Chapter 1

The Nuts and Bolts of Veganism

IN THIS CHAPTER

Defining what vegan means

Exploring what inspires people to adopt a vegan lifestyle

Breaking down misconceptions about vegan food

Examining vegan demographics

There has never been a better time to go vegan.

It wasn’t that long ago that vegan specialty products were hard to find outside large cities like New York City or Los Angeles. Even then, you may have needed to visit a health food store to purchase nondairy cheese or find a package of veggie burgers.

Here’s where we stand now:

• Big-box stores have whole freezer and refrigerator cases full of vegan products.
• Vegan cheese is available at several mainstream pizza chains.
• Many ice cream shops offer nondairy ice cream.
• Most coffee shops offer nondairy milk.
• Plant-based burgers are sold at certain nationwide fast-food chains.

And every year brings more innovation. Foods or products that were once a stumbling block now have a vegan alternative. You can find vegan eggs that sizzle, cashew cheeses worthy of a showstopping grazing board, high-quality vegan leather purses, and plant-based meats that may make you do a double take.

In 2021, Google identified the search term “vegan food near me” as a breakthrough search in its “Year in Search” report. Because people wanted to find plant-based food in their area, the term grew by more than 5,000 percent that year! In January 2023, a record number of 700,000 people pledged to eat plant-based meals for Veganuary, a monthlong vegan challenge.

Thanks to the internet and various social media sites, it’s easier than ever to get informed about where your food comes from, find vegan recipes and products, and locate other like-minded people. The picture of who goes vegan is changing from a hypothetical cartoon to a living, breathing person on the screen of your phone or computer. As people glean more information, they’re becoming more open to finding alternatives to the status quo.

With this growing enthusiasm, there’s more awareness than ever before of what veganism means. Even my 83-year-old aunt asked me at Thanksgiving, “If two vegans have a fight, is it still called a beef?” (I had to let her down gently … “No, that’s Beyond Beef.”)

In this chapter, you discover what being vegan entails, examine the reasons people choose this lifestyle, and find out that vegan food is all around you. Plus, I reveal that you’ll be in very good company if you make this dietary switch!

Knowing What It Means to Be Vegan

Some people are confused about the difference between being vegan and being vegetarian. That’s understandable, because they do have some similarities and overlap.

If you’re vegetarian, you don’t eat cows, pigs, chickens, turkeys, fish, or any other animals. Vegans don’t eat any animals either. Plus, vegans expand that list to include anything that comes from an animal or uses one as a commodity.

• Vegans don’t eat meat, dairy, eggs, or honey.
• Vegans avoid animal products in clothes, cosmetics, and household goods. They don’t buy products that include wool, fur, leather, or animal by-products.
• Vegans don’t support businesses and activities where animals are used as entertainment, like zoos, aquariums, rodeos, horse races, or circuses with animal acts.

Similar to the difference between the words vegan and vegetarian, when you’re vegan, you cut out a few more things than vegetarians do. For example, a vegetarian might eat dairy, eggs, or honey, wear wool, or visit a zoo. But a vegan would not. To put it another way, all vegans are vegetarian, but not all vegetarians are vegan.

Understanding Why People Choose to Go Vegan

People have a wide variety of motivations for going vegan. The most popular reasons are animal welfare concerns, health goals, or to reduce environmental impact. Some people choose a vegan lifestyle for a combination of any or all of those factors. The following sections explain each of these motivations on their own.

For the animals

For many people, choosing to go vegan is an extension of their own care and compassion for animals. Perhaps you love cats and dogs, and it occurs to you that cows, pigs, and chickens also have personalities and feelings. Those animals desire to raise their young, and live out their natural lives without needless suffering.

Or perhaps you saw a video of what happens to animals on farms and in slaughterhouses. When you saw the pain that animals endure, you knew you didn’t want to be a part of what’s generating demand for meat, dairy, and eggs. For you, going vegan is a way of living your own values of compassion.

I explore the compassion side of the equation in Chapters 16 and 17, where I share what happens to animals in modern agriculture. Plus, I offer tips on how to avoid animal by-products in clothing, cosmetics, and body products.

For their health

Some people go vegan for their health. Perhaps your doctor suggested it, or maybe you saw a health documentary that piqued your interest.

It may be that you’d like to lower your risk of certain types of cancer, type 2 diabetes, or heart disease. Maybe you want to lower your cholesterol, lower your blood pressure, improve your kidney function, or reap the benefits of a diet filled with antioxidants, fiber, and phytonutrients.

Whatever the specific reason, if health concerns are your main impetus for considering veganism, be sure to read Chapter 3. That’s where I cover the many potential health benefits of a plant-based diet.

For the environment

Others decide to go vegan for the environment. Maybe you realize that while cars and planes get a lot of press, animal agriculture shoulders more of the blame for greenhouse gas emissions and climate change.

According to the United Nations (UN), animal-based foods — most notably red meat, dairy, and farmed shrimp — are responsible for the highest greenhouse gas emissions. Plus, cattle ranching is the biggest driver of deforestation in the Amazon — by as much as 80 percent.

In a report titled Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of Climate Change, the UN noted that shifting to a plant-based diet has the potential to greatly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. According to the report, plant-based eating “could reduce pressure on forests and land used for feed, support the preservation of biodiversity and planetary health, and contribute to preventing forms of malnutrition … in developing countries.”

If environmental concerns are important to you, check out the section “Addressing Environmental Concerns” in Chapter 16. It lays out what there is to gain by choosing plant foods over animal foods.

Discovering that Vegan Food Is Just Food

Vegan food is anything that doesn’t come from an animal. It’s fruits, vegetables, mushrooms, nuts, seeds, beans, and grains. Pretty simple, right?

Many people have negative preconceptions about vegan food. I’ve even heard people say that they don’t like vegan food. I have to wonder exactly which food they’re talking about, because “vegan food” covers a lot of stuff!

The truth is, all of us eat vegan food — regardless of whether or not we’re vegan. If you’ve had any of these foods, you’ve had vegan food:

• A banana
• An apple
• Grapes
• Peanuts
• Popcorn or pretzels
• Vegetable dumplings
• French fries and ketchup
• Falafel and hummus
• A peanut butter and jelly sandwich
• Potato chips
• Pasta with spaghetti sauce
• A bean burrito
• Tomato soup with crackers
• Sourdough bread
• Green salad with balsamic...