBT vegans, vegetarians & friends www.meetup.com/vegout-nyc well as clogged arteries, tend to show up infection gaining strength on Dutch and together. According to the researchers, U.S. farms (ST398) seems to freely jump www.vegoutnyc.org • [email protected] “these findings are compatible with pre- between pigs and people. Episodes start vious results of vegetarian/vegan dietary with a pimple, then grow into a saucer- Whiskers regimens in non-rheumatoid arthritis sub- sized rash, highly tender to the touch. Another heaven and earth jects which have shown lower blood pres- With the rampant overuse of antibiotics in must pass before such sure, lower body-mass index, and lower hospitals and on farms, bacteria such as a one can be again. incidence of cardiovascular disease.” these will continue to emerge (see #18). Snowball They added, those on the vegan diet had The trend today is for egg producers You were such a snowball, but lower levels of C-reactive protein, a com- 91to attach tiny porches to their barns you melted our hearts. pound that indicates inflammation, which to give the semblance of “outdoor access” We love you and we miss you. is tied to heart disease. for their birds. They’re able to label the Cardiovascular disease, obesity, eggs as “free range” or “organic” in order 88 and diabetes are totally prevent- to charge more for the product. Though able for at 95 percent of us just by chang- the birds live cage-free, they rarely go Wilson Wong ing our diets and lifestyles. These afflic- outside. Most importantly, the confine- tions are even reversible. Heart and ment inside is intense, with a single build-
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice Mitsubishi rakes it in as bluefin go extinct ing typically containing a colossal mass privation but with flesh as tender, white, police their own coastlines. Some say so- of up to 85,000 birds. Approximately 80 and pasty as a newborn’s. called Illegal, Unreported and Unregu- percent of the organic eggs on the mar- The meat industry is always lated (IUU) fishing has been curtailed ket are produced in this way, according 95 quick to cover itself about the with recent regulation. Catch certifi- to a 2011 report. The term “free-range” risks for pathogens that are inherent cates must be presented at most docks. for chicken eggs actually has no legal in what it sells. It‘s very careful not to But without airtight oversight and com- definition in the U.S. guarantee a germ-free product. Raw pliance worldwide, conservation efforts A study of 49 island countries flesh, it says, must be handled properly amount to almost nothing. 92found 55 percent of their coral and cooked thoroughly. Good, in theory. To produce foie gras, male ducks reefs overfished. To sustainably -har In fact, when using an ingenious study, 99are force-fed a stomach-gorging vest the million metric tons of fish Utah State University researcher Janet cup of corn pellets three times a day taken annually from the islands, 30,000 Anderson discovered that your every- with a 15-inch feeder tube. This tortur- square miles more reef—or the equiva- day home food preparer is amazingly lax ous process goes on for 28 days until lent of nearly four Great Barrier Reefs— when handling uncooked meats. Sim- the ducks’ livers, from which the pâté is would be needed. Demand for reef fish ple kitchen practices that could prevent made, bloat grotesquely to 10 times nor- is largely coming from