So many people who grew up on farms became vegan because of what they saw. They know more than most of us.
*in wealthier countries.
Us who grew up in countries that were poor or have known extreme hunger have a different opinion, usually.
Still avoid factory farmed meat and don’t eat meat that often though, but it’s definitely a different mindset, especially the poorer one is.
It’d be great if vegetables were subsidized too instead of meat. Meat shouldn’t be a common commodity. Something people who’ve raised animals know of better.
Well said.
But is also easy (to be pressured) to turn numb. And if this went on long enough, the internalize our position. The topic of animal cruelty leads into cognitive dissonance, which we avoid with self-harming psychological tricks like rationalization.
On the other hand, IMO vegan farmers / former farmers / vegans raised on a farm have some additional credibility when making the argument for veganism. I liked this about Dr. Caldwell Essylstein.
The cognitive dissonance is so real. Marta Zaraska also talks about this in her book Meathooked.
T. Collin Campbell, the inventor of the term Whole Food Plant Based, also grew up on a dairy farm and pioneered The China Study documenting meat consumption and its relation to cancer rates. His books Whole, the China Study, and others are amazing reads for any long term or first time vegan!
… Honestly, I might’ve confused the two and actually meant to reference Campbell😵 But it applies to both. Can confirm that The China Study is a great read on nutritional health.
I think it was the video of the baby chick grinder that tipped me over the edge.
I’m such a coward that i figured it’s easier to just go vegan than looking at these horrible documentaries.
I don’t understand why that one gets to people. Instant. No pain. Compare that to a pig momma that gets her little piglets taken away and squeels in desperation for hours. Give me the shredder over this every day.
And an entire life in captivity, in cages too small for you and stuck with other pigs. No hope to escape this hellscape, no hope of having it easier. This is months and then years of depression, stress, everything. The concept of being an animal in these prisons sends me into an unbearable existential dread.
I think, it’s a matter of it being a lot more tangible. Whether momma pig really squeals in desperation, you kind of have to find out by watching a video. Or rather even multiple videos, since it might just be one particular momma pig. Hell, it might only be one particular farmer who takes the piglets away. If you want to believe that it surely isn’t as bad, there’s plenty opportunities.
With chick culling on the other hand, there’s a word for it, even a Wikipedia article for it. You can see a still image of one of the machines and it’s pretty obvious what it does. And that we have a machine for it also tells you that it certainly isn’t just one farmer doing it, but rather happening at an industrial scale.
Is the in-ovo sexing getting anywhere? The NA brand Vital Farms has this on their website:
[…] we’re committed to improving the lives of animals through food. In early 2026, we plan to adopt in-ovo sexing technology in collaboration with our primary hatchery supplier, Hy-Line North America.
Hy-Line North America has installed Cheggy technology developed by the German company, AAT, which uses a safe, non-invasive scan to determine whether the developing chick is male or female. This determination occurs before the embryo can feel pain, and the male eggs are prevented from developing further — allowing hatcheries to significantly reduce the number of male chicks that hatch.
https://vitalfarms.com/faqs/ > What happens to male chicks
The wikipedia article for chick culling has a citation for their pledge, but they made it 2020…
baked sweet potatoes with grated extra-firm tofu, chipotle, and paprika, and lime, jalapeño, and yoghurt dressing
Catchy! 🙃
On a more serious note, I know the struggle. For lunch, I had sweet potato gnocci with roasted cashews and pak choi, in a sauce out of gochujang chili paste, caraway, soy sauce and oat milk.
Even leaving aside the sauce, I might well be the first human to have eaten that particular combination, so there’s obviously not gonna be a name for it. You just start listing ingredients and most folks have no concept of what that would taste like, so they mentally quit halfway through. 🫠
