Veganuary: why not make a life-changing dietary decision?

From stalbanstimes.co.uk

Veganuary has inspired and supported millions of people to try vegan since 2014 – with participants from almost every country in the world – and now Laura Bill is joining their ranks. But what has led her to making this huge step?

I’ve always been an animal lover. My dad was. (He once arrived home from work with a tortoise on the back of his motorbike. It had been trying to cross a main road so he picked it up and put it safely into a carry case, slowly drove home and it was reunited with its owner a few hours later.)

But it was a trip to a farm in Slip End at the end of 2023 that started to get me thinking. A great big black pig was lying down in the mud enjoying the sunshine, almost smiling to itself as it looked up happily at the blue sky. It might sound daft but I was genuinely a bit moved by the moment. What particularly struck me was how large the pig was, and how human its behaviour.

I thought of bacon sandwiches and how I can eat that pig. Or one like it. About a week later my stepdad made a comment that he thought was a casual joke. He looked at Phyllis, our free-roaming Lionhead rabbit and said something about rabbits being picked up by their ears and made into stew where he comes from.

And that was it. I decided to stop eating animals in January 2024.

I did briefly consider veganism but decided that would be a bit too full on and that I wouldn’t be able to eat anything but I was happy to discover things like tofu, pretend salmon, a plant-based mushroom bolognaise ready meal from M&S and even dark chocolate made me feel virtuous and cleaner on the inside. I’ve even enjoyed a McPlant burger which is almost the same as a regular McDonald’s and handy to know I can still have fast food if I need to.

So almost a year in and I’ve still been able to eat at the same places, buy from the same shops and not had to change my life much at all. I’ve never been a foodie and it’s not about health for me, just about the animals.

I heard an LBC radio presenter say “Hope you’re all enjoying your turkeys or your veggie eco-woke bakes” on Christmas Day which made me laugh but in my limited time as a vegetarian I think I’m safe to conclude that generally the attitude to non-meat eaters isn’t great except from other non-meat eaters.

Then I realised last week – and I wish I hadn’t in a way – that eating eggs and milk is also taking part in horrific cruelty and suffering of cows and chickens and so I am now taking the big leap into veganism.

I sort of did know this already but it was a friend of mine who inspired me to go the whole hog, if you like. She said this: “I have a problem really when people don’t eat meat but they still eat dairy because, well… you might as well still be eating animals.”

My biggest fear, as I mentioned earlier, about being vegan is the same as most peoples who aren’t vegan; “What do you eat?” and I’m still discovering this being in very early days but helpfully Burton’s Jammie Dodgers are totally ‘safe’.

My mum tried to tell me that eggs are alright as long as you get them from a farm shop. I can take comments from my mum but what I have noticed is the hatred the concept of living cruelty-free attracts from complete strangers.

A woman had posted in a St Albans Facebook group about how sad it was to see lots of Christmas trees in Westminster Lodge car park going to waste having not been bought.

I said – not to be superior nor controversial – but because it’s been on my mind a lot: “Not as sad as all the animals brutally murdered to end up on a plate or in a bin bag.”

Well, they didn’t like that. Some responded with laughing emojis which I just find unnecessary and hurtful. I asked why anybody would laugh. My particular favourite awful remark was: “Because it is unbelievably odd that you think eating a wide range of food is somehow brutal or sad. Those laughing emojis are from people who find you strange but don’t have the time or the inclination to discuss it with you.”

My response: “Lovely. Thanks for explaining it. I honestly don’t mind who finds me strange.”

One guy shared a humorous emoji of a man and it read “When you’re vegan but you haven’t told anybody about it in the last two minutes”, the implication being that vegans go around telling everybody about it.

There is an evangelical aspect to it. If you believe something to be awful, is it not human nature to share the information you have with others? I’ve seen horrific videos of baby animals being ripped away from their mums and the mothers howling for them not to be taken. Chickens squashed into tiny spaces in squalid conditions having their beaks cut off and being stepped on. Geese being plucked while alive for down. The production of milk and eggs is as barbaric as the rest of it.

They are beautiful sentient beings who feel pain, who love their families, who enjoy fresh air and exercise and food and sunshine. Why would I choose to be complicit in their torture and terror when I can choose not to be?

I’m not judging you if you love a bacon sandwich or a roast dinner. I totally understand why you do. I did for a long time. I’m not expecting this to be easy either but I can’t turn away from the conviction to try plant-based living.

I already don’t drink, don’t smoke and don’t eat meat. Now I will try not to eat anything that has caused suffering to a creature. Thank God for swearing. I’ve still got swearing. And caffeine.

Happy Veganuary – why not give it a try with me? 

https://stalbanstimes.co.uk/opinion/veganuary-why-not-make-a-life-changing-dietary-decision/