Hong Kong trad- cross-contamination were not employed mal size. Mortalities are high due to dis- ers, who are now supplying a burgeon- 24 percent of the time. Undercooking ease, intense stress, and burst stomachs. ing market in Mainland China. Reef meat was found to be the norm. Activist undercover video has shown fish take 5 to 10 years to reach breed- Mitsubishi is today accused of row upon row of birds panting inces- ing age and so are particularly vulnera- 96overfishing bluefin tuna and then santly for air in the days just leading up ble. Fish are captured live with cyanide, hoarding thousands of tons of them in to slaughter. So cruel are the practices which, of course, destroys the coral in deep freeze. The Japanese mega-con- that foie gras production is outlawed in the process. Three quarters of the fish glomerate is suspected of not only rac- fifteen countries. die before getting to market. ing the species to extinction, it plans Over a period of 21 years, the Eighty percent of seafood sold in to profit wildly as and when that takes 100German Cancer Research 93America is imported, primarily place. Sustainable commercial hauls Center sponsored a telling epidemio- from developing nations such as China, have been set at 22,000 tons per year, logical study involving 60 vegans, 1,225 Indonesia, and Costa Rica. At the fed- but the actual catch is nearly three times vegetarians, and 679 “health-conscious” eral level, America’s Food and Drug that. Mitsubishi admits to controlling non-vegetarians who said they ate only Administration inspects less than two 35 to 40 percent of it. Bluefin is one of moderate amounts of meat. In the end, percent of it. And few states have test- the world’s most endangered fish and is there were 41 percent fewer deaths ing programs at all. One that does, Ala- expected to go commercially extinct as among the study participants compared bama, rejects up to 50 percent of what it early as 2012. with the general population. And the sees, typically for the presence of anti- If you buy chicken, you’re sup- vegetarians had a 30 percent lower risk biotics, parasiticides, fungicides, veteri- 97 porting a system of serfdom and of dying from coronary heart disease nary drugs, poisons in general, and just gladiator economics. Those who actu- compared to the non-vegetarians. plain filth. In 2007, Alabama’s agricul- ally grow out the birds are part of a dra- A 112-page U.N.-backed re- ture commissioner visiting China found conian contract system, where 100 per- 101 port in 2010 enumerated sev- fish being farmed in sewage. cent control resides with the company: eral top priorities for protecting the Male calves are just a by-product Tyson, Perdue, Sanderson, Pilgrim’s environment. Along with curbs on fossil 94to the dairy industry. If not imme- Pride. Growers are typically required to fuel use, it said, world farming practices diately slaughtered, kept for breed- regularly spend hundreds of thousands needed an overhaul and urban consum- ing, or sent to a factory farm for stan- of dollars on capital expenditures, which ers needed to convert to vegetarianism. dard fattening, they will be raised for bury them in perpetual debt. Once a But why stop at them? We now have all “fancy veal.” To this end, each calf will year in a contest of sorts, grower is pitted the reasons. It’s time to get hip and go be torn from his mother just after birth against grower, and, as always, some veg, wherever