VEGAN RESEARCHAlex Walker

Primary Research

Question 1: Could you live a vegan life style, why?No, because I wouldn’t be able to stay away from things like milk and leather etc., giving up meat wouldn’t be the hard part about being vegan for me. Charlie, 21

I think if I went into the life style gradually, I would be able to. I wouldn’t if I just had to stop altogether in one day. I already don’t eat a lot of meat or drink a lot of milk so it would just be about training myself not to use other items that aren’t vegan friendly.Helena, 20

I wouldn’t be able to do it, not even for a week. I enjoy so many of the things too much that I wouldn’t be allowed if I was a vegan. Fran, 21

I think I would be able to try it at least, I do try and be as healthy as possible but because my job is quite strenuous and requires a lot of manual labour, I need the meant and the nutrients that comes with it to give me strength and energy.Mark, 45

I couldn’t live the vegan life style, I wouldn’t be able to not eat meat or give up any of the other aspects that come with not being vegan.Sam, 17

Question 2: What appeals about being vegan and what doesn’t?

It’s supposed to be healthy appeals, what doesn’t is having to learn what day to day foods are vegan or not and not knowing where to go out to eat. Charlie, 21

I like the thought of being more healthy and doing a bit more to make the world more sustainable. What doesn’t is the lack of nutrients that come with the meat/fish I eat, I won’t have the same amount of natural vitamins and minerals that some foods that aren’t vegan friendly provide me with.Helena, 20

The only thing that appeals to me is that I would be helping the environment more, but other than that it doesn’t appeal to me at all. Fran, 21

The healthiness of the life style appeals to me. I find the alternatives can be tasteless and not a nice as the original and that’s what doesn’t appeal to me.Mark, 45

I can’t think of any appeals to myself but for the environment it would probably have a lot of positive impacts.Sam, 17

Question 3: Would you be able to live with the alternatives of a vegan life style?

With some things I probably would after a while, but with things like milk I don’t think I could live the life style.Charlie, 21

I think over a period of time, I would be able to live the life style.Helena, 20

I could maybe change some things like milk but not for a complete life style. The alternatives don’t appeal to me as much as the real thing.Fran, 21Probably for a few months because I know how much more healthy it would be for me but after a while I would need to eat meat or something that wasn’t vegan friendly,Mark, 45

No. It doesn’t appeal to me and I like meat too much.Sam, 17

I asked the three previous questions to a group of friends and family in order to get general answers from people who weren’t vegetarian or vegan. This would help me with the idea for my leaflet about being vegan – focusing on the positives and the alternatives, rather than focusing on what cause people to turn vegan like animal rights etc. I wanted the view of people who aren’t vegan as this is who I am aiming my leaflet at, I will conduct a separate set of questions for some of my friends that are vegetarian and vegan so that I can incorporate that view into my leaflet too.

Survey Monkey Results

Could You Be Vegan?

What Appeals About Being Vegan?

Which Would Be The Hardest Aspects Of Being Vegan?

Secondary Research

Article 1: Why Go Vegan? https://www.vegansociety.com/try-vegan/why-go-vegan

Tags:Vegan, vegansociety, animals, health, environment, people, veganism

Summary:The article is essentially a list of why being vegan is better for you, the environment and animals.The copyright is up to date so even if the article hasn’t been updated its still likely that administration for the website has looked at it.It uses links to other websites to back up the things they’re saying.

‘Why Go Vegan?’ Quotes“avoiding animal products is one of the most obvious ways you can take a stand against animal cruelty and animal exploitation everywhere”

“More and more people are turning to a vegan diet for the health benefits: increased energy, younger looking skin and eternal youth are just some of the claims from enthusiastic plant eaters”

“One of the most effective things an individual can do to lower their carbon footprint is to avoid all animal products.”

“The vast amount of grain feed required for meat production is a significant contributor to deforestation, habitat loss and species extinction”

“A plant-based diet requires only one third of the land needed to support a meat and dairy diet”

“The suffering caused by the dairy and egg industry is possibly less well publicised than the plight of factory farmed animals”

Possible ideas:Look at the alternatives of cutting out meat/dairy etc.

Article 2: Is being vegan the most ethical way to live?

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/mar/29/should-i-go-vegan-lucy-siegle

Tags:Vegan, sustainable, footprint, grain, livestock

Summary:The article is questioning whether being vegan is better than not being, in summary she says that we need to be more vegan but still need livestock in order to stay sustainable, but just cut back on the demand for livestock. It was published march 2015, however it uses links to other websites to back this up and they are all up to date.

“Is being vegan the most ethical way to live?” Quotes

“Along with processed foods, animal foods are among those with the highest effect on climate and environment (including water use, air pollution and deforestation).”

