I realised that this January marks the 6th year of me being completely plant-based. Over this time what it means to be 'vegan' (I prefer plant-based) has been shaped and molded from something that seemed extreme and quite inaccessible to something reasonably commonplace. With much research and new manufacturing of meat-like substitutes, even by the meat industry themselves, times are changing our approach toward food. Of course, this may not be the case for all over western culture, but defiantly with the rise of main-stream actors and celebrities talking about being vegan, has made it arguably more desirable. Before this veganism was labeled as 'hippy' and 'weird'. “what do you eat?” “where do you get your protein from?” amongst a host of other popular questions would pose the lips of the masses. A lifestyle choice always comes with connotations and going 'against the grain' causes intrigue and to a degree can cause separation.
Now all major retailers are jumping on the bandwagon, especially for the annual Veganuary, that seems to be taking off bigger than ever this January. Major retailers such as M&S, boast launching their 'plant-kitchen' range can only mark the start of a mass of Vegan microwavable dinners and pre-plastic packed consumables. So now I ponder questions around morals, ethics, and waste since veganism has come into the limelight of the mainstream.
First off let me tell you a little about me and my reasoning in becoming fully plant-based. It all started for me when I was a little girl. I grew up in a 'normal' single parent home with my twin brother, brought up to eat everything. I remember never being into eating meat, about the only I enjoy was sausage rolls and some other types of reconstituted meat. To be honest I hadn't made the full connect with what I was eating; it was put down in front of me if it was a piece of meat I would start picking. One day, I was about 6, I asked, “Mum, is chicken, actually a chicken' and she replied 'Yes, what did you think it was?' Shocked and feeling sad about having part of a dead animal on a plate, I started to feel uncomfortable with meat. After a while, I decided I wanted to go vegetarian. I had a friend at school also who had gone veggie and I spent quite abit of time around her house. I realised that I had to do it. My mum wasn't keen on the idea, and I began to leave the meat or stop eating. Then I told her I wanted to go vegetarian for my Christmas and birthday present, of course, I meant it, and so she let me.
As a vegetarian, I enjoyed eating cheese and eggs. I found out I had a rather large milk intolerance when I was 20, and began cutting milk out, but still eating cheese. I had, had a lot of cheese as a child vegetarian, my mum wasn't sure what to feed me in order for me to get my calcium and protein. I had been toying with the idea of going completely plant-based but thought I wouldn't be able to give up milk chocolate and cheese. It was after a particularly 'cheese' heavy Christmas day in Australia, that I heard this voice in my mind telling, that it, you have to stop eating this. I couldn't ignore it, my whole body told me it was the right thing to do. So I listened. I remember having the worst cold ever in my first few days of 'giving up' animal products. It felt like a huge cleanse. Then I felt better than I had ever felt before! Energy, healthy, able to eat a larger volume of food without a horrible sluggish feeling.
It brought with it, learning to cook again. I had to get my head around how to cook, what to cook and how to nourish my body to the best of my ability (quite tricky when traveling). Naturally, I came right away from processed foods, I realised that most of them contained milk or animal products and actually nutrient wise wouldn't sustain me. I become more connected to my food and what I was putting into my body and the effect it had on me. I started having the most colourful meals with bountiful vegetables. Which I realised, as a vegetarian, I had been missing. My energy levels were so high, it was like this was a secret kept from me and society. As a by-product this made me feel responsible for my food, for my health, well-being, and lifestyle. That I have power as a consumer to not buy into products I don't agree with. I wanted to share with everyone that they can feel as good as I do every day.
This is what has led me to pose questions, with the rise of plant-based convenience foods, that you don't have to have a connection with the food anymore. You can have your cake and eat it, being able to grab something on the go, eating meat substitutes. You don't need to cook, you don't need to become more connected with your body through diet.
I guess this just makes me feel great sadness, as its been such a joyful process for myself. Living in a world where we want to buy into everything, we get sold a dream though advertising and marketing and we tell ourselves that we are doing the right thing. We want a quick fix rather than a long term sustainable solution that takes time and effort to get the desired long-term effects. Its happened to an extent with yoga and it just feels that big corporations want to have their fingers in all the pies. They will promote body positivity or guilt-trips to sell, there are no ethics involved in money. Just remember that we can't out-source our health, we must take responsibility for our own health, well-being, and happiness. There will be no 'cancer-causing' label suck onto a packet, we must know that over-processed food are not good for our gut microbiome. We need to have a diverse mixture of foods, but ones that are alive not pumped full of antibiotics or anti-pesticides, ones that are from the earth and full of micro-organisms from the rich fertile soil. We are nature, there is no separation from that.
So ask you to think, why Veganuary, why plant-based. I ask you to think before picking up the convenience and see the power you have as a consumer because veganism has shown demand and supply better than anything.