you are! and locked away in an immobilizing will be forced into bankruptcy. stall until slaughter. Each will be kept As long as crashing fish stocks in darkness except for feeding time. The are not taken into account, the Pamela Rice 98 book design • graphic arts diet will be devoid of roughage. Exces- money benefits of illegal fishing still out- 212-966-2060 sive doses of hormones and antibiotics weigh the costs and risks. As much as 40 promote growth and artificially prolong percent of landed fish is illegal in certain Special thanks to Alan Rice, Claude life. Results after 16 weeks: a nearly fishing regions. Many developing coun- Matthews, & Lisa Lindblom for reading full-grown but thoroughly sickly animal tries—where the world’s fish is increas- and commenting on the manuscript.—ptr driven insane from every frustration and ingly derived—simply cannot afford to
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice REFERENCES
1. David J. Wolfson & Mariann Novack, “The New U.S. John Heilprin, “Wasted Oxford,” Public Health Aid Protects Farms from Sullivan, “Foxes in the Hen Meat Industry,” Main Bycatch Detailed in Nutrition, Dec. 22, 2006. Volatility,” Dayton Daily House,” chapter in Animal Street, journal of the Study,” AP, Dec. 1, 2005. 34. “They Eat What?” Union News, Jun. 20, 2011. Rights: Current Debates Federal Reserve Bank of 22. “A Billion Frogs on of Concerned Scientists Frances Williams, “U.S. and New Directions, Oxford Kansas City, Apr. 2001. World’s Plates,” BBC Web site, Aug. 8, 2006. Proposes Global Ban on University Press, 2005. “Antitrust Law, Corporate News, Jan. 22, 2009. Lisa Kaas Boyle, “Did You Fishing Aid,” Financial 2. “Cancer Facts: Meat Con- Concentration and the 23. Jane E. Brody, “Exploring Just Eat a Plastic Bag?” Times, May 1, 2007. sumption and Cancer Risk,” Meat Processing Industry,” a Low-Acid Diet for Bone Huffington Post, Jan. 6, 45. http://tinyurl.com/6lx46j9 The Cancer Project Web The Pew Environmental Health,” New York Times, 2011. 46. Geoffrey S. Becker, “Ani- site, viewed Jun. 2011. Group, 2010. Nov. 23, 2009. “Germany Closes 4,700 mal Rendering: Economics 3. Mark Bittman, “Rethinking 12. Online interview with 24. Elizabeth Weise, “Cattle Farms in Dioxin Scare,” and Policy,” Congres- the Meat-Guzzler,” New Jonathan Balcombe, by Slaughter Rules Yield Afp, Jan. 3, 2011. sional Research Service, York Times, Jan. 27, 2008. Mike McCormick, talking- Few Easy Answers,” Usa 35. “Egg Recall Expanded order code RS21771, sticktv.com, May 29, 2010. Daryll Ray and Harwood Today, Feb. 2, 2009. After Salmonella Out- Mar. 17, 2004. D. Schaffer, “How Will the 13. G. Tyler Miller, Essentials Michele Gwynn, “Male break,” New York Times, Rendering Plants: Recy- World Double Crop Pro- of Ecology, Brooks/Cole Calves Treated as ‘Trash’ Aug. 18, 2010. cling of Dead Animals and duction by 2050?” Apr. 19, Pub. Co., 2008, p. 70. by Dairy Industry,” Exam- “FDA Egg Farm Inspec- Slaughterhouse Wastes,” 2011. Vaclav Smil, Enriching iner.com, Dec. 27, 2010. tion Reports Include Ro- Muslim Observer, Jun. 23, 4. Mike Orcutt, “What’s the the Earth, The Mit Press, 25. Tom Philpott, “Is Your dents, Flies, 8-Foot-High 2007. Catch?” Scientific Ameri- 2004, p. xiii. Meat Habit Giving You Manure Pile,” Wall Street 47. Allan, J. David, “Bio- can, Dec. 21, 2010. 14. Colin Tudge, “The Freaks Diabetes?” Mother Jones, Journal, Aug. 30, 2010. diversity: Threats and Cornelia Dean,“Study of the Farmyard,” London Jun. 4, 2011. 