Why do people go vegan?

Last week we talked about where veganism started and how it made its place on Aruba (if you haven’t seen it yet, click here!). But I bet one question that may be running through you mind is “why do people go vegan?” Or, in other words…

“DICON tin hende lo kier bira vegan y cambia bida asina drasticamente? Eta bale la pena?”

“WHY would anyone go vegan and change their lives so drastically? Is it worth it?” 

A very common question that vegans get is:

“Dicon hende vegan no ta djis come carni di bestia si nan gusta e sabor di carni asina hopi? Djis come carni ‘normal’!”

“Why have meat alternatives if you like the taste of meat so much? Just eat the meat!” 

This question highlights the main reason why people choose to go vegan. We’ll explain this more in a bit. But before we do, we asked some people from all over the world what it means to be vegan for them. Keep reading to find out what they said. 

“What does being vegan mean to you?”

We asked vegans from all over the world to give their answer to this question. Here’s what they said. The quotes have been translated into Papiamento. 

“To me, being vegan means showing compassion for any and all animals. It’s also a great way to help the environment.”

Pa mi, pa ta vegan kiermen: mustra compasion pa tur bestia. Tambe, e ta un manera hopi bon pa yuda sostene medio ambiente.

 

“To me it’s about avoiding as much cruelty as possible. For all beings, humans as well because humans are also animals.”

Pa mi e kiermen pa preveni crueldad mas tanto posibel. Pa tur ser na mundo, e ser humano tambe, pasobra e ser humano tambe ta considera un tipo di animal.

 

“Personally, being vegan means that we extend the same level of compassion to all beings we share this planet with. Just because we don’t all look or act the same does not mean our lives don’t have the same value and that we don’t share the same desire to live freely.”

Personalmente, pa ta vegano kiermen, cu nos ta duna e mesun nivel di compasion na tur ser cu ta comparti e planeta aki. Djis paso nos tur no ta parce otro ni actua mescos,no kiermen cu nos bida no tin e mesun balor y cu nos no tin e mesun deseo pa biba den Libertad.

Cristina from AllWaysGreenerConsulting

“[There are many reasons but] morally, I realized it didn’t make sense to me [as a veterinarian] to save one species while killing another just to satisfy my taste buds when I know there are cruelty-free ways of achieving the same. I am ready to sacrifice anything that I can make do without or find an alternative which doesn’t involve harming another species.”

[Tin hopi motibo, pero] mi a realisa cu moralmente e no ta make sense [como un veterinario] pa salba un tipo di bestia y mata un otro, solamente pa satisface mi sentido di gusto of sabor, siendo cu mi sa cu tin otro manera pa logra esaki, anto sin crueldad. Mi ta dispuesto pa sacrifica tur loke mi por biba sin dje of di busca alternativa cu no ta inclui haciment’i daño na un otro ser.

Rohit @uncleroh.it

 

For me, being vegan means a lot of things, it has changed my life forever. Apart from taking care of animals and the environment, I take care of my health. My body is my second home. 

• World
• Body 
• Home 

Thanks to veganism I feel better. I feel healthier.

Vegan pami ta nifica hopi, el a cambia mi bida completamente. Fuera di cuida bestia, mi ta cuida nos medio ambiente y na mesun momento mi ta cuida mi propio salud.
Mi curpa ta mi di dos cas.

• Mundo
• Curpa
• Hogar

Danki na veganismo mi ta sinti miho. Mi ta sinti mi saludabel.

Marielys from @vegan_naturalaruba

“Being vegan for me is learning to know food and each of its ingredients in depth. It is a magical world of experiences and possibilities to experiment and enjoy each step and each recipe that is prepared. Being vegan is a lifestyle that makes you feel at peace with yourself and the universe around you. [It means] to discover new ingredients, but above all, there is a big difference between just eating and feeding, where food touches your heart and soul.”

Un vegano pa mi, kiermen cu mi tin cu siña conoce cuminda y tur e ingredientenan, mas detayadamente.E ta un mundo magico di experiencia y posibilidadnan pa experimenta y disfruta di cada paso y receta cu prepara. E ta un estilo di bida, cu ta pone bo sinti na paz cu bo mes y cu e universo rond di bo. [Pa ta vegano kiermen] descubri ingredientenan nobo, pero mas bien, e ta mustra bo e diferencia entre djis come of alimentacion, ora bo ta alimenta. . . e cuminda ta touch bo curason y bo alma.

Manuel from @manuelpalaciob

 

Vegan means delicious food, it means love for myself and all beings we share the planet with. It means ensuring a better environment to live in and a better future. 

“Vegan pa mi kiermen: cuminda dushi. E kiermen amor pa mi curpa y esnan no-humano cu nos ta comparti e mundo aki cu nan. Vegan kiermen pa mi: un miho medio ambiente y un miho futuro.”

Laura from @lsmvegan

 

“On most days it means aligning my actions with my values of non-violence and compassion.”

