Interview with a Vegan

Vegans come from all walks of life. In Australia there are business men and women, housewives, sportspeople, models and musicians who are vegan.

Rebecca Pidd of the Vegetarian Network of Victoria says people often view vegans as fanatics or extremists. But people follow a vegan lifestyle for a variety of reasons. With an increasing number of people developing allergies and intolerance to foods many are eating a wide range of vegan products or meals without even realising. Rebecca herself first became vegetarian, and then vegan, for health concerns. But, she says, ‘I think the ethical perspective follows quite closely.’

This ethical perspective can be unclear to some. Unlike a vegetarian diet which eschews foods and products that are the direct result of slaughter it can be difficult to understand why vegans avoid foods that have no apparent connection with slaughter such as milk and cheese. Rebecca explains, ‘Becoming a mother and feeding my son I began to feel – in a strange way – an empathy for the cow. We are lactating mammals. That’s what we are. Dairy cows’ babies are taken away from them so that their milk can be given to someone else. And I can’t imagine someone taking my baby away from me and taking my milk to give to someone else. Then there is the ethical issue of what they do with the calf afterwards. That hit home in a really big way.’

What they do can be to raise the calf for the dairy industry, or, as in the case of many male calves, prepare them for the veal industry. While dairy cows are kept pregnant so they can keep producing milk Rebecca says that even many of the resulting female calves are killed.

There is also the environmental benefit of following a plant based diet. Compared to the 15,000 litres of water per day a meat eater’s diet requires, a vegan’s food needs just 1,500 litres.

Vegan foods require the least amount of land, water and energy to produce, and cause the least amount of soil erosion and pollution.

Brisbane accredited practicing dietitian Amanda Benham says that a vegan diet is perfectly safe. ‘Calcium can be obtained from green vegetables, sesame seeds or tahini, almonds and calcium-set tofu. For extra calcium I recommend people drink soy milk that has been fortified with extra calcium,’ she says.

As for Vitamin B12, Amanda explains, ‘Vitamin B12 is made by some bacteria and is found in animal products and foods that have added vitamin B12, such as some soy milks. I recommend that anyone who does not consume at least 3 serves of vitamin B12 -fortified foods or animal products every day take a vitamin supplement containing at least 10 micrograms of vitamin B12 every day.’

Karin Ridgers, 34, is the founder and director of Veggievision.com, an innovative website hosting 24/7 mini programmes on veg*n living. Karin has been vegetarian for about 11 years and became vegan about 8 years ago. She says, ‘When I realised the cruelty in the dairy industry I knew I simply had to be vegan. I must admit I was nervous but I have never missed eggs or dairy products!

The question most omnivores want answered is simple. What do you eat? Karin says, ‘I eat a wonderful diet - lots of fresh raw salad leaves and fresh spinach. Nuts, dried fruit, rices, some pastas and diary free ‘dairy’ products - like soy yoghurts and ice cream. We do have the ‘fake meats’ sometimes and I love big jacket potatoes, Mexican, Indian, Chinese and Italian food.’

Although she doesn’t take any vitamin or mineral supplements she insists, ‘I am never ill! I have lots of energy and feel simply wonderful!’

So is going vegan difficult? Rebecca says it is not. ‘If I’m invited to barbeques or for dinner I always offer to bring something I can eat. This is a really good way of showing people what sort of foods I eat and letting them taste some for themselves.’

Rebecca’s son Dylan is also vegan. ‘People think he misses out but he doesn’t.’ Treats include frozen banana popsicles and vegan cupcakes which he also takes along to parties. If people challenge her choice to bring Dylan up as a vegan she just tells them to take a look at him. ‘He’s very healthy,’ she says.

To get started Rebecca suggests a couple of vegan cookbooks. And if you get stuck VNV hosts a forum for advice and support. www.vnv.org.au

Choosing a vegan lifestyle for ethical rather than dietary reasons extends further than just what goes in your fridge and pantry. As most vegetarians know there are by-products of animals such as fishmeal, gelatin or rennet, an enzyme taken from the stomach of calves, ‘hidden’ in many foods and other consumables. For vegans this extends to cosmetics and toiletries as well as clothes and fashion accessories.

According to the Vegetarian Society of Queensland hidden ingredients can include animal proteins, hair and bristles, collagen, glycerin, musk, silk, beeswax and honey. For a list of cruelty free products the cruelty free shop www.crueltyfreeshop.com.au publishes a booklet every year designed to guide vegans through cruelty free shopping. In addition, many food additives are of animal derivative or tested on animals, such as cochineal, a red colouring made from crushed beetles. The Vegetarian Network of Victoria provides additive cards which can be kept in a purse or wallet and used at the supermarket until you become familiar with brands.

It’s even possible to get vegan dog and cat food in Australia now. Visit www.veganpet.com.au

Pete Francis, 31, of Sydney has been vegetarian for about 8 years. He was vegan for 2 years but says it is not always easy to be vegan. When he went traveling he found it difficult to maintain his lifestyle. ‘Traveling isn’t particularly vegan friendly, especially when you are in the jungle in South America or walking a pilgrimage through France and Spain. Eggs became a staple of protein in both these environments, and even then locals thought I was strange for not eating meat!’

After that Pete met his wife who had a young daughter. ‘I wanted them to take on my vegetarian lifestyle but I didn’t feel that I could expect them to go vegan too. Perhaps one day we will make that transition.’

He also feels it’s difficult to get good vegan products and restaurants outside of major cities.

Pete, however, is also keen to pursue a sustainable organic lifestyle. In this way he sees goats and chickens could be part of a sustainable home using permaculture principles. ‘There can be a tendency to replace dairy and eggs with processed products such as soy cheese, and margarine. Perhaps,’ he considers, ‘if animals were respected and treated gently it would be acceptable to use their milk or eggs if it were produced on a small, natural scale not mass produced like commercial industry.’

Rebecca uses processed foods only occasionally and has recently begun to make her own soy milk which is sugar free and of a much higher quality than many commercial brands. For those who still want to consume some dairy she suggests ‘Biodynamic farming and organic farming are gentler ways of doing things.’