36. Lester Brown, “Aquifer Protective Measures,” Predicts Disastrous Loss Times, Sep. 3, 1997 26. “Rejecting Meat ‘Keeps Depletion,” The Encyclo- online essays, University of Fish,” New York Times, 15. Robert Goodland and Jeff Weight Low’,” BBC News, pedia of Earth, Mar. 22, of Michigan, 2001. Nov. 3, 2006. Anhang, “Livestock and Mar. 14, 2006. 2011. “Five Tonnes of Ille- 5. “Heart Disease and Stroke Climate Changes,” World- Fred Tasker, “Vegans “Water,” Modern Marvels, gal ‘Bushmeat’ Being Statistics 2010,” Ameri- Watch Institute, Nov./Dec. and Vegetarians Say The History Channel, Smuggled into Europe can Heart Association, p. 6. 2009. Plant-Based Diets Are 2006. Each Week,” The Guard- ian, Jun. 18, 2010. Nhlbi Factbook 2009, 16. “Animal Waste Pollution Healthier,” Miami Herald, 37. “USDA Unveils Myplate Chap. 4: Disease Statistics. in America,” Minority Apr. 26, 2011. as the New Food Icon,” In- 48. Pamela Rice, 101 Reasons Interview with Drs. Es- Staff of the U.S. Senate ”Vegetarian Women Weigh ternational Business Times, Why I’m a Vegetarian, selstyn and Ornish (with Committee on Agriculture, Less Than Meat Eaters,” Jun. 13, 2011. Lantern Books, 2005, Nutrition & Forestry for pp. 98–100. Replay of Earlier Interview Reuters, Jun. 27, 2005. Neal D. Barnard, M.D., Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), with Pres. Bill Clinton),” Karen Collins, “Will You blog, “Power to the Plate: 49. Ibid, pp. 100–101. Dec. 1997. Situation Room with Wolf Lose Weight as a Vegetar- Food Subsidies Should Re- 50. Paul Shapiro, “Factory Blitzer, Cnn, YouTube. 17. “2011 World Hunger and ian?” MSNBC, Sep. 23, flect New USDA Dietary Farming: A Report Card,” com, Oct. 4, 2010. Poverty Facts and Statis- 2005. Advice,” PCRM Web site, part 2 of 5, interview tics,” worldhunger.org, 6. Mike Hughlett, “Cargill “Interview with Drs. Es- Jun. 2, 2011. segment, YouTube video, viewed Jun. 2011. Uses an Array of Tools to selstyn and Ornish...” See 38. Christopher Doering, 2009. Keep E. Coli Out of Meat, George Monbiot, “Why #5 for full details. “Manure Causes Stink for Virgil Butler, “Clarifica- Yet a Complete Fix Is Elu- Vegans Were Right All 27. Livestock’s Long Shadow, Lawmakers and Farmers,” tion on Stunner Usage,” sive,” Star Tribune, Sep. Along,” The Guardian, FAO/UN, 2006, p. xxi. Reuters, Sep. 6, 2007. the Cyberactivist, tinyurl. 15, 2010. Dec. 24, 2002. com/6bvg8vq, May 27, 28. “The ADA Position Paper David Goodner, “Manure- “The Issues: Slaughter- Wikipedia, search term: 2004. On Vegetarian Diets,” on-Snow Ban Begins houses and Processing,” “Feed Conversion Ratio,” Journal of the American Tomorrow,” press release, 51. “Corporate Agribusiness Sustainable Table Web viewed Jun. 2011. Dietetic Association, IowaPolitics.com, Dec. 20, and America’s Water- site, Sep. 2009. 18. Melissa Healy, “Livestock Jul. 2009. 2010. ways,” Environment Shannon Dininny, “USDA in U.S. Gobble Up the America, Research & 29. Brent McDonald, et al, 39. “Nearly Half of All Fish Considers Broader Testing Antibiotics,” LA Times, Policy Center, Nov. 2010, “The Danger of Livestock Eaten Today Are Farmed, for E. Coli,” AP, Jun. 16, Dec. 14, 2010. pp. 4–5. Waste,” New York Times, Not Caught,” FAO press 2010. “Superbug Suit: Groups YouTube video, Sep. 18, release, Sep. 4, 2006. Diane Tennant, “When It 7. “Humane Methods of Sue FDA over Risky Use 2009. Terry McCarthy/Camp- Rains, Pollutants Pour into Slaughter Act, Weaknesses of Human Antibiotics Chesapeake Bay,” The Vir- 30. Fact sheets: Web sites bell, et al, “Fish Farming: in USDA Enforcement,” in Animal Feed,” press ginia Pilot, Dec. 12, 2010. from Farm Sanctuary, Fishy Business,” Time, testimony before the release, Nrdc, May 25, United Poultry Concerns Nov. 25, 2002. 