Jacob Gutridge
Editor-in-Chief
Content Warning: In this column I describe the violent deaths and mutilation of livestock animals performed by the American livestock industry.
I have a confession: I am a closeted vegan.
I wasn’t always vegan. I spent many years as a vegetarian; I would eat eggs and dairy but I wouldn’t eat meat. I had often considered committing to veganism, but I was put-off by the extremists within the vegan community. I did not want to be the vegan that threw paint at people wearing fur; nor the vegan that chained themselves to machinery in commercial hatcheries. Nonetheless, I knew the cost that carnism had on animal welfare, and I knew I did not want to be complacent.
Carnism is the term that Melanie Joy coins in her book “Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows” as the condition in which one consumes animal products, the opposite of veganism.
I committed to veganism in December. It was an easier decision after watching the Australian documentary “Dominion” (2018) which illustrates the rampant violence within the Australian livestock industry. I strongly recommend that everyone watch “Dominion”—although it can be too violent to watch at times. It is an incredibly poignant documentary that shows the true impact the violent livestock industry has on animals and humans day-after-day.
Inspired by “Dominion” and other research, here are two—of the many—reasons I decided to go vegan:
The Cost of Eggs
When I was vegetarian I had no issue eating eggs. Actually, I would commonly eat eggs or products containing eggs several times a week. But the most convincing argument I heard to switch to veganism, and the argument that keeps me vegan is the crisis of chicken culling.
In the poultry and egg industries, there is little economic benefit in raising male chickens. Male chickens do not produce eggs and do not grow as large as their female counterparts to be good broiler chickens. Meaning raising male chickens into adulthood would cost hatcheries more than they would profit. Killing these unwanted, or uneconomical, male chickens—and unhealthy females—is known as chicken culling. According to researchers at the University of Leipzig in Germany, more than seven billion chicks are culled every year around the world.
In the European Union, there are two acceptable methods to cull chickens: carbon dioxide gassing (i.e. asphyxiation) or mechanical grinding (i.e. maceration). Neither method is particularly humane as both methods happen only once the chicken has hatched and while the chicken is completely conscious.
According to the Humane Society of the United States, more than 300 million chickens are culled every year in the U.S. And in the U.S. there is less regulation and even more violent methods to cull chickens than in the EU: including maceration, asphyxiation, cervical dislocation (i.e. their necks are broken), electrocution and suffocation (i.e. chickens are placed in plastic bags). Maceration is the primary method to remove unwanted chicks; typically involving feeding newly-hatched and conscious chickens into high-speed grinders that violently shred the animals alive. I would include a photo with this column, but it is too violent to print in this paper; “Dominion” includes several maceration scenes.
United Egg Producers—the group that represents most hatcheries across the US—announced they would work to end chicken culling, but only as soon as it was “economically feasible” and an alternative was “commercially available.” It is clear that chickens are being systematically destroyed because they were born the wrong gender, and into a society that places profits over morality.
Note: United Egg Producers, or Egg Farmers of America, represents more than 95% of hatcheries in the US. Even if the eggs you purchase in your local grocery store are labeled ‘organic’ or ‘free-range’ those hatcheries are most likely contributors to chicken culling.
The Cost of Wool
Veganism is not only a diet; it is a complete lifestyle. Most vegans avoid wearing animal products in clothing and buying beauty products that were tested on animals. When I was a vegetarian I already avoided fur clothing and tried my best to buy only cruelty-free products. I still purchased wool and leather products. I also bought bedding and other domestic products that contain down, or feathers.
But wool was not as humane as I once thought.
Admittedly, shearing sheep is not inherently inhumane. In places with cold winters and hot summers sheep can overheat if they do not shed some of their wool. However, commercial wool producers have bred and exploited sheep beyond their usual wool production, causing overheating and heat stroke or premature shearing.
Breeding sheep to produce more wool has resulted in sheep producing more skin, and more skin means more wrinkles. Extra wrinkles or skin folds cause health problems for sheep such as skin rashes, infections, defecation build-up and parasitic flesh-eating maggots.
Animal rights activists have suggested several humane ways to address sheep hygiene problems caused by commercial breeding, but none have proven to be efficient or profitable for wool companies. Instead, the wool industry uses a process called ‘mulesing’. Mulesing is the practice of cutting off pieces of flesh from sheeps’ rumps and tails. It causes the sheep severe pain since wool producers do not use anesthesia—it is too expensive. Wool producers will also castrate and tag sheep with no anesthesia.
Commercial wool producers created problems by over-breeding sheep but refused to accept a humane way to address the problem. Until commercial wool producers stop maiming sheep, I will forgo buying any more wool products.
The Cost of Veganism
It goes without saying that being vegan includes much more than I have discussed in this column. At its heart veganism is about avoiding the brutal domination of animals by humans.
However, I understand there are challenges and financial barriers to being vegan; and I don’t blame people who are carnists. Many people, especially those with children or working minimum-wage, don’t have the time or money to cook vegan meals. And frequently items at restaurants and grocery stores labeled as vegan, plant-based or cruelty-free can be much more expensