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Jayden Asato

Mr. Lay

English 11 Section S2B3

May 2022

Vegan For the Day

Introduction

Today, veganism and healthy diets have been a big topic that has been discussed

repeatedly. Many people attempt to push and advocate for veganism, but very little progress has

been made as only 0.5% of US adults are vegan. But going entirely vegan is a big commitment

and cannot be forced upon anyone. So even developing a more organic and healthier lifestyle is

something more people should be implementing. Not only for personal health and gain, but to

also help communities and the environment, as factory farming, which is the lead production in

animal agriculture, has been placing negative impacts on our society, health, and environment for

multiple decades.

As our society continues to grow and develop, much more emphasis needs to be placed

upon healthier and more organic diet options and lifestyles. Many people aren’t educated enough

about the effects of factory farming or the effects that different meats have on our bodies. So,

they choose to keep on consuming and supporting these inhumane practices unknowingly. But

once educated and taught, more stress can be put on developing a healthier lifestyle, as in

shopping at Community Supported Agriculture or any other organic organizations. Although

Veganism is an amazing alternative and healthy diet, not many people indulge in this lifestyle

due to lack of resources, a lack of guidance and education, and personal preference. To

encourage a more prospering organic and vegan society, our community can advocate for vegan
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lifestyles, support more organic organizations such as CSAs (community supported agriculture)

and educate more people on the impacts of animal agriculture.

Problem

There are many benefits of adopting a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle that outweigh the

health effects of having a meat-based diet. Although not fully recognizable, there are many

detriments of red meat to our health and the disease factors that go along with it.

Many people believe that eating more protein and meats is much more required to have a

healthy lifestyle. But that couldn’t be more wrong. An intake of red meat and protein is more

detrimental to the human body than beneficial. For example, “Red and processed meat intake has

been positively associated with cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes mellitus and certain

cancers through epidemiological studies” (Petti, 2017). This illustrates how intake of red meat

can be more detrimental to our health and increase the risk and possibility of developing life-

threatening diseases. Meats contain no dietary fiber and contain large amounts of cholesterol and

saturated fats that raise cholesterol concentrations. These conditions along with other factors that

go into red meat have made it become associated with highly detrimental diseases such as

diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and certain cancers as well. On the contrary, people who run

on a vegetarian diet have lower risks of diabetes, arthritis, cancers, and fatal heart diseases.

Besides taste, is there another reason why people would still choose meat consumption over

vegetarianism?

Large intakes and consumption of meat can be just as detrimental as any other fatty food

for your body. It’s questionable how people would still choose to consume red meat, knowing

that it comes from factory farming which is detrimental to our health, environment, and animals.
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Knowing this, more people in our society today should consider adopting a vegan, vegetarian, or

healthier diet.

Consuming meat and dairy products come with heavy risk. When faced with the harsh

reality of where meat and dairy products come from, people need to rethink what they put in

their bodies. Factory farming has been a major issue in the world and needs to come to fruition to

stop the use of this inhumane and damaging practice.

Factory farming is the practice or system of producing livestock through highly intensive

and inhumane methods in which the livestock are kept at high stocking density under strictly

controlled conditions. Not only does factory farming negatively affect animals and livestock, but

it also has negative impacts on the environment and consumers’ health as well. For example,

“Animal farming is a major source of the greenhouse gases methane and nitrous oxide. An

estimated 16% of all methane production and 80% of the annual increase in nitrous oxide comes

from agriculture.” (Turner, 1999). As stated, factory farming is a main contributor of a

greenhouse gas called methane, which is one of the main factors that go into global warming.

Also, according to the CDC, children that live near factory farms have a higher chance of

establishing bronchitis or asthma due to poor air quality created by hydrogen sulfide emissions.

Even with all these negative effects, factory farming continues to grow as

The FAO, World Bank and United States Agency for International Development

(USAID), in a wide-ranging 1996 report Livestock and the Environment, defined

‘industrial’ animal farming as that where less than 10% of the animal feed is produced

within the production unit. All over the world, such units are often situated near to urban

centers or to ports to facilitate the transport of feed and products. Industrial livestock
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production is the fastest growing form of animal farming, responsible for 43% of the

world’s meat in 1996, up from 37% in the period 1991-93. This includes half of the

world’s total pig meat and poultry meat, 10% of all beef and sheep meat and two-thirds

of all eggs. (Turner, 1999).

This illustrates the increase in factory farming and how it is still a major problem not only in the

US but in the whole world. Many companies utilize factory farming to produce meat and dairy

products for consumers. People today are not educated enough to know all these facts about

factory farming and still support the system, even with the negative effects it has on our society.