52. Todd Oppenheimer, “The House of Representatives, 2011. (UPC), In Defense of 40. Daniel Pearl, “From Rancher Subsidy,” Atlan- Mar. 4, 2010. 19. Harry W. Fritz, The Lewis Animals, and Compassion Lipstick to Marshmal- tic Monthly, Jan. 1996. Helena Bottemiller, and Clark Expedition, Over Killing (Cok). lows,” Wall Street Journal, Livestock’s Long Shadow, “USDA Vet Blows Whistle Greenwood, 2004, p. 63. 31. Video series from Univer- Apr. 7, 1996. FAO/UN, 2006, p. xxiii. on Food Safety Agency,” Christian Nordqvist, “What sity of Alberta, Edmon- 41. “Hsus Exposes Inhumane 53. Donald G. McNeil, Jr., Food Safety News, Mar. 10, Is Fiber?” Medical News ton, Alberta, Canada on Treatment of Pigs at Smith “Kfc Supplier Accused 2010. Today, Apr. 22, 2009. YouTube. field,” Hsus press release of Animal Cruelty,” New 8. “Is Agriculture Depleting 20. “End of Cheap Oil,” 32. Marla Cone, “Foul State & video, Dec. 15, 2010. York Times, Jul. 20, 2004. Our Water Supply on Pur- National Geographic, of Affairs Found in Feed- 42. “What’s the Stench? A Martha Rosenberg, “Egg pose?” Investmentu.com, Jun. 2004. lots,” LA Times, Nov. 24, Pile of Cow Manure,” AP, Supplier to Dept. of Dec. 9, 2010. David Pimentel and Mar- 2006. Jan. 28, 2005. Defense Caught in Cruel 9. Jane Brody, “Huge Study cia Pimentel, “Sustain- 33. “High Blood Pressure,” 43. “Is Drinking Milk Healthy Video,” Op-Ed News, of Diet Indicts Fat and ability of Meat-Based and PCRM Web site, viewed for Humans?” ProCon.org, May 11, 2008. Meat,” New York Times, Plant-Based Diets and the Jun. 2011. Aug. 6, 2009. 54. M. Ellin Doyle, “Food An- May 8, 1990. Environment,” American Paul N. Appleby, et al, 44. “2011 Farm Subsidy timicrobials, Cleaners, and 10. Nicholas Stein, “Son of a Journal of Clinical Nutri- “Hypertension and Blood Database,” Environmental Sanitizers: A Review of Chicken Man,” Fortune, tion, Vol. 78, No. 3, 2003. Pressure among Meat Eat- Working Group Web site, the Scientific Literature,” May 13, 2002. 21. Jeremy Cooke, “Film Warns ers, Fish Eaters, Vegetar- www.farm.ewg.org Food Research Institute, 11. Alan Barkema, Mark of ‘World without Fish’,” University of Wisconsin, ians, and Vegans in Epic– Richard Wilson, “Federal Drabenstott, and Nancy BBC News, Jun. 2, 2009. Sep. 2005.
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice REFERENCES
55. http://tinyurl.com/6klory5 Karen Davis, Prisoned (Contact author for all break: Gordon Brown to ability of Island Coral http://tinyurl.com/2vrhda Chickens Poisoned Eggs, references.) Chair Emergency Meet- Reef Fisheries,” Current Book Publishing Co., 1996, ing,” Press Association Biology, Mar. 22, 2007. 56. Marla Cone, “Feedlot 76. “The Great Plains: Turning p. 55. (Uk), Aug. 4, 2007. Waste Alters Fish Char- Off the Taps,” The Econo- Naonakanishi, “Chinese acteristics,” Los Angeles United Poultry Concerns mist, Feb. 11, 2006. OfficialD efra Statistics. Hunger for Reef Fish, Emp- Times, Dec. 14, 2003. Web site, articles page: 77. “Your Health: Frequently 84. “Potential Environmental tying Asian Seas,” Reuters, “Battery Hens,” www.upc- Mar. 27, 2007. Janet Raloff, “Hormones: Asked Questions about Impacts of Animal Feeding online.org. Here’s the Beef,” Science Nutrition,” PCRM Web Operations,” Epa, Sep. 10, 93. Jeff Rossen, “Could Your News Online, Jan. 5, 2002. 