The inconvenience of being vegan

Approximately 25 years ago, I was transformed.

I didn’t find God, smoke pot, or join a nudist colony. Nope. I adopted a plant-based diet.

I guess I had it coming. I found myself starting to wonder what my steak or pork chop may have been in its previous life and how it ended up on my plate. Then, one day in grad school, I was attending a lab session. The instructor unveiled the pectorals of a cadaver, and I saw a rib roast staring back at me. I thought about the ligaments, tendons, and bone and the blood that had flowed through the veins, and my life as a vegetarian-turned-vegan — as well as dealing with the inconvenience of being vegan — began.

It wasn’t easy. The family business was a creamery that my grandfather developed in the early 1900s, and it was viable until a couple of years ago. My father and his family provided for their families from the proceeds during some pretty tough times. To this day, I don’t know details such as how the cows were treated and where the chickens were kept, or worse — what happened to the male baby chicks (Google it.) I became a family traitor for refusing to eat cheese or eggs.

To lessen the inconvenience of being vegan, I tried to ease into my new food choices with imitation meat — the fake steak, hot dogs, and sausages that are the result of good intentions gone bad — but that didn’t help much. Eventually, I cut out all animal-based products slowly and found that my body responded with a big smiley-faced emoji. I no longer crave animal products of any kind. In fact, I cannot stand the smell of meat and am not much fun at barbeques.

I quit eating meat because I began to realize the implications for animals and my health. Today, after countless movies such as “Forks Over Knives,” books like “The China Study,” and blogs detailing the results of piles of research as reported by Dr. Michael Greger and others, mankind is still arguing over the benefits of plant-based eating. Never mind the fact that if everyone stopped eating meat we could eliminate massive health issues, prevent much human and animal misery, and probably save our planet as a bonus. Seems like a no-brainer.

For those who still want to argue the point (you know who you are), I would suggest a little in-depth research. The Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) Act for beef and pork was repealed in December 2015. The USDA is no longer required to let you know where your meat is coming from. If that weren’t enough, we know that horsemeat has made its way into our food supply. Some Asian countries are raising dogs for human consumption, and it’s not pretty. If you want to know more, you can research the topic or check out Cora Hamer’s article about the Yulin Dog Meat Festival for the gory details. Do you really want to eat pets? But honestly, why is eating a pig or cow different from eating a horse or dog? They are all living creatures worthy of our compassion.

I’m still amazed that I can walk into a restaurant, ask for a vegan option, and be met with a blank stare. It’s not uncommon for me to resort to ordering several side dishes to create my own meal. There are restaurants that I avoid altogether because there is not one vegan option on the entire menu. Many fancy fundraisers, including those for animal charities, don’t offer a plant-based option. I’m still shocked at the number of people who don’t realize that gelatin is an animal product, and a disturbing one at that. I don’t expect preferential treatment. I even eat gluten and some oils, but it seems like it would be much cheaper and healthier not to wrap everything in bacon, not to mention better for the pig. Just saying.

The good news is that the inconvenience of being vegan is diminishing. We are fortunate that the Internet is here to help and that Southern Utah is home to some amazing vegan chefs. Who knew? April Ashcroft is a recipe genius and has saved me from more than a few recipe disasters. Fortunately, amazing vegan recipes are published in this worthy publication weekly.

Bad food-karma will eventually get many people — even vegans, if they aren’t careful about selecting healthy foods. It takes effort and education. Meanwhile, until some restaurant servers figure out that cheese isn’t vegan, I will continue to order the chicken salad without the chicken!

The inconvenience of being vegan

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