Misconception about Vegetarianism / Misconception about Vegetarianism / Misconception about Vegetarianism / Veganism Veganism Veganism

“Vegetarians (people who choose not to eat “We have to raise meat because it “I could never go completely vegetarian / meat) and vegans (those who also avoid represents the most efficient method of food vegan, so this information doesn’t apply to milk and eggs) are concerned about bodily production. A plant-based diet alone would me.” purity or rebellion against society. not be able to meet the needs of the world’s Therefore, their choices are merely lifestyle growing population.” Vegetarianism is about reducing suffering, habits that don’t apply to me if I am not not meeting the constraints of an arbitrary interested in those ways of living.” According to David Pimentel, professor of label. Every bit by which you reduce your ecology in Cornell University's College of consumption of animal products is one bit Vegetarianism is about reducing suffering. Agriculture and Life Sciences, the by which you reduce suffering and help the To quote Karen Davis: “The decision that production of a gram of animal protein environment. Cutting your meat has led millions of people to stop eating requires six grams of plant protein, because consumption in half would be half as good other animals is not rooted in arid most livestock are raised on cultivated as going completely vegetarian. adherence to diet or dogma, but in the grain. In fact, more than half of grain grown desire to eliminate the kinds of experiences in the US and forty percent worldwide is that using animals for food confers upon fed to livestock, on land that could be *** beings with feelings.” Virtually all of the devoted to feeding humans. As for nearly ten billion farm animals raised in the efficiency, production of a kilocalorie of “In fact, if one person is unkind to an US each year live their short lives on animal protein in the US requires an animal it is considered to be cruelty, but “factory farms,” where they are confined to average of 28 kilocalories of fossil fuel, where a lot of people are unkind to animals, small, overcrowded cages without access to while the corresponding ratio for grain especially in the name of commerce, the the outdoors or natural light for their entire protein is 3:1. It is thus no wonder that the cruelty is condoned and, once large sums of lives. These cramped, stressful conditions Worldwatch Institute, a well-respected money are at stake, will be defended to the produce rampant disease, which is why environmental organization, concluded the last by otherwise intelligent people.” farm animals are routinely given antibiotics following: “[T]he human appetite for –Ruth Harrison, author of Animal to maintain growth. Procedures like animal flesh is a driving force behind Machines (1964) castration, branding, debeaking, and tail virtually every major category of docking are routinely performed without environmental damage now threatening the anesthetic. Finally, slaughter is often human future—deforestation, erosion, brutally painful. In the fast-paced fresh-water scarcity, air and water atmosphere of the cattle slaughterhouse, it pollution, climate change, biodiversity loss, is not possible to successfully stun all of the social injustice, the destabilization of animals on the production line, meaning communities, and the spread of disease.” that some cows are cut apart, piece by piece, while fully conscious. Similarly, some pigs and chickens are submerged in scalding tanks while still alive.