“Eating plant-based protein results in far fewer greenhouse gas emissions per “protein unit” than producing ruminant livestock like cows”

“if the world were to go vegan, that wouldn’t solve an ecological crisis.”

“There’s also the suggestion that there are only 60 years of topsoil (ie the life-sustaining bit) remaining

“UK beef imports were responsible for 1,160km2 of illegal deforestation (an area two-thirds the size of London)”

Possible ideas:Research if the world were to go vegan further, look at the effects.Also look at ways to reduce the importing of meats.

Blog: The True Confessions Of An Ex- Vegan

http://www.popsugar.com/food/Why-I-Stopped-Being-Vegan-35306835

Tags:Ex-vegan, meat, low energy, conflicted

Summary:She is talking about her years as a vegan and then how her cravings got too much and how she got dangerously thin.It was written in December 2015, she isn’t stating any facts, just telling her side of the story, it doesn’t need backing up.

Quotes:“I felt utterly convinced that I was doing the right thing for the planet, for animals, and for my health.”

“I believed the best chefs were the ones who could produce a vegan tasting menu full of creative, interesting flavors, rather than simply serve a plate of steamed broccoli.”

“My weight (and energy) were at all-time lows, yet I attributed it to my busy schedule and the rigor of city life. The only thing I couldn't handle was the hunger. Sure, being vegan, I felt my stomach grumble every couple of hours, though in New York, I felt painfully hungry constantly.

Possible ideas:Look at some common negatives of being vegan.Look at some ways to overcome them.

PostersThese posters show the two methods of getting people to turn vegan/use vegan products. The cow poster and the dog poster uses scare tactics to get you to turn vegan, whereas the vegan society posters use more positive messages to try and get their point across.

Eating Veganhttp://www.peta.org.uk/blog/menu-vegan-options-chain-restaurants/?gclid=Cj0KEQiAtri0BRDLoaCF95e7o_sBEiQA_pgRQwGfECxnV95mi98iGSYAZcMR0Ug-FF8Dfb-hvD4f0EcaArIl8P8HAQ

This article from PETAUK shows where and what you can eat in different chain restaurants in the UK.

http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Vegetarianhealth/Pages/Vegetarianhealthhome.aspx

This is the NHS website and this page gives tips and answers questions and tells you about vegan diets.

http://www.vegansociety.com/resources/recipes

This page on the Vegan Society website shows a variety of different meals and ideas for foods for vegans.

Vegan Friendly Chain Restaurants

PETA have given a list of different chain restaurants within the UK that have vegan options or food on the menu which can be made vegan. It even gave suggestions as to which particular dishes can be made to be vegan friendly. This helps give people more choice as to where to go for food rather than assuming that there is no where else to eat.

Tags: Food, PETA, chains

Vegan Society Recipes The vegan society separates recipes into different sections so that people can help narrow down different recipes to suit different groups. This is useful for lots of different groups of vegans from all walks of life. This is also a very reliable source for people.

Videohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gibX8JSP6mY

Summary:This channel is designed for kids to show in a more positive way about why being vegan is better for you. I think that this is an easier way of looking at this view as it doesn’t use scare tactics or guilt tactics to make you want to turn vegan, it is simply stating the facts in a simple format for people to make up their own minds about this lifestyle.

Tags:Children, vegan, simplified, youtube, bite size

http://www.vegansociety.com/whats-new/blog/10-great-videos-help-non-vegans-make-connection

Summary:Vegan Society show 10 of the most positive and touching videos about being why being vegan is better than not.

Tags:Vegan society, top 10, videos, children, second chances

Dairy Industry Infographic

Facts• 21,000,000 dairy calves are slaughtered for veal or cheap beef every year globally.• Cows must give birth in order to make milk. Like human mothers, they carry their babies

for nine months, then begin to lactate for the sole purpose of nourishing their young.• Due to extensive genetic manipulation, today’s dairy cows produce up to 12 times more

milk than they would naturally produce to feed a calf.• Virtually all dairy calves are stolen from their mothers within hours of birth in order to

maximize profit. 97% of newborn dairy calves are forcibly removed from their mothers within the first 12 hours.

• To keep them lactating at maximum yields, cows are artificially and forcibly inseminated year after year. The constant cycle of forced pregnancy and birth creates a huge surplus of calves.

• Some female calves will join the milking herd. They typically spend the first 2 to 3 months of life confined in lonely hutches, fed a diet of milk replacer while humans drink the milk intended for them.

• Over 90% of U.S. dairy cows are confined in primarily indoor operations, with more than 60% tethered by the neck inside barren stalls.

• Dairy cows’ overworked bodies begin producing less milk at 4 to 5 years of age, at which point they are slaughtered. In natural conditions, cows can live 20 to 25 years.

• http://www.peta.org/living/food/five-misconceptions-milk-dairy-industry/

http://freefromharm.org/dairyfacts/