From tierschutzbund.de
The German Animal Welfare Federation recommends celebrating Easter as an animal-friendly “celebration of life”. Although Easter is closely associated with yellow, fluffy chicks, the Easter lamb and, of course, the Easter bunny, the actual lives of these animals are very different, far removed from the beautiful symbolism. Many consumers consume more eggs and rabbit and lamb meat at Easter in particular. Plant-based products, which are now available in abundance on the market, offer an alternative. The German Animal Welfare Association encourages people to bake and cook numerous vegan Easter recipes on its website www.weiljedemahlzeitzählt.de.
“The vegan attitude is based on the idea that no animal should be exploited for human consumption,” says Verena Jungbluth, Head of the Veganism Department at the German Animal Welfare Federation. If you don't want to miss out on traditions at Easter, you can veganize your recipes with the help of plant-based alternatives: Instead of milk, meat and eggs, dairy alternatives such as oat, soy or almond drinks, tofu and linseed can be used. “Everyone can make their own contribution to a world free of animal suffering through their consumption,” says Jungbluth. The German Animal Welfare Federation shows how to make a vegan Easter lamb, a yeast plait, ‘egg’ liqueur and breakfast scrambled eggs and what to serve for a purely plant-based Easter brunch in numerous recipes on the website www.weiljedemahlzeitzählt.de. Animal lovers can also find vegan gift ideas there.
ANIMAL SUFFERING FOR HUMAN ENJOYMENT
For many people, colourful Easter eggs are a must at Easter time, but many consumers are unaware of the conditions in agricultural animal husbandry. Under natural conditions, chickens like to scratch outside, lie in their self-built nests and build up an intimate relationship with their chicks. In most forms of agricultural husbandry, they are denied this. Laying hens live on a few square meters, often without an outdoor run. They are bred for maximum performance in order to lay as many eggs as possible. After just one and a half years, they are sorted out and killed because the number of eggs they lay decreases.
Rabbits and lambs also suffer. The lambs are born in the fall to winter, are mainly kept indoors and are fed fattening feed that does not meet their natural nutritional requirements so that they reach their ideal slaughter weight in time for Easter. The situation is similar for fattening rabbits: In factory farming, they often spend their short lives in cramped cages.
