Every little helps, but January isn’t enough
Fundamental change is needed
Veganuary is one of the best things to happen to the vegan movement. However, we must be careful not to reinforce the notion that having the odd meat-free meal, or even vegan month, will solve the major animal welfare issues, social problems and environmental damages created by animal agriculture.
A positive, supportive and compassionate vegan movement, like Veganuary, is the best way to get people onboard. The large majority of people don’t go vegan overnight. It is a journey of educating yourself, reprogramming the way you think and steadily reducing and eliminating your consumption.
As stated in a recent scientific report, “the planet is facing a ghastly future of mass extinction, declining health and climate-disruption upheavals that threaten human survival because of ignorance and inaction”. A vegan movement is a key part to the range of fundamental changes we need in the way we live our lives.
At the very least, we need to abolish factory farming. Globally around 95% of agriculture animals are factory farmed. This is not because of one or two bad apples, it is true of most nations. Around 99% of animals are factory farmed in the USA, 95% in Australia, and around 80–90% in Europe and the UK.
Most people are aware that factory farming is bad for animal welfare, causes extensive damage to the environment and creates a breeding ground for pandemic disease. In many surveys, the majority of people say they would support an end to factory farming. By focusing on the farming practise itself, rather than the personal change individuals would have to make to their way of life, the audience is often more receptive.
But few people realise, if we were to end factory farming you cannot simply shift production to “organic” or “free-range”. Agriculture already accounts for at least 50% of the world’s habitable land, the vast majority of this being for animals or animal-feed. Free-range animal farming requires considerably more land than factory farming, there simply isn’t the space to shift production. Research has also shown that free-range and organic animal agriculture is actually just as bad for climate change and the environment, if not worse; and also contributes greatly to the emergence of pandemic disease.
It is important people realise that abolishing factory-farming would mean reducing consumption of animal products by at least 90% from a standard western diet. They would have to consume meat, fish, dairy and egg products only around twice a month — “almost vegan”.
Due to our surroundings, we are naturally resistant to becoming vegan. Eating the flesh, milk and eggs from particular animals is wrongly considered to be normal and necessary. It is apparently rational and moral to value the life of an intelligent sentient animal less than the pleasure you get from the way they taste.
A good place to start is showing people that we must end factory farming — and therefore become “almost vegan”. We must encourage socially and environmentally conscious life-choices, and increase people’s awareness of what they are supporting through their purchases; but, we must also be honest. Meat-free Mondays or one vegan month a year will not solve the animal’s problems, or ours.
