Do plants really feel pain? Every now and then, a story will make the rounds on news sites and social media sharing the findings of a study that allegedly uncovered that plants, like animals, experience pain. These articles typically leverage the findings to push back at the ethics of not eating animals as if to […]

As a recently graduated student (and currently unemployed), I am not unfamiliar with living on a budget. However, I am prone to spending more than I should on food. This is mainly because where I live there are so many amazing vegan eats practically on my doorstep. I am weak-willed when faced with such delights […]

The Save Movement is a global organisation which holds peaceful vigils outside slaughter houses. The movement was started in Toronto with the formation of the Toronto Pig Save. This group was founded by an activist named Anita Krajnc, who made headlines last year when criminal charges were brought against her for offering water to thirsty […]

Last month we heard about a disgruntled customer who complained that a café specialising in vegetarian food was “too veggie” and “lacking in meat”. The customer in question aired his disappointment on TripAdvisor, where the owners of the café (the Retreat Tearoom and Bistro, Grassington) expressed their amusement at his strange complaint, pointing out that […]

Do vegan parents force their beliefs on their children? A well-planned plant-based diet is healthy for both babies and children.

With a penchant for adding chorizo or jamón to every dish going, Spain is not often a country associated with veganism (chorizo ice cream, anyone?). With this in mind, it was with some trepidation that I prepared myself for a week-long holiday in southern Spain with my family (all 100% omnivorous). Now, my family are very […]

Go to the comment section of any online article about veganism (if you dare!) and you will almost certainly come across a comment along the lines of “vegan diets are unhealthy” or “humans need to eat meat”. I am happy to report that current scientific understanding of nutrition suggests otherwise. What Are Major Medical Institutes […]

In a previous article, I wrote about the free-range egg industry, and how the idyllic image of happy hens scratching in the yard is not always that close to reality (see article here). I concluded that I could not buy free-range eggs with a clear conscience, knowing what goes on in the industry, so I have […]

Explaining veganism to people can be tricky. Generally, people seem to have got the hang of vegetarianism; it’s obvious that in order to make bacon, a pig has to die, there’s no getting around that fact. But when it comes to eggs, many are baffled; “surely it doesn’t hurt the chickens to take their eggs?” […]

Recently I was sent a link to a documentary by a friend which, according to said friend, was about veganism. It turned out not to really be about veganism at all but about “clean-eating”, although after watching it I could forgive my friend’s confusion. The documentary was called “Clean Eating’s Dirty Secrets”, originally aired on BBC […]

Few people would deny that animals are able, at least to some degree, to experience pain. However, in many cases farm animals routinely undergo procedures which are likely to cause pain without pain relief (often called “analgesia”). For example, the American Veterinary Medical Association reports that surgical castration of male piglets “is typically performed without […]