I thought I would share this interesting article from the Guardian. It gives many good economic and environmental arguements for considering a vegetarian lifestyle. Here is an extract:
"A University of Chicago study argued that the average meat eater in the US produces about 1.5 tonnes of CO[squared] more than a vegetarian per year. That's because animals are hungry and the grain they eat takes energy, usually fossil fuels, to produce. It takes 2.2 calories of fossil fuel energy to produce a single calorie of plant protein, according to researchers at Cornell University. And lots of that plant protein is required to make animal protein. For chicken, the ratio of energy in to protein out is 4:1. For pork it's 17:1. For lamb, 50:1. For beef, 54:1."
For the full article see:
http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/food/story/0,,2286172,00.html#article_continue
Monday, 23 June 2008
Tuesday, 18 March 2008
Vegan diet and Arthritis
I've come across anecdotal information to support the theory that a vegetarian/vegan diet helps arthritis sufferers before, so I was very interested to read the following news report on this subject: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7301188.stm
Tuesday, 27 November 2007
How does Eating Meat Harm the Planet?
This information is supplied by Peta (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals).How Does Eating Meat Harm the Planet?
Eating meat leaves behind an environmental toll that generations to come will be forced to pay.
Eating meat leaves behind an environmental toll that generations to come will be forced to pay.
Resources
While 40 million tonnes of food would eliminate the most extreme cases of world hunger, 540 million tonnes are fed to animals in Western countries every year. The world's cattle alone consume the same amount of calories as it takes to nourish 8.7 billion people - more than the entire human population on Earth.
Water
It takes 2,500 gallons of water to produce a pound of meat, but only 25 gallons to produce a pound of wheat. A totally vegetarian diet requires 300 gallons of water per day, whilst a meat-eating diet requires more than 4,000 gallons of water per day.
Land
Of all agricultural land in the UK, 90 per cent is used to raise animals for food, and we still need more food, so we import it from developing countries which often cannot even feed themselves. Using precious land to raise animals for food is wasteful. On 10 hectares, you can produce meat to feed just two people, maize to feed 10 people, grain to feed 24 people or soya to feed 61 people. Overgrazing of livestock has led to desertification around the globe.
Pollution
Raising animals for food causes water pollution as slurry leaches into the waterways. In some parts of Europe, slurry is the single greatest cause of acid rain. The methane produced by the world's cows is a major contributor to global warming.
Deforestation
Since 1950, half of all the world's rain forests have been destroyed to make way for grazing animals. After just six or seven years, the soil is so damaged that it can no longer support grass. It turns to dust. Tribal people are forced to move on as their habitat is sold off to the meat industry. In the UK, hedgerows are being cut down for the same reason, and 98 per cent of the forests that once covered most of the British Isles have been cut down.
While 40 million tonnes of food would eliminate the most extreme cases of world hunger, 540 million tonnes are fed to animals in Western countries every year. The world's cattle alone consume the same amount of calories as it takes to nourish 8.7 billion people - more than the entire human population on Earth.
Water
It takes 2,500 gallons of water to produce a pound of meat, but only 25 gallons to produce a pound of wheat. A totally vegetarian diet requires 300 gallons of water per day, whilst a meat-eating diet requires more than 4,000 gallons of water per day.
Land
Of all agricultural land in the UK, 90 per cent is used to raise animals for food, and we still need more food, so we import it from developing countries which often cannot even feed themselves. Using precious land to raise animals for food is wasteful. On 10 hectares, you can produce meat to feed just two people, maize to feed 10 people, grain to feed 24 people or soya to feed 61 people. Overgrazing of livestock has led to desertification around the globe.
Pollution
Raising animals for food causes water pollution as slurry leaches into the waterways. In some parts of Europe, slurry is the single greatest cause of acid rain. The methane produced by the world's cows is a major contributor to global warming.
Deforestation
Since 1950, half of all the world's rain forests have been destroyed to make way for grazing animals. After just six or seven years, the soil is so damaged that it can no longer support grass. It turns to dust. Tribal people are forced to move on as their habitat is sold off to the meat industry. In the UK, hedgerows are being cut down for the same reason, and 98 per cent of the forests that once covered most of the British Isles have been cut down.
