Are vegan diets a better alternative to meat eating?
Video clip at right: On February 3, 2020, HuffPost UK televised a segment which explained what could be gained environmentally by moving away from meat-based diets.
Introduction to the media issue
What they said...'The number of animals that die to produce vegan food is astonishing'
Matthew Evans, former chef and food critic
'Around two-thirds of all farm animals are factory farmed worldwide every year. This is nearly 50 billion animals'
Animal welfare group, Compassion in World Farming
The issue at a glance
On November 1, 2019, Vegan Australia announced that over 500 Australian food and other products had passed its strict certification criteria to be able to use the Vegan Australia Certified logo. The organisation further announced that these products now include Vegemite. Vegan Australia stated, 'We're excited that Vegemite has approached Vegan Australia to be certified, ensuring that their customers and the estimated 500,000 vegans who live in Australia know that Vegemite meets the high standards set by Vegan Australia.'
In order to achieve such a certification, the item must be free from animal products, not tested on animals and have been made without using animal products in the production process.
The organisation went on to claim, 'Research conducted by Roy Morgan has found...the trend in vegetarian eating continues to [be growing], with 2.5 million people in Australia (12.1 percent of the population) now eating all or almost all vegetarian. That's an additional 400,000 individuals choosing meat-free meals in Australia since 2016.'
As part of the growing adoption of vegan foods, there has been a significant increase in the production and consumption of synthetic meat products which use plant protein in a way which simulates the taste, texture and appearance of meat products derived from animals.
Proponents of these dietary choices stress their health and environmental benefits and the reduction in animal cruelty that results. Their opponents, however, maintain that these supposed advantages are more apparent than real.