65. “rbgh: Fact Sheet,” Sus- site, viewed Jun. 2011. 2009. Seafood Contain Toxic tainable Table Web site, Chemicals?” MSNBC, Jeff Kart “Cafo Farms “Essential Fatty Acids,” “A Malodorous Fog,” Jul. 2008. Nov. 17, 2007. Boost Multi-Drug Resis- PCRM Web site, viewed editorial, New York Times, tant Bacteria, Study Says,” Diane Hatz, “Guide to Good Jun. 2011. Aug. 7, 2005. 94. Fact sheets, NoVeal. Treehugger.com, Dec. 20, Food—Hormones,” The “Update: The Latest on 85. “Red Meat Raises Risk org Web site, viewed 2010. Daily Table, May 22, 2009. Fish Oil and Cancer,” The of All Kinds of Death,” Jun. 2011. 57. Joe Fassler, “Timeline 66. Teddi Dineley Johnson, Cancer Project, Sep. 4, Reuters, Mar. 26, 2009. 95. “Home Is Where the Germ of Shame: Decades of “Zoonotic Diseases, Part I,” 2010. Jane E. Brody, “Paying Is: Keeping Bugs at Bay DeCoster Egg Factory Vio- The Nation’s Health, 78. “Farm Animal Mutilation,” a Price for Loving Red in the Kitchen,” Nutrition lations,” Atlantic Monthly, American Public Health Animal Rights Ency- Meat,” New York Times, Action Healthletter, Jan. 1, Sep. 16, 2010. Association (Apha), clopedia, http://tinyurl. Apr. 28, 2009. 2004. Jul. 2008. 58. Dan Looker, “The Milk com/5uqp4ad 86 Stephanie Paige Ogburn, 96. “Mitsubishi Hoards Frozen Meisters,” Successful “Hot Spots: How Changing 79. “Mad Cow Scare: 143 “Cattlemen Struggle Bluefin Tuna,”World Fish- Farming, Nov. 1998. Farming Habits Threaten Million Pounds of Ground Against Giant Meat- ing Today, Jun. 6, 2009. Public Health,” The Econo- Verlyn Klinkenborg, Meat Recalled,” Envi- packers and Economic 97. Barry Shlachter, “Con- mist, Feb. 10, 2011. “Holstein Dairy Cows and ronment News Service, Squeezes,” High Country tract Growers Hoping the the Inefficient Efficiencies 67. “Japanese Heart-Disease Feb. 17, 2008. News, March 21, 2011. Chicken Industry Offers of Modern Farming,” New Study Focuses on Role of Tom Philpott, “Meat Wagon: 87. Michael Kahn, “Vegan Diet a Steady Nest Egg; May York Times, Jan. 5, 2004. Iron,” Reuters, Oct. 26, Don’t Have a (Downer),” May Help Ease Rheumatoid Instead Be Trapped by 2000. Debt,” Star-Telegram, “Waterbeds Tested to Keep Grist, Feb. 18, 2008. Arthritis: Study,” Reuters, Mar. 6, 2005. Cows Comfy, Productive,” Web pages from the Veg- 80. The editors, “Other Vic- Mar. 18, 2008. AP, Nov. 8, 1999. etarian Resource Group tims of Tornadoes: Poultry 88. Quoted in Roberto Suro, 98. “End Iuu: Remove the (Vrg.com) and the Vegan Weak Links,” World Fish- Jon Carroll, “Many Amus- Farmers Are Suffering,” “Hearts and Minds,” New R.D. (TheVeganRD.com), ing & Aquaculture, Feb. 7, ing Facts about the Cow,” Anniston Star, May 16, York Times magazine, viewed, Jun. 2011. 2011. San Francisco Chronicle, 2011. Dec. 29, 1991, p. 18. Aug. 23, 2001, p. E10. 68. Severin Carrell, “Ban Fish- 81. “Your Health: Vegetar- “Dean Ornish on the 99. “York Becomes First City ing in Third of All Seas, in Britain to Ban ‘Cruel’ 59. Shannon Gombos, “The ian Foods: Powerful for World’s Killer Diet,” Ted: Scientists Say,” The Inde- Foie Gras,” Mailonline Cloned-Meat Contro- Health,” PCRM Web site, Ideas Worth Spreading, pendent, Aug. 31, 2003. (Uk), Oct. 5, 2007. versy,” Alternatives Maga- viewed Jun. 2011. Ted.com, Feb. 2006. zine, Sep. 2010. “War Divided,” The Econo- “Vegan Diet Reduces 89. “Pollution from Giant Marshall Sella, “The Foie mist, Aug. 21, 2010, p. 67. Gras Revolt,” New York Web site: EndAnimalClon- Breast Cancer Risk,” Livestock Farms Threatens magazine, Jun. 27, 2005. ing.org, viewed Jun. 2011. 