You can find out more from http://www.peta.org/pdfs/leafletback.pdf
Thursday, 11 October 2007
Veggie Kidz
hey,
I'm Becky, a 12 year old vegetarian girl from Devon! I'm making this section for other young veggie kids to post their veiws, get some tips and just have a look at what I've got to say!
I have been veggie all my life, because my parents have brought me up that way, but the thought of eating dead animals sickens me!
I go to a fairly large secondary school near our house and I only know three other veggie kids that go to my school! (1 of which is my sister!)
I hope that in 5 years time our world is more aware of vegetairian issues and many more people become veggie or vegan and save thousands more innocent lives!
If anybody ever teases me about being a vegetairian (which has happened in the past) I simply say "well at least I know I'm not eating a dead carcass" and that soon shuts them up! hee hee!
Remember to be proud that you are saving lives through your food! Together people like us can change the world for the better!
=D
here is a favourite poem of mine that i can really relate to.
Pride
I've got no bodies inside me
All of me is me,
I will not eat no body else
So i am what you see.
I do not plan to eat young sheep
I will not eat a hen,
I'm so proud of what i am
I must say once again.
I've got no bodies inside me
All of me is me,
I will not eat no body else
So i am what you see.
By Benjamin Zephaniah
a great poet
and inspiration
I'm Becky, a 12 year old vegetarian girl from Devon! I'm making this section for other young veggie kids to post their veiws, get some tips and just have a look at what I've got to say!
I have been veggie all my life, because my parents have brought me up that way, but the thought of eating dead animals sickens me!
I go to a fairly large secondary school near our house and I only know three other veggie kids that go to my school! (1 of which is my sister!)
I hope that in 5 years time our world is more aware of vegetairian issues and many more people become veggie or vegan and save thousands more innocent lives!
If anybody ever teases me about being a vegetairian (which has happened in the past) I simply say "well at least I know I'm not eating a dead carcass" and that soon shuts them up! hee hee!
Remember to be proud that you are saving lives through your food! Together people like us can change the world for the better!
=D
here is a favourite poem of mine that i can really relate to.
Pride
I've got no bodies inside me
All of me is me,
I will not eat no body else
So i am what you see.
I do not plan to eat young sheep
I will not eat a hen,
I'm so proud of what i am
I must say once again.
I've got no bodies inside me
All of me is me,
I will not eat no body else
So i am what you see.
By Benjamin Zephaniah
a great poet
and inspiration
Saturday, 25 August 2007
London for vegetarians!
We have just returned from a 3 day theatre trip to London - wow! We went to see 'We Will Rock You' and we stayed at the Radisson Grafton Hotel at the top of Tottenham Court Road. What an experience. The choice of eating places for veggies spoilt us completely. Here are a few that we tried:
After arriving at Paddington Station we took a Taxi to Neal Street, Covent Garden. We went to 'Food for Thought', which is where the picture on the left was taken. Lovely noodles! We all ate well.
The picture on the right was taken at Sagar, a South Indian vegetarian restaurant in Percy Street, just off the Tottenham Court Road. We were their first customers! We can really recommend Sagar, friendly staff, excellent Indian food.
After arriving at Paddington Station we took a Taxi to Neal Street, Covent Garden. We went to 'Food for Thought', which is where the picture on the left was taken. Lovely noodles! We all ate well.
The picture on the right was taken at Sagar, a South Indian vegetarian restaurant in Percy Street, just off the Tottenham Court Road. We were their first customers! We can really recommend Sagar, friendly staff, excellent Indian food.
The next picture was taken at Mildreds. Our favourite so far. Unfortunately it is in a seedy area of Soho (Lexington Road) but well worth braving the area for! We had heard it was good and it really was! The Summer fruit pudding with whith chocolate sauce was to die for. Lots for vegans too. We will definitely go here again when next we are in London.
My last picture was taken at Neals Yard Salad Bar, Covent Garden. Lovely location, music and food. Plenty for vegans. Unfortunately they do do 'non-vegetarian' options, but this is mainly a vegetarian establishment. Close by is the 'World Food Cafe' which looked really good too.
