I've just been told that vegans don't eat honey. Is this true and if so, why?

[Bubble99]

That's it really.

I'd always thought that vegans don't eat animal products that have been produced by causing pain or exploitation. Does honey fit with this? I'd have thought that bees can, well...buzz off ...if they don't like where they are.

Don't wear this when you see her.

You knew him, too? You kind of felt your life ebbing away as he spoke. Another house mate used to get into ethical debates with him just to see how many knots he could tie himself up in.Very cruel.(but very funny)

She seems quite meek but the 'Go Vegan' T shirt seemed very 'notice me.' I think we (the other parents) were supposed to ask questions but no one did.

We'll be making vegetarian pizzas and she's bringing vegan cheese. As long as she doesn't question my mozzarella I'm sure we'll be fine.

pinkyminky. He's probably a steak eating banker by now.

Are you still a vegetarian, pinky?

Quite possibly!

Oh cross post there. No I'm not. I've had trouble with anaemia all my life (before being veggie) and when I got pg they discovered my body doesn't retain iron very well at all, so I eat meat now, along with taking iron supplements. I always liked meat, but wasn't keen on animals husbandry methods in factory farming, but I drew the line at bees. They are fair game, IMO.

Ah! Just re-read. You were a long time veggie.

I can understand vegetarianism but not veganism.

It just seems like such hard work.

Must be easier to be OK with eating meat now with better farming standards?

We only eat organic, free range which is expensive so we eat less of it. Which is healthier anyway.

I agree. And you get into the whole bee, even jainism type thing- which is fine if you want to be a monk, but not terribly compatible with normal everyday living. Where does it end? Do we humans actually have a right to exist?

Anyway. I must go to bed now. Wake-up call is about 5.30am here.

It's been really good and funny talking to you.

Wish me luck with my evil mozzarella pizza session.

Yep. We eat a small amount of organic, free range meat.

Good luck!

Neil from The Young ONes. That's all I think of.

lol at this thread. Yes, my sister is an ethical vegan. Very earnest, but neither thin nor pale. She's a huge foodie, as well. And much healthier since she's gone vegan (previously had cholesterol issues).

Picking up on an earlier point, chicks are frequently gassed or minced alive.

And as for vegans keeping chickens, if you look at the bigger picture, where do they get the chickens from? Probably somewhere that discards the male chicks...

And then there are the poor dairy cows....

If everybody went vegan, there would be more than enough food to feed the world.

Tooticky is right. I got my two organic reared chickens from a farmer who probably disposed of the male chicks at some point in the process. So, 5 years ago in the same batch as my two girls was born some male chicks would have been killed.

Obviously they don't need a cockerel to lay as I have eggs every day. Obviously we are not vegan, though dh is veggie.

I think it is very difficult to have any type of farming where some animal at some point has not suffered in the process and that's why we just do the best we can without being insane about it. Applies for us to environmental issues, we have to have a car but we just drive as little as possible.

Does anyone else find it ironic that there's an ad for bacon at the top of this thread?

I am shocked that vegans don't eat yeast.

It's not "alive" in the sense that we are alive or a cat is alive....

that's just taking things too far.

But then my dinner of choice is a big fat bleeding steak straight from the cow. So I'm perhaps not best placed to understand.

Yeast is alive, but then so are plants and bacteria.

I am pmsl at bubble spotting a new business development.

Vegans = thin and pale, IME.

ROFLMAO!

I am definitely not thin-not even 'thinninsh'- much more 'fattish' if I am honest and not pale either-quite dark skinned with rosey cheeks.
I know quite a few vegans now-no skinny ones amongst them. Lots of healthy well informed people though.

Have been meat eater all my life until the last few years-become vegan as I was dairy free for health reasons.
Hubby became ill with gall bladder/pancreas problems and couldn't have surgery because of another medical problem, so he had a very low fat diet and couldn't tolerate any meat without severe pain.
Already had one veggie daughter and one vegan one.
SO cooking separate meals for one veggie, one vegan, one dairy free and one low fat diet PLUS the worlds biggest meat eater, my ds was simply not possible.
Vegan food was the one thing we could all tolerate/accept so that's what i cooked.
vegan food -with meat on the side for son.

Have found the food to be lovely, have become a more adventurous cook. Not difficult when you have the internet, just Google vegan recipes and you come up with all sorts of information.

Don't miss meat at all.
Don't eat honey, do eat yeast.

I was astounded to read the UN report 'Livestock's' Long Shadow' states that;

10 Hectares of land = meat for 2 people, or maize for 10 people, grain for 24 people or soya for 61.

and

Water is interesting also - 1 kg wheat uses 1000 liters of water whilst 1 kg of beef needs 100,000 liters.
!!

I do think each person has to make their own judgements of what is right for them/how far they take this.
My children have a condition that will need treatment at some point. The choices are having human derived substances-and risk infection from various diseases such as HIV etc or use GM animal derived products.
The best I can do is give the girls information about the facts and they can make their own choices (they are both now committed vegans). They both recognise that the choices they would make now, are likely to change when potentially a child's life is concerned -for they will both need treatment if/when they get pregnant.

On the bee meat steak point, it used to be possible to buy chocolate coated bumble bees in the Seventies.