69. Center for Food Security The Cancer Project, news- Public Health,” Nrdc and Public Health Web letter, May 2011. Web page, Jul. 15, 2005. Lawrence Downes, “Face “Farm Animal Cloning,” site, disease list, viewed to Face with the Foie Gras Compassion in World 82. Claudia Dreifus, “A 90. Nicholas Kristof, “Our Jul. 2011. Problem,” New York Farming Web site, 2010. Conversation with Callum Pigs, Our Food, Our 70. “Methyl Mercury,” Shark Roberts,” New York Times, Health,” New York Times, Times, Jun. 26, 2005. 60. Hans Greimel, “U.N. Project International, Mar. 5, 2002. Mar. 11, 2009. 100. “Vegetarian Study,” Warns About Ocean ‘Dead Sep. 12, 2009. press release NR. 26, Zones’,” AP, Mar. 29, 2004. Stephen Adams, “Three- Ed Yong, “Mrsa in Pigs 71. Jerry Hagstrom, “Kirk Sup- Second Fish Memory ‘a and Pig Farmers,” Sci- German Cancer Research Livestock’s Long Shadow, ports Forcing Countries to Myth’,” The Telegraph, enceblogs, Jan. 23, 2009. Center, Jun. 6, 2005. FAO/UN, 2006, p. 213. Comply with Trade Agree- Jan. 15, 2010. 91. http://tinyurl.com/3wtrce9 101. Alister Doyle, “Go Veg- 61. “Farm Animal Genetic Re- ments,” Ag-Week, Jun. 1, Robert Roy Britt, “Boiling gie, Cut Fossil Fuels sources,” SD Dimensions, Wikipedia, search term: 2009. Mad: Crabs Feel Pain,” to Aid Planet: Study,” FAO, Feb. 1998. “Free Range.” 72. Michael Moss, “Safety of Live Science, Mar. 27, 2009. Reuters, Jun. 2, 2010. 92. Katie Newton, et al, “Cur- 62. Andrew Wetzler, “Wildlife Beef Processing Method 83. “Foot-and-Mouth Out- rent and Future Sustain- Services: The Most Im- Is Questioned,” New York portant Wildlife Agency Times, Dec. 31, 2009. You’ve Never Heard Of,” 73. Merritt Clifton, “Feral Pigs Huffpost Green, Dec. 4, Please buy and distribute this pamphlet. Become Scapegoats—in 2009. the U.S. & around the All orders in U.S. dollars. The first copy is $3. “Congress Can Spare World,” Animal People, Additional copies: 75¢ each. • 25 copies: $15. Taxpayers and Animals,” Jan./Feb. 2007. Hsus Web page, Dec. 14, 50 copies: $20. • 100 copies: $35. • 400 copies: $130. Jared Diamond, Guns, 2010. Germs, and Steel, W. W. Delivered postage-paid. Make checks payable to VivaVegie Society. 63. M.C. Appleby, Ed., et al, Norton & Company, 1999, Name: ______Date: ______Long Distance Transport p. 355. and Welfare of Farm Ani- Ian Frazier, “Hogs Wild,” mals, Centre for Agricul- Address: ______The New Yorker, Dec. 12, tural Bioscience Interna- 2006. City______State: ______Zip:______tional (Cabi), 2008. 74. Dan Beuttner, “The Secrets “Cok Investigation FOREIGN ORDERS: Add 50% to price; maximum order, 100 copies. of Longevity,” National Exposes Farmed Animal ENCLOSED FIND [U.S.]$______. Herewith, also, is a tax-deductible Geographic, Nov. 2005. Suffering During Interstate donation to support the work of the VivaVegie Society: [U.S.]$______. Transport,” Cok.net, 75. “Russian Patrol Boat Fires Jul. 15–30, 2005. on Japanese Boat, One Order online with PayPal: www.vivavegie.org/101paypal Killed,” Reuters, Aug. 16, 64. Essay links at www.upc- 2006. VivaVegie Society, P.O. Box 1447, New York, NY 10276 online.org/battery_hens/ VivaVegie Society is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.
