1st November marks World Vegan Day, and Dr Bronner’s is proud to say that most of its products are certified vegan, making them inclusive for everyone who chooses not to use products with any bi products from animals.
As part of our All-One Initiative, we work with Surge Activism, a grassroots, non-profit animal rights organisation determined to create a world where compassion towards all non-human animals is the norm.
We spoke to Tati Rheinbaben from Surge Activism about common questions they face around Veganism, where shes gathered lots of helpful resources so if you, or someone you know is thinking of going Vegan, you can see why its such a great lifestyle change to make!
Hi Tati, thanks for speaking to us today! What is one misconception around Veganism that you often find holds people back from going Vegan?
There are various misconceptions, and we suggest you take a look at our founder Ed’s (pictured) free e-book 30 Non-Vegan Excuses and How to Respond to Them. https://earthlinged.org/ebook
One very common misconception is that people say that they love animal products, and it would be too hard for them to give up that taste even if they are aware of the suffering their personal choices cause. In fact, most people who are vegan today had those thoughts at some point before going vegan.
As Ed points out in his book, “a non-vegan meal lasts for 15 minutes, but the death of an animal is eternal.”
Luckily, for most of us there are plenty of delicious alternatives so going vegan doesn’t imply giving up any flavours, any nutritious foods, or any dishes we grew up with as kids. In most grocery stores there is now a huge and varied selection of vegan alternatives to meats, cheese, milk, eggs and ice cream. As vegans we can eat burgers, hot dogs, and tacos and join a barbeque or Thanksgiving where we can eat the vegan version of the foods we always have at these gatherings.
For someone thinking of going vegan, are there any small steps you can take to start out?
Absolutely and in fact, we have a short Surge Media production called ‘How to Go Vegan’ (in 5 simple steps), outlining these steps to go vegan.
- Educate yourself further. There are so many great documentaries and resources out there to learn about every aspect of veganism and a plant-based diet. Have a look into what foods provide what nutrients, so that you know good plant-based sources for protein, iron, calcium, vitamin B12, etc.
- Look up recipes and learn how to veganise your favourite dishes. On Youtube and Instagram you can find countless easy recipes showing you to veganise your favourite dishes. We don’t need to reinvent the wheel, we can just make some slight alterations to our old favourite meals.
- When first going vegan, track your food intake a couple of times a week to make sure that you are eating enough calories and getting all the nutrients that you need. Apps like Cronometer are a great way to do this.
- Don’t worry if you have cravings for animal products at first. It is normal to crave products that we used to eat. If you ever feel a craving, remind yourself of why you decided to become vegan. Remind yourself of what happens to dairy cows, watch some footage online and then grab some vegan ice cream instead. If you slip up at the beginning, the most important thing is to just carry on afterwards. Don’t allow a mistake or a slip up to knock your confidence or set you back. Just move on and focus on each day at a time.
- People around you will ask you lots of questions about being vegan, so make sure to learn how to respond to people’s questions when they come up in conversation. What convinced you to make the change yourself? What do you eat to make sure you follow a balanced diet? Where can I buy vegan donuts that are as yummy as the ones I usually by?
All new habits take a bit to build and get used to, and veganism is no different. It might take a little extra effort to read up and learn about veganism and a well-balanced plant-based diet, but once you get the hang of it, doing grocery and going out to restaurants will be no different than before.
How can going Vegan help save the planet?
A study by J. Poore and T. Nemecek published in 2019 found that animal agriculture uses 83% of all global agricultural land yet produces less than two fifths of the protein we consume and less than one fifth of the calories we consume. Raising animals for meat, dairy and eggs is responsible for 14.5% of greenhouse gas emissions, meaning the emissions produced from animal agriculture is more than the combined exhaust of the transportation industry. Switching to a plant based diet would also allow us to feed everyone on the planet whilst also freeing up 75% of agricultural land, which is an area of land equivalent in size to the whole of Australia, China, the EU and the US combined. Land which could then be reforested and restored, allowing us to sequester 16 years worth of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by the year 2050.
As J. Poore and T. Nemecek conclude, “A vegan diet is probably the single biggest way to reduce your impact on planet Earth, not just greenhouse gases, but global acidification, eutrophication, land use and water use. It is far bigger than cutting down on your flights or buying an electric car.”
https://www.surgeactivism.org/whyvegan
Link to the study by J. Poore and T. Nemecek:
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.aaq0216
Aside from diet, where are other areas of life that are easy to make vegan changes? Eg. Clothes, personal hygiene products
Any aspect in your life can be veganised. Apart from learning about the impact our food choices have, inform yourself about the origins of your clothes and personal hygiene products to learn for example about the leather, wool, and fur industry, and also about the way in which many hygiene products are tested on animals prior to being sold to humans. Luckily, there are also plenty of cruelty-free alternatives today such as vegan leather made out of cork or pineapple leaves and certainly Dr. Bronner’s wonderful hygiene products where everyone can find his/her favourite scent for any occasion.
What are your tips for people who feel pressured by others to not go vegan?
Often people can find it very confronting when someone in their life goes vegan, as they are suddenly faced with questions around the morality of their own purchases. It is not uncommon that many friends and family members are not going to fully approve of your choice to go vegan. However, at no point should this stop you from going vegan.
What makes the situation particularly hard is that so many social interactions with friends and family revolve around food so people don’t want to isolate themselves by avoiding situations that involve food. Fortunately, this situation is getting easier all the time as more and more places are introducing vegan options and vegan menus and the concept of veganism is becoming increasingly normalised. Moreover, try and encourage family members to look at why it is that you want to go vegan, perhaps ask them if they can watch a documentary with you, or some YouTube videos. You could cook for your family in order to show them that vegan food is delicious, affordable, accessible and healthy.
There is also a huge community of vegans both online and offline and if you, or if someone you’re talking to is struggling with their non-vegan friends, or wants to go vegan but is worried about their friends, encourage them to join online vegan groups or to go to vegan meet ups where they can meet likeminded people.
Have you got any resources that can help make the journey to veganism easier and more meaningful?
Youtube, Instagram, and Facebook are probably going to be some of your new best friends! You can find plenty of easy (and also more elaborate) vegan recipes on YouTube and Instagram. The channel BOSH TV for instance has countless international recipes.
Also the amount of documentaries and books on this topic has grown enormously. Free platforms like Waterbear feature various shorter and longer documentaries and of course on Netflix you can also find films covering the ethical and environmental implications of our diets.
There are many very knowledgeable plant-based doctors who have written books or made Youtube videos to explain how a well-balanced plant-based diet is very beneficial for human health, like Dr. Michael Greger and and Dr. Neal Barndar.
Finally, Facebook groups are also great places to clarify doubts you have and to find a community more than happy to support on your vegan journey.
Surge also has a Vegan Start Pack that we will upload to our website soon.
For now, if you wish to receive it, please contact Tati at [email protected]
Dr. Bronner’s is a family business committed to honouring the vision of our founder Dr. E.H. Bronner by making socially and environmentally responsible products of the highest quality, and by dedicating our profits to helping make a better world. “All-One!”