Previous Efforts

Although many people aren’t educated enough about animal agriculture and the negative

effects of factory farming, veganism, and organic lifestyles are being pushed in our society today

through advocacy. Although advocacy is still in progress, there are still showings that prove they

are not for naught.

Today, veganism is a very large and intricate topic that is being talked about quite

frequently. But many people are very skeptical of trying these kinds of diets or any organic diets

in general. Advocates for veganism are trying to make a push to get people onto and see the

benefits of going vegan or even developing a more organic lifestyle. Acknowledgment and

participation are slowly increasing through vegan advocates: “Consumers are expressing

increasing interest in plant-based foods in general (Pollock Communications 2017), with a 257%

rise in vegan claims on new food and beverage products in the US and a near doubling of interest

in vegan diets on online search engines” (Kirk, 2018). The effort towards vegan advocacy is not

for naught. Issues that advocates face is that veganism or ethical food consumption can often be
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misconstrued in the media as propaganda. Veganism can also be misconstrued as a marketization

or corporatization of consumers’ values that only deal with high-class individuals. As this is not

totally false, as many companies abuse capitalism and propaganda of veganism to draw in

consumers, there are still many companies that advocate for veganism and organic diets

genuinely. The advocation for veganism is slowly on the rise and it is shown through the 257%

increase in vegan products purchased and the doubling of veganism being searched on the

internet.

People are truly trying to make a change and invest people into a vegan and organic

lifestyle. Having more people invest and try a vegan diet will reduce many health risks and

issues that would arise if they were to continue to consume different types of food that pertain to

animals. Also, this would reduce the amount of usage on factory farms which only have negative

impacts on us, the environment, and animals. Advocation for veganism is proving efficient as

far, but there could be some changes made to increase the amount of those who would partake in

this lifestyle. Community Supported Agriculture has also been introduced as a great way to

obtain produce without running the risk of propaganda being pushed by many companies.

Through Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), many people realize the benefits and

advantages of starting a more vegan or organic lifestyle. Along with avoiding factory-owned

companies and fake propaganda, CSAs allow consumers to support local businesses while

receiving more organic and higher quality products for their diet.

Supporting CSAs is much more efficient than shopping at supermarkets and using

companies that are being run by factories and likely using factory farming as well. Not only does

using CSAs help obtain healthier produce, but they also aid the idea of supporting communities

and locally owned businesses as well. So, doing this is an example of tackling two issues at once,
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factory farming and local businesses that may be struggling due to the pandemic. By choosing to

go to CSAs you are avoiding the risk of supporting companies who use false marketing stunts to

get more money for their business. Although some companies value their customers and give

them honest statements about their products, there are still many companies that use fake

advertising, like vegan companies, who use fake marketing about a product that is supposed to

be “vegan”. CSA is the perfect way for consumers to experience organic produce while avoiding

propaganda and factory-owned companies: “Perez, Allen, and Brown (2003) found healthier

eating habits among California CSA members. CSA shareholders in Minnesota and Wisconsin

said that their CSA participation led to eating more, fresher, and a greater variety of vegetables,

shopping less and changing to healthier eating habits” (Brown, 2008). These surveys conducted

in California, Minnesota, and Wisconsin show that many individuals who choose to shop and

support CSAs obtain more fresh produce and vegetables, along with many people adopting a

healthier and more organic lifestyle.

Solutions

Our society can use CSAs to develop a healthier and more organic lifestyle. Without

running the risk of supporting false companies who use factory farming to produce their

products, CSAs are a great alternative for us to obtain natural produce and higher quality

vegetables to support a vegan lifestyle. Along with this, you are also supporting locally owned

businesses within your state. As many small businesses are struggling due to the pandemic,

supporting them by buying their produce is a good way to help. It is also more likely to have

people support the locally owned business if you endorse them as well. Using CSAs is a perfect
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way to help solve the problem of factory farming and help people develop a more organic,

vegan, and healthy lifestyle.

Even though CSAs are an amazing and ethical way to obtain a healthy lifestyle and stop

the process of factory farming, there are still some ways that these efforts can be even more

ambiguous. As for CSAs, they are not shown much at all in the media, and not much emphasis or

support is awarded to them. So, these remain more out of the spotlight in terms of obtaining

produce and groceries for people who have organic and healthy lifestyles. So, to improve the

efforts toward CSAs, there need to be more people who go out and support and promote these

organizations. There have been some efforts made as “Farmers markets could be considered the

historical flagship of local food systems, and their numbers in the United States have grown

significantly over the last decade, a 150% increase from 1994 through 2006” (Brown, 2008). But

more CSAs need to be in operation across the US and the world with more access for regular

consumers. For more people to support these CSAs, more emphasis on education needs to be put

in place.