Ninth Edition • 101 REASONS WHY I’M A VEGETARIAN • by Pamela Rice About the author 101 Reasons Why Pamela Rice has been a vegan advocate for over 20 years. She gives talks on gov- ernment subsidies to the meat industry I’m a Vegetarian and the environmental impact of the meat- by pamela rice centered diet. In addition to writing and photo by Alan Rice speaking, Ms. Rice has organized numer- ou’ve read this pamphlet. You’ve ing out to New York City pedestrians with ous veg-events, most notably the annual Yseen the inspiring images from the her then newly minted “101 Reasons Veggie Pride Parade (2008–2011). She Veggie Pride Parade on the front. Now Why I’m a Vegetarian.” Today, there are founded and has been at the helm of the you’re saying, “Where do I sign up!” 245,000 copies of the pamphlet in circula- Veggie Center of NYC since 1999. And Welcome to a world of delicious, flavor- tion. It’s also availble in book form from she published 50 issues of The VivaVine: ful, and nutritious foods and a life of true Lantern Books. Back in 1991, as now, The Vegetarian-Issues Magazine in the compassion. Taking meat out of your diet is Pamela would wear a signboard—created 1990s (funding needed for its revival). the best decision you’ll ever make. by her sister, Julia Fauci—that reads, “Ask Call 212-966-2060 for more information. And, not to worry, these days, the Me Why I’m a Vegetarian.” And people marketplace is chock-full of veg- would! Thanks to a gift in the mid-1990s front cover: certified products to make any from costume designer Janet Bloor, Image descriptions & photo credits Three images above title bar: 1. Left transition an easy one. the group has enjoyed the use of a to right, behind banner: Bruce Friedrich Now that you’re thor- giant “pea pod” suit (see below) (PeTA), Gene Baur (Farm Sanctuary), volun- oughly educated on the to draw interest from the crowds. teer Kassinda Campbell, parade organizer reasons to go veg, it’s In 1992, Pamela founded and Pamela Rice (photo by Alan Rice). 2. Volun- teer Pei-Cen Lin (photo by Dave Bledsoe, Free- time to take things to produced the group’s own mag- Verse Photography). 3. Penelo Pea Pod and their logical conclusion: azine, The VivaVine. In 1999, Chris P. Carrot (photo by Derek Goodwin). activism. Consider tabling Pamela opened a vegetarian cen- Banner shot, below title bar, left to in your neighborhood. Use this ter, which she continues to maintain. right: Freya Dinshah (American Vegan Soci- pamphlet—or any other produced VivaVegie has often enjoyed ety), Marisa Miller Wolfson (documentary film- by a rich array of animal-advocacy mainstream-media coverage maker), David Benzaquen (Farm Sanctuary), parade organizer Pamela Rice, Roberta Schiff groups out there—as a free hand- of its activities, most notably, (Mid-Hudson Vegetarian Society) author/ out. Volunteering is a great way to from CNN, The New York speaker Tracye McQuirter, author/speaker meet other vegans, learn valuable photo by Times, New York maga- George Eisman, and Dawn Moncrieffe (A Pamela Rice skills, and, of course, get the word zine, and TimeOut New Well-Fed World) (photo by Alan Rice). out! Then, if you’re truly dedicated, start York. These, and many Three images positioned vertically on right under title bar: 1. Volunteer a vegan blog or business, or organize an others, have covered the Andrea Strauchler (photo by Dave Bledsoe, event. The ultimate endeavor: go under- annual Veggie Pride Parade FreeVerse Photography). 2. Unknown sub- cover with a videocamera at a farm or NYC, another project of jects (photo by Gina Green). 3. Rachel Kay slaughterhouse. the VivaVegie Society with Platoni with sign by Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary (photo by Cristina Vinatoriu). Pamela Rice as the coor- History of VivaVegie Society dinator. The parade Cluster of 5 images at the bottom left, clockwise from upper left: 1. Volun- VivaVegie Society is a nonprofit, 501(c)3 makes its way through teer Claude Matthews (photo by Alan Rice). organization dedicated to public edu- Greenwich Village and 2. Speaker Wilson Morales (photo by Alan cation about the vegan lifestyle. When ends in Union Square Rice). 3. Two unknown subjects (photo by Gina Pamela Rice formed the group in 1991, Park for a giant rally Green). 4. Name of baby unknown (photo by Gina Green). 5. Crowd (photo by Bill Goers). the objective was street advocacy—reach- and expo. photo by Pamela Rice veggieprideparade.org • vivavegie.org • triroc.com/vid • [email protected]
VivaVegie Society STAMP P.O. Box 1447 Cooper Sta. New York, NY 10276