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Writer's pictureEmma Nash

Veganuary Challenge

I stopped eating meat 25 years ago. It was my first year at university and I was studying for a module on ethics. I had an essay to write on utilitarianism and animal rights, and (as sadly I often did then), I'd left it till the last minute to write the essay. I stayed up all night reading and writing. At some point during the night I thought to myself, "I'm convinced by this argument. I don't want to eat animals anymore." So I stopped. Apart from a few blips (when staying in a village in Ghana I ate everything I was given without quibbling; I also went through a sausage sandwich phase around that time to "practise eating meat") I haven't eaten meat since.


There are lots of reasons people reduce their meat consumption, or cut it out altogether. Back then, the argument that convinced me went like this. Utilitarianism in ethics is the idea that the right thing to do is that which produces the greatest happiness for the greatest number. When we intensively farm and then kill animals in order to eat them, we're producing great suffering to sentient beings for a relatively trivial benefit: eating something enjoyable. We can survive perfectly well on vegetarian food, perhaps with some vitamin supplements. Those who know me well may smile at this point, as they know that I eat fish. I've often thought that I'd like to stop eating fish too. There is some logic there: it's the animal welfare implications of intensive farming that really upset me. I have more of an issue with keeping animals in inhumane conditions than I do with killing animals for food. (A vegan once pointed out to me that killing animals isn't exactly humane. He had a point).


I've also become uncomfortably aware in recent years that dairy and egg production can be very inhumane too. Then I read 'There is no Planet B' by Tim Berners-Lee a couple of years ago and was fascinated and horrified to discover that the environmental arguments for veganism - or at least for cutting right back on meat, fish and dairy - are just as compelling as the animal welfare ones. We're facing a global climate emergency which will negatively affect every sentient being on earth. Having steak and chips, or a delicious platter of sushi in my case, is pretty trivial in comparison. I've often toyed with the idea of going completely vegan. So this January I'm going to try it.


Check out https://veganuary.com if you're interested in trying it too.



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Peter Maggs
Peter Maggs
Jan 01, 2023

OK, finger trouble on my part...

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Peter Maggs
Peter Maggs
Jan 01, 2023

Chopped my post off again...

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Peter Maggs
Peter Maggs
Jan 01, 2023

Well I'll admit that when I was thinking of veganism and ethics, I did forget about the planet for the moment. And yes, it was the footage of abattoirs all over our TV screens during the mad-cow disease scare, that put me off eating meat permanently. Of course I agree too that egg and milk production must be done with minimal distress to the animals involved. I would like to think that said animals were 'paid' in the provision of food, shelter, and medical care in exchange for their eggs and milk.


Yes, I am a 'vegetarian' fish-eater, and I dread someone finding out that fish are sentient... Indeed there is considerable evidence that octopuses possess great intelligence, which is…


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Peter Maggs
Peter Maggs
Jan 01, 2023

An interesting conundrum for a Christian Emma. There is plenty of encouragement to eat meat in the Old Testament although the New Testament, to which you would more obviously incline, is equivocal. On the other hand an atheist might reference Darwinian evolution, showing unambiguously that humans and pigs shared a common ancestor only 80 million years ago. Surely consumption of pork and other meat is tantamount to cannibalism, a very strong taboo in almost all cultures. And pigs are known to have very high intelligence—as much or even more than dogs; try asking an enthusiastic meat-eater what they would think about eating dog...


Having said that, I struggle to see what ethical justification can exist for veganism. Above all though,…

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Emma Nash
Emma Nash
Jan 01, 2023
Replying to

Hi Dad. You didn’t mention in your comment that you’ve been a pescatarian for longer than I have. Wasn’t it a programme on abbatoirs that turned you off meat? If egg and milk production causes distress to animals, isn’t that a case for veganism? I think the environmental argument is the most compelling, however - a vegan diet has the lowest carbon footprint and is the most sustainable in terms of feeding everyone on the planet. It’s not really a faith issue for me, just a really obvious and urgent necessity.

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