Sugar seems vegan at a glance; it comes from a plant after all. But when the natural sugars from the plant are refined in a factory, they are often filtered through bone char.
written by Al-Ma’arri, blind Arab philosopher, poet and writer born AD 973, died AD 1058. … You are diseased in understanding and religion. Come to me, that you may hear something of sound truth. Do not unjustly eat fish the water has given up, And do not desire as food the flesh of slaughtered animals, [...]
~ Silvi Burden When I first came to Shangri La, to stay for a week with the people of Gentle World, I had no idea what to expect. I was really nervous about staying with people I had only emailed with beforehand. And in addition: vegans. I had been a vegetarian myself for only two [...]
This is not the story of a factory farm; it is the story of a beautiful farm with free range animals who seemed to be happy.
Like women and certain races that were enslaved and held no legal rights, nonhuman animals need legal personhood extended to them and must cease being viewed as the property of humans.
Humans are far from the only animals to experience the deep connection between mother and child. In fact, this might be one of the very experiences that is universal — crossing all boundaries between species. And yet, somehow, we manage to suppress our awareness of this all-important bond when it involves individuals who are different from us, especially when acknowledging this fact would require us to make a change in our own behavior, such as eliminating our dependence on the products of animal husbandry.
As I look back over the last 26 years of my life, I wonder how it took me so long to live my life the way I’ve always wanted to: with love, kindness and honesty.
A translucent, colorless, nearly tasteless substance, gelatin is identified on coded labels by number E441. Like ‘natural flavors’, gelatin can be found in marshmallows, desserts like “Jell-O,” frosted cereals, some low-fat yogurt, desserts, trifles, aspic, and many confectionaries such as gummy bears and jelly babies. It may also be used as a stabilizer, thickener, or texturizer in foods such as jams, yogurt, cream cheese, and margarine.
Rennet or rennin is a natural complex of enzymes produced in any mammalian stomach to help a nursing baby digest mother’s milk. In the food industry, rennet is used as a coagulant – in cheese-making; in certain dairy products, including some yogurts; and in junket, a soft, pudding-like dessert.
Casein is the principal protein in milk. It’s found in the milk of all mammals, and, oddly enough, is often found in food items marked ‘non-dairy.’
A great many people become vegetarian for ethical reasons, in response to a strong sense that animals shouldn’t be mistreated on factory farms, or that they simply should not be killed for food. However, many individuals who eschew meat out of concern for animal interests continue to consume and use other animal products. Many vegetarians, in fact, upon removing flesh products from their diet, actually increase their intake of eggs and dairy, two products which result from extreme animal abuse.