Mayoria di biaha esaki ta nifica cu mi tin cu pone mi acciones, y balornan di no-violencia y compasion, riba un solo liña.

Dayan Concessao from @czarcastic_boy

 

“It’s about consciousness, being able to unlearn what I thought I knew. It means to be present and aware of my actions and the effect it has on animals, people, and the environment.”

E tin di haber cu conscientisacion, pa mi lubida loke mi a kere cu mi tabata sa. Kiermen nos mester ta consciente di e situacion y actualisa nos accionan y e efecto cu nan tin riba bestia, hende, y nos medio ambiente.

 

An interesting thing to note from these responses is how being vegan means so much more than just the diet. The responses boil down to views on life and our role on this planet living among other sentient beings. And this view naturally manifests in the decisions that vegans make.

 

Understanding ‘veganism’

As @iye.loves.life so eloquently put it:

Veganism is not only a food movement, but it is also a “social and political movement in opposition to the intentional exploitation, commodification, and oppressions of animals for food, clothing, vivisection, entertainment or any other purposes.”

It means that we, as humans, don’t see other sentient beings like ourselves (animals) as less than us. We see them as co-existing beings on our planet. We have no right to take them against their will and torture them for a little pleasure, like eating a bacon and cheese sandwich. 

Vegans do what they can to minimize interference with nature as much to their control and understanding.

It can be difficult to really understand where our food and products come from. Avoiding meat and dairy is a good way to withhold a large chunk of contribution to the suffering of our fellow sentient beings. 

Vegan vs. Plant-based

The most obvious change that occurs when people take the plunge into veganism is their diet. Lots of people go vegan to become healthier individuals. We know that veganism means to avoid consuming all animal products. This includes: meat, poultry, seafood, milk, cheese, butter, eggs, honey. In short, vegans eat everything that comes from plants! (Click here to read our previous post that goes into more detail about this)

However, there is a difference between being vegan and plant-based. Although a plant-based diet falls under ‘being vegan’, ‘vegan’ doesn’t always fall under ‘plant-based’. The main difference boils down to the view of our role in the world. 

 Veganism is a movement that raises awareness for the animals and our role as co-existing beings on planet earth. Plant-based tends to refer mainly to the diet. 

Often, people who call themselves “plant-based” have chosen this diet to improve their health. A plant-based diet doesn’t always eliminate animal products, whereas a vegan diet does. 

In other words, the word ‘vegan’ is associated with ethics and ‘plant-based’ is associated with health. 

The environmental impact

We’ve covered the moral and health reasons for being vegan in this article. The other factor is the environmental impact. Studies have shown that consuming less meat, i.e. following a plant-based diet, can have a positive impact on the environment [1] [2].

The United Nations have argued that a plant-based diet can help fight climate change [3]. 

“One of the top two or three most significant contributors to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global.” [4]

Our planet is getting warmer and warmer because of greenhouse gas emissions leading to global warming [5]. Our food consumption plays a major role in these emissions. 

Not only is consuming meat, poultry, etc. unsustainable, so is fishing, which is extremely common on our island. People often think that having seafood is sustainable. However, this isn’t the case. 

Despite that fish are fully sentient beings, the industrial fishing industry is the source of a whopping 46% of all ocean plastic [6]. Yes, straws and bottles do make up a lot of the plastic in the ocean. But so do things like nets, crates, baskets, and other fishing gear [7]. 

So, has this article helped you understand why people go vegan a little more?
Are you thinking about going vegan? Did this post help you understand vegans and the decisions they make?
Do you have any more questions?

Please let us know in the comments below or send us a DM @veganaruba on Instagram or Facebook!

If you need any help making the change, we’re here for you! Currently, there are currently two vegan coaches on Aruba ready to help you achieve your vegan goals. For more information click here or send us an email veganaruba@gmail.com 

 

Written by: Varsha Melwani

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Sources: 

[1] Chai, B.C. et al. “Which Diet Has the Least Environmental Impact on Our Planet? A Systematic Review of Vegan, Vegetarian and Omnivorous Diets”
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/15/4110

[2] Van den Kamp, M.E., et al. “Healthy diets with reduced environmental impact? – The greenhouse gas emissions of various diets adhering to the Dutch food based dietary guidelines.”
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0963996917302594

[3] BBC environmental analyst “Plant-based diet can fight climate change – UN”
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-49238749#:~:text=Switching%20to%20a%20plant%2Dbased,produce%20is%20fuelling%20global%20warming.

[4]  PETA “Fight climate change by going vegan”
https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/global-warming/

[5] United Nations “United in Science report: Climate Change has not stopped for COVID19” https://public.wmo.int/en/media/press-release/united-science-report-climate-change-has-not-stopped-covid19

[6] Parker, L. “The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Isn’t What You Think it Is” National Geographic.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/news/2018/03/great-pacific-garbage-patch-plastics-environment/

[7] PETA “Commercial Fishing: How Fish Get From the High Seas to Your Supermarket”
https://www.peta.org/issues/animals-used-for-food/factory-farming/fish/commercial-fishing/