Not much emphasis is being put on veganism and vegetarianism in our school systems

today. Many public education schools and many universities seem to neglect the idea of

veganism and vegetarianism entirely. But universities are now attempting to make a change in

the way they distribute vegan meals on campus which is a step in the right direction. But for both

public education schools and universities, need to attempt to do more in educating students about

veganism, vegetarianism, and the effects of animal agriculture as well.

The reason why many people today don’t follow a vegan or organic lifestyle is that they

lack the education and knowledge about these subjects. Many people consume animal products
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and animal byproducts without getting the proper education on what goes into making and

producing the meat or any other animal product they are consuming. As for public schools,

education on veganism and animal agriculture is not emphasized enough as

“… in thousands of schools across the country, corporate agribusiness has run amok in

the attempt to utilize public education as a place to establish the naturalization of

commercial meat and dairy as lifelong eating habits, to generate increased sales, to

subsidize the food industry against decreased producer prices, as well as to funnel below-

health standards food not fit for public sale” (Khan, 2011).

Many public schools are advertising many commercial meat and dairy products on campus

which insights many students to believe and follow the message they are trying to advertise.

Although not all false, these commercials are not distributing accurate information or proper

education about what goes into these products that are being listed all over school campuses. To

get our society to accept and utilize vegan and organic diets, we need to start with the youth of

our country by educating them on veganism, vegetarianism, and animal agriculture.

As for universities, a stronger push or more effort is being put into educating students and

people about vegan lifestyles. This quote from the article illustrates the efforts being made by

universities to further students’ education on veganism. “… we are now witnessing an almost

faddish rise of scholarship on nonhuman animals through the development of interdisciplinary

post humanist discourse and the emergence of fields such as “Human-Animal Studies” (Khan,

2011). Including these courses and fields in universities is exactly what is needed for our society

to become more educated on the topic of veganism and animal agriculture/factory farming.

Having fields dedicated to these topics allows students to dive into a whole new world of

learning about the horrors of factory farming and animal agriculture, while also learning the
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benefits of veganism and organic lifestyles as well. This information can also be spread to others

through social media and close friends.

Having the public more educated on vegan and organic lifestyles is something that needs

to be done for our society to live in a much healthier and safer environment. When educating

others about veganism, ignorance and bias can be shut down with hard facts and evidence.

Implementing fields in universities that deal with the education of veganism is something that

will boost our society to a much more organic, vegan, and healthy lifestyle.

Conclusion

While developing and learning more about organic and vegan lifestyles can be a

challenge, we can all attempt to at least go out and try to do these things with the many resources

and options we have in the 21st Century. My partner Vanessa and I attempted to go out and try

these things by partnering with Mohala Farms and working with them by helping on their farms

and producing agriculture. We also worked towards our solution by promoting Mohala Farms

through social media and by talking about this issue with people we know. This was so we could

get more people to get to support CSA and attempt a healthier and more organic lifestyle.

As we continue to grow and prosper as a society, so does the need for more produce,

meats, and dairy from animal agriculture. As factory farming continues to grow, it is beginning

to become an even larger problem not only in the US but across the world as well. Once people

become more educated and informed on these topics, we will be able to offset the negative

impacts of factory farming and bring our society to a healthier and more organic state.
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Works Cited

Petti, Alessandra, et al. "Vegetarianism and veganism: not only benefits but also gaps. A
review." Prog. Nutr 19.3 (2017): 229-242.

Kirk, Joss. "Is vegan advocacy effective?"

Brown, Cheryl, and Stacy Miller. “The Impacts of Local Markets: A Review of Research on
Farmers Markets and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).” American Journal of
Agricultural Economics, vol. 90, no. 5, 2008, pp. 1296–302,
http://www.jstor.org/stable/20492388. Accessed 3 May 2022.

Kahn, Richard. "Towards an animal standpoint: Vegan education and the epistemology of
ignorance." Epistemologies of ignorance in education (2011): 53-70.

Turner, Jacky. Factory farming and the environment. Petersfield, RU: Compassion in World
Farming Trust, 1999.

Brown, Cheryl, and Stacy Miller. "The impacts of local markets: A review of research on
farmers markets and community-supported agriculture (CSA)." American journal of
agricultural economics 90.5 (2008): 1296-1302.