Ask-A-Vegan
It’s here: The Ask-A-Vegan Page Is Open, and the Vegan Is In!
Here are some of our responses to questions we’ve received since the launch of this site. More questions and your own views gratefully considered. Scroll to the end to see how to transmit these.
Q. Hi there, I was wondering, where do vegans stand on the issue of deer hunting for food? If one chooses not to be a vegetarian, but dislikes factory farming for environmental and moral reasons, do you agree that hunting is a most acceptable form of meat-eating, both from an impact and moral standpoint? This assuming there is minimal pain to the deer I kill? Thanks, and best regards, Mike
A. Mike, it's the vegan position that human beings can and should refrain from all animal farming, and from personally killing animals for food. This is not so much a matter of giving up something as welcoming a whole new way of looking at the world. Deer have an interest in continuing to live, and surely in the afternoon they have an interest in interacting with other deer they knew in the early morning as they walked, free of our harassment, through woods or fields. It is not fair or respectful to take their lives away - particularly when we need not do so. Here are some references that deer (if they knew of this conversation) would doubtless appreciate your looking into. The focus of these books is to take classic and popular dishes and transform them into vegan versions.
Delicious Vegan Recipes from Dining With Friends: The Art of North American Vegan Cuisine
Smile and Say “Un-Cheese!” - Book review of Jo Stepaniak’s Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook, by Dustin Rhodes
Q. What if I want to attend a wedding? Last time, there were some mixed vegetables and plain noodles, both of which may or may not have had butter. It was either that or nothing. - A subscriber to the Vegan Views discussion list
A: Include a request for a vegan meal on the wedding invitation’s RSVP card. At first, this might seems an inconvenience; but if the lovebirds care enough about you to want you at their wedding, they can take a minute to ensure you’ll enjoy yourself there. Then you won't have to be pressed to compromise your principles, or be known as the martyr who doesn't eat at weddings. Bonus: Wedding food is generally not so great, so it's a nice opportunity to show people that you are enjoying your vegan food. (Yours will be carefully prepared and they'll likely wish they had the same.) But do eat something beforehand just in case the food situation is terrible. Part of being vegan is planning ahead -- as well as speaking up.
Q. Can truffles (the mushroom truffles) be vegan? - A subscriber to the Vegan Views discussion list
They can be found without using animals, but in Europe, and sometimes in North America as well, pigs and dogs have been used to locate them (and vegan principles would rule out this active training and use of nonhuman animals to seek foods). For information, see http://www.natruffling.org/faq.htm#how
Q. Is sugar vegan? - Buster, by e-mail.
In the United States, some manufacturers have used bovine bone char for the carbon filter used in the refining stage of table sugar, for brown sugar -- which is usually just white cane sugar that is toasted or mixed with molasses -- for the beige type popularly but erroneously called “raw” sugar, and even for powdered sugar. The high heat transforms the bones into carbon, indistinguishable from that of wood or coal sources. The carbon is used over and over for several years; bone residue does not become part of the finished product.
Because it has long been impossible to determine whether bones, wood, or coal has been employed in the early stages of sugar production, some vegans believe it is best avoided, or they opt for delicious agave nectar or pure maple syrup. Or they select sugars known to use wood and coal in the refining process, such as Jack Frost (white or brown).
Turbinado sugar is also not bone-filtered; nor is sugar sold under the “Florida Crystals” trademark. Stevia is also free of the bone ash filtering, and is thought to have nutritional value. If you live in the Midwestern United States, you can get white or brown beet sugar, which does not require charcoal filtering.
As vegan chef Joanne Stepaniak has observed, most foods eventually come in contact with animal products, directly or indirectly. Insects and worms land on or burrow through growing plants, and occasionally end up ground up or packaged with them. Food transport vehicles--like the vehicles carry clothing and common household supplies-- have components that contain animal by-products, and run over roads, rails, or runways that displaced animals and destroyed habitat when they were constructed. These vehicles also emit fumes and pollutants and often inadvertently kill free-living animals. Most plant foods are packed in plastic bags that probably contain animal by-products, or paper bags constructed with animal-based adhesives.
So perhaps the most practical approach is the following: A vegetable- or plant-based food is vegan if it contains no overt animal products or by-products, and can be produced without the work of nonhuman animals (see the truffles question above).
Q. I just became vegan. What do I do with all of my non-vegan items?
- Buster, by e-mail.
A. Many new vegans, or even those who have been vegan for a while, wonder what to do with old leather items, wool throw rugs, silk vests and so forth. Replacing items can be costly and seem wasteful. Vegans tend to weigh this consideration against the public message that that these things are acceptable to use and wear.
Even disposing of these can be a task, as giving them away keeps them ‘alive’ in the public eye. This is a personal decision. Some vegans have buried these items together in a respectful ceremony.
Q. How can I avoid getting non-vegan gifts? I hate to be rude. - Aunt Gertrude’s niece.
It’s inevitable that someone will offer you something made with animal products. Think about this in advance. It might seem awkward to discuss expected or potential gifts, but do make the effort to let Aunt Gertrude know. First, it’ll be an educational discussion. And certainly it’s more difficult to later gently explain your appreciation for the kind thoughts and articulate how the item conflicts with your philosophy! And of course returning gifts can be a point of awkwardness or dismay for years. Some shops, however, allow refunds to come directly to a gift recipient without a receipt, in which case you can swap that pullover for the one you’d choose.
Q. Do I feed my cats a vegan diet? - Jason, by e-mail.
A. That one comes up a lot. Please click here for the response.
Selected questions sent to Ask-A-Vegan are answered by your faithful team of ever-responsive vegans: Priscilla Feral; Leila Fusfeld; Lee Hall; Dustin Rhodes; Dave Shishkoff. Ask-A-Vegan cannot answer every question; we will, however, do our best to answer the most interesting and frequent ones.