Monday, 23 July 2007
Vegetarian Places to Stay and Eat
I can recommend the following guides:
http://www.vegetarianguides.co.uk/index.shtml
http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/feb/29/vegetarian.bandbs.uk
I can personally recommend the following places:
Barnstaple: Cafe Libri
A vegetarian cafe has opened in Barnstaple. It's called 'Cafe Libri' and it is to be found in Maiden Street. Lovely scrummy food and friendly staff. The soups are a particular favourite of mine, closely followed by the cakes! There are always a tasty specials and filling vegetarian or vegan paninis available. Unfortunately this has now CLOSED! Oh how we miss you Cafe Libri, oh how we miss you!
Bath: Demuths
http://www.demuths.co.uk/
Quality vegetarian cafe/restaurant in Bath. Lovely atmosphere, great food!
Dartington, Devon: Cranks
http://www.cranks.co.uk/dartington.html
Located at Dartington Cider Press this is a lovely place to eat. Their products are sold at various outlets and we were delighted to find Cranks food on our last holiday to Center Parcs.
Edinburgh: The Greenhouse
http://www.greenhouse-edinburgh.com/
Top quality vegetarian bed and breakfast with friendly, helpful hosts. Fantastic selection of breakfasts.
I only wish they did evening meals as well, although with David Banns within walking distance it doesn’t really matter.
Edinburgh: David Bann
http://www.davidbann.com/
The most stylish, trendy vegetarian eatery I have had the pleasure to visit. A must if you are in Edinburgh. I only wish we lived a little closer and we would be eating here to celebrate every occasion.
Exeter, Devon: Herbies
Great selection of food. Popular cafe with a hippy feel. Living in Devon this is one of our favourite places to eat, even if it does involve an 80 mile round trip!
Exeter, Devon: The Plant
http://www.veggieheaven.com/guide/exeter.html
Open all week, Sundays as well (when Herbies are closed). Fantastic view of Cathedral and lovely selecton of tartlets, paninis, slads etc.
Grasmere, Cumbria: Lancrigg
http://www.lancrigg.co.uk/
We have been here three years running now - unbeatable. The 5 course eveing meals are so innovative and to die for.The location is totally beautiful. Fantastic walks on the door step. Cumbria, we love you!
I have included some pictures to show how lovely the hotel and area are.
Here are some views of Lancrigg, its beautiful garden, and our walk up the nearby waterfall - glorious!
Ilfracombe, Devon: Grassroots
http://www.thebestof.co.uk/barnstaple/42095/1/1/the_best_of.aspx
We are so pleased to have a really good vegetarian cafe in North Devon again.
Keswick, Cumbria: Lakeland Pedlar
http://www.lakelandpedlar.co.uk/
Unique, busy, unmissable vegetarian cafe and bicycle centre. I was so impressed I bought the t-shirt! Fantastic selection of vegetarian and vegan meals.
Llanidloes, Wales
Great, value for money eatery. Daily specials are really tasty and the portions are generous. We very much enjoyed the noodles on our first visit and the vegetable korma on our second. This is a popular, busy, well run veggie cafe minutes away from the beautiful Elan Valley.
Machynlleth, Wales: Centre for Alternative Technology
http://www.cat.org.uk/
Vegetarian food for the future from this forward thinking, environmentally friendly attraction. Lots of good information, lots of good food!
Meshaw, North Devon: Fern Tor
http://www.ferntor.co.uk/
Even though we live in North Devon we have stayed at this friendly B&B just so that we can enjoy the superb breakfast and evening meals.
St Ives, Cornwall: The Coast AND The Bean Inn
http://www.coastcornwall.co.uk/
St Ives is such a beautiful place to stay and this B&B and cafe are perfect. Lovely vegan dishes, the vegan cheesecake is particularly memorable.
http://www.vegetarianguides.co.uk/index.shtml
http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/feb/29/vegetarian.bandbs.uk
I can personally recommend the following places:
Barnstaple: Cafe Libri
A vegetarian cafe has opened in Barnstaple. It's called 'Cafe Libri' and it is to be found in Maiden Street. Lovely scrummy food and friendly staff. The soups are a particular favourite of mine, closely followed by the cakes! There are always a tasty specials and filling vegetarian or vegan paninis available. Unfortunately this has now CLOSED! Oh how we miss you Cafe Libri, oh how we miss you!
Bath: Demuths
http://www.demuths.co.uk/
Quality vegetarian cafe/restaurant in Bath. Lovely atmosphere, great food!
