The Kind Omnivore

You don’t have to be a vegan to make a difference

Oh hai there. Two non-Taiwan related posts in a row in Taipology? Yes, I am indeed a maniac. But I really want you to read this one, OK?

Usually this is where I give you the party line about how the scales fell from my eyes and I began my magical vegan journey a year ago, how I’m healthier than ever and it’s barely an inconvenience. But I’m trying to make it a habit not to lie to you on this blog.

Being a vegan fucking sucks. Going out with friends and splitting the bill evenly while all you could eat was a dish of pickled radish fucking sucks. Eating nothing but carbs all day because you didn’t plan well enough fucking sucks. Missing your favorite dishes from home fucking sucks. But not being able to try new foods traveling also fucking sucks. Having to take smelly B vitamins so you don’t get that galloping brain hole disease thing fucking sucks. Being called out as a hypocrite for eating a cookie that has whey as a 16th ingredient in it really fucking sucks.

But you know what really fucking sucks? That you do all this because you care about reducing animal suffering but statistically speaking practically nobody is going to join you. And you can’t even judge them since you didn’t go vegan yourself until a year ago. Where did you used to think meat came from? Ol’ Uncle McDonald’s happy farm? Puh-leese.

So from now on, even though I will remain a vegan myself and even support you all the way if you want to do this thing that fucking sucks, I will never try and convince anyone to be a vegan. Instead, I have changed my goal to something that I hope has a much greater chance of success: To reduce the amount of animal suffering in the aggregate as far as I am able. And to do that, I need to enlist you, my omnivore friends. I have rounded up ten ideas. I’m pretty sure many of them would horrify most of my vegan friends because they are not about being personally pure or respecting the rights of animals. It is only about one thing: reducing the amount of suffering in the world.

Give money to develop palatable and nutritious artificial meats

One day future generations are going to look back in horror at how we treat our farm animals. But do you know why they would be able to do that? It’ll be because they already discovered how to make delicious lab-grown/synthetic meats that cost less than raising an animal just to kill it. You can speed this process by giving money to a group called the Good Food Institute. Their mission is to accelerate the development of making meat from plants or cultivating meat from cells. Give them a good chunk of money and you will probably be saving much more animals than by giving up your own current consumption.

And there are already some great alternatives! I dare you to get an Oatly latte and really tell the difference from an actual milk latte if you aren’t really thinking about it. Similarly, the impossible burger is damned good! Beyond sausages are delicious, and more plant-based alternatives are coming online all the time. Try them! If you don’t like them no worries, but if you do, every alternative you can make is a decrease in animal suffering. If you are in the United States, Miyoko cheeses are bomb. Violife is the best and meltiest cheese for pizzas and such.

When in doubt, eat a cow

This sounds absolutely awful. Cows are basically big grass doggos. But the fact of the matter is, of the animals that we raise, beef cattle probably have the least worst lives. Also, they are large animals, which means one individual can supply a lot of calories to a lot of people. One really ironic finding to a study that gave pro-vegan pamphlets to random people is that they ended up not eating less meat but switching from beef to chicken. This is so much worse from an animal suffering point of view it leaves me aghast. Chicken are sensitive creatures same as cows, but raised in far worse conditions. And they are smaller so many more have to suffer and die to feed the same amount of people.

Support good policy

Male chicks for the egg trade are surplus to requirement. If they are lucky, they are quickly macerated in a machine that grinds them up. If they are unlucky, they are thrown in bins where they slowly suffocate while fighting for life for hours on end. It is within our power to make sure that the first is what happens and not the second through advocacy. Or even better. The EU is doing stellar work on this and in Germany by 2022 the culling of male chicks will become illegal. How? Again through technology. A laser technology has been developed that can sex the eggs prior to hatching so the male chick never has to be hatched. Meat eaters as citizens can and should advocate for policy that put limits on how far we can go in terms of exploiting the animals we eat.

Vote with your dollars

There have been huge improvements in animal welfare when it comes to cage-free birds for eggs. This improvement came not from the vegans, but from the egg-eaters. In France there are now five different grades of cage-free/free range you can pick from in the markets. More sophisticated schemes emerge with consumer demand. Burger King is planning to go cage-free globally. Campaigns hassling companies work and now companies are trying to get ahead of the hassle.

Don’t call out vegans/vegetarians for cheating

It’s true. A lot of vegans and vegetarians do cheat. I am one of them. I don’t cheat often. I’ve often gone hungry because there aren't any vegan options. But if it is a business lunch, I will eat the pasta that has cream in it because I’m not about to make things awkward in a professional situation. And if it’s wine filtered with islinglass (fish bladder) or a minuscule amount of whey (why do they put it in everything) I literally don’t care. It might feel good to point out vegan/vegetarian hypocrisy (indeed vegans are vicious against vegetarians) but at the end of the day we’re all trying to do the best we can to make the world a little less shitty. It’s unfair and unjust to point fingers at the people making big personal sacrifices to reduce suffering just because they are not perfect every day in every way.

Enjoy ethnic cuisines that are naturally low in meat

Indian food, Ethiopian food…those cuisines from countries that naturally eat less meat for either religious or poverty reasons are great ways to eat less meat but feel equally satisfied. A lot of Japanese food and Thai food can be made very low in meat but still very tasty through high-umami seasonings such as bonito extract and fish sauce. Without depriving yourself, you can still substantially decrease your consumption of animal products.

Eat vegan with your vegan friends

Most vegans will go above and beyond to have you share a vegan meal with them. They will do the work to find the tastiest plant-based foods for you. They will often even happily pay for your meal. And yes, they will be happy and grateful to you. Of course, I don’t object if people eat meat at the same table as me. I don’t think I have that right. But if they make the effort to eat a plant-based meal with me, I will not forget them for that kindness.

Reduce your meat consumption without reducing your meat budget

Add up how much your family spends on meat in a week. Now keep that number the same but make better choices with where you spend it. Farmers market vs. supermarkets. Small producers who care for their animals as individuals. Again, this theme keeps coming up, your dollars matters.

Be shellfish

I don’t consider it to be bad at all to eat oysters and mussels. They don’t have a brain. They don’t move. Scallops, I’m not sure. Use your own judgement. But I say go nuts on the shellfish. No brain, no suffering. Plus oyster farming is actually one of those weird aquacultural practices that’s good for the environment.

Consider a vegan pet

Isn’t it strange that people hold fundraisers to help dogs where they sell hotdogs, made from pigs, arguably a more intelligent animal? We love our cats and dogs and it’s very difficult to square the fact that many equally sensitive animals have to die so our dear creatures can live. So why not, the next time you consider a pet, choose a vegan one such as a rabbit! Noah Smith has written a great guide on how they are great companions and actually quite easy to potty train.

I have a dog right now. I didn’t choose her. She’s a rescue and she choose me. I give her the regular kibble containing meat. Periodically I try a new brand of vegan kibble but she doesn’t like it. When she join the great kennel in the sky, I will probably get myself a rabbit companion.

Is that ten? I lost count. All I can say is, let us stop this cult of purity where people get caught up on how-many-angels-can-dance-on-a-head-of-a-pin questions about what’s vegan and what’s not vegan. Instead, let all of us who care about animals, regardless of our dietary habits, form an alliance. Our goal…to reduce the amount of pain suffered by animals. Three meals a day. Three opportunities to make a difference. It’s not about if you are a perfect person. It’s about if you made a better choice today.