Going Green = Going Vegan?
Vivian on Friday, October 19th, 2007 in Welcome to MamaNeedJava! If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
I found this post/article at EcoMetro very interesting (my home community leader has several fantastic articles there for going green on a budget too!). For one thing, I never once considered the difference between driving a car and producing 1 lb of beef (used every time I make chili or spaghetti sauce or any number of things.)
I spent several years as a pre-teen as an Ovo-Lacto Vegetarian, but I really didn’t know enough about nutrition to maintain a steady supply of healthy protein and other vitamins. Since then I’ve been a fairly average meat eater, most women will say they eat chicken or turkey most, and every once in a while pork or beef. Honestly, I do whatever is on sale this week, lol, including (and I’ve heard its one of the best meats you can eat) ground Buffalo. We often eat veggie burgers as snacks and buy meat alternatives for ground beef recipes a lot too. (And quickly, for the sake of price comparison, I cannot stand when people say produce is too expensive. 1.99/lb for some organic produce is FAR less expensive than 4.99/lb for some variety of meat. Most often a pound of produce is at least half the price of the meat I’ve bought- and I don’t buy the value pack of drumsticks for .89/lb from god-knows-where-farm). Particularly from the farmer’s market (or how about the the price difference when you join a local farm’s co-op and get shares each week? I wonder…)
ANYHOO, I’ve wondered about going vegan a lot, and there are 2 main things stopping me. Cheese and yogurt! I know, I know, but its true. I eat yogurt for breakfast, as does Lil’E and Hubby. And good cheeses are one of my vices. I can’t picture never having Caprese Salad again. Eggs too- I can’t quite see why I should give that up, esp if we have our own chickens producing eggs, so we know they are eating organic and are laying eggs without hormones. (Don’t have them yet but plan to get chicks in the spring).
What do ya’ll think about this? (Read linked article before responding 
)
*edit* based on the comment my mom made, I should revise my question- I meant to ask what you guys thought about the idea that being a vegan is a “green” thing or about the environmental impact of the meat industry. I, personally, am eating my yogurt for breakfast
This post has one comment
October 20th, 2007
Much food for thought, yes?
Such a personal decision what we eat and don’t, not sure why important to ask what others think as it need only be right for you and yours, yes?
Vegans in USA are a minute percentage ergo you will not find a lot of hands on support tho I imagine Portland, OR has a higher per capita than rest of nation.
Decision to be vegan or not will be based on physical, emotional, social reasons, yes? If vegan to NEVER harm a living being than away with leather boots, alligator handbags, suede jackets as well if wanting to avoid hypocrisy.
Also, can a Christian be a vegan all the while “celebrating” the eucharist with the body and blood? Just wondering.
Many nutritional concerns that are fairly easily remedied if watched carefully; protein, B-12, iodine, etc.
Dad and I must have neglected to share Frances Moore Lappe’s, Diet for a Small Planet, 1971 . . . along with Back to Eden, one of the “old” hippies “Bible’s”. It addresses most of the issues you raised.
Also, you might want to explore the Ayurvedic doshas and the Eat for your Blood Type philosophies to weigh in other factors. You, Chris and Ethan could have very different nutritional needs which I’m sure you realize.