Dartington, Devon: Cranks
http://www.cranks.co.uk/dartington.html
Located at Dartington Cider Press this is a lovely place to eat. Their products are sold at various outlets and we were delighted to find Cranks food on our last holiday to Center Parcs.
Edinburgh: The Greenhouse
http://www.greenhouse-edinburgh.com/
Top quality vegetarian bed and breakfast with friendly, helpful hosts. Fantastic selection of breakfasts.
I only wish they did evening meals as well, although with David Banns within walking distance it doesn’t really matter.
Edinburgh: David Bann
http://www.davidbann.com/
The most stylish, trendy vegetarian eatery I have had the pleasure to visit. A must if you are in Edinburgh. I only wish we lived a little closer and we would be eating here to celebrate every occasion.
Exeter, Devon: Herbies
Great selection of food. Popular cafe with a hippy feel. Living in Devon this is one of our favourite places to eat, even if it does involve an 80 mile round trip!
Exeter, Devon: The Plant
http://www.veggieheaven.com/guide/exeter.html
Open all week, Sundays as well (when Herbies are closed). Fantastic view of Cathedral and lovely selecton of tartlets, paninis, slads etc.
Grasmere, Cumbria: Lancrigg
http://www.lancrigg.co.uk/
We have been here three years running now - unbeatable. The 5 course eveing meals are so innovative and to die for.The location is totally beautiful. Fantastic walks on the door step. Cumbria, we love you!
I have included some pictures to show how lovely the hotel and area are.
Here are some views of Lancrigg, its beautiful garden, and our walk up the nearby waterfall - glorious!
Ilfracombe, Devon: Grassroots
http://www.thebestof.co.uk/barnstaple/42095/1/1/the_best_of.aspx
We are so pleased to have a really good vegetarian cafe in North Devon again.
Keswick, Cumbria: Lakeland Pedlar
http://www.lakelandpedlar.co.uk/
Unique, busy, unmissable vegetarian cafe and bicycle centre. I was so impressed I bought the t-shirt! Fantastic selection of vegetarian and vegan meals.
Llanidloes, Wales
Great, value for money eatery. Daily specials are really tasty and the portions are generous. We very much enjoyed the noodles on our first visit and the vegetable korma on our second. This is a popular, busy, well run veggie cafe minutes away from the beautiful Elan Valley.
Machynlleth, Wales: Centre for Alternative Technology
http://www.cat.org.uk/
Vegetarian food for the future from this forward thinking, environmentally friendly attraction. Lots of good information, lots of good food!
Meshaw, North Devon: Fern Tor
http://www.ferntor.co.uk/
Even though we live in North Devon we have stayed at this friendly B&B just so that we can enjoy the superb breakfast and evening meals.
St Ives, Cornwall: The Coast AND The Bean Inn
http://www.coastcornwall.co.uk/
St Ives is such a beautiful place to stay and this B&B and cafe are perfect. Lovely vegan dishes, the vegan cheesecake is particularly memorable.
Inspirational books
I would like to recommend the following books as particularly informative and inspirational:
The Great Compassion: Buddhism and Animal Rights by Norm Phelps
I am interested in Buddhism and found this book covered the much debated question of whether Buddhists should be vegetarian very thoroughly.
Bloodless Revolution: radical vegetarians and the discovery of India by Tristram Stuart
This book covers vegetarian history in a very methodical way. I learnt a lot about some very interesting characters who were waving the vegetarian flag centuries ago.
Extended Circle: Dictionary of Humane Thought by Jon Wynne-TysonThis is a reference book of thoughts and quotations on the theme of animal rights and vegetarian ethics
The Great Compassion: Buddhism and Animal Rights by Norm Phelps
I am interested in Buddhism and found this book covered the much debated question of whether Buddhists should be vegetarian very thoroughly.
Bloodless Revolution: radical vegetarians and the discovery of India by Tristram Stuart
This book covers vegetarian history in a very methodical way. I learnt a lot about some very interesting characters who were waving the vegetarian flag centuries ago.
Extended Circle: Dictionary of Humane Thought by Jon Wynne-TysonThis is a reference book of thoughts and quotations on the theme of animal rights and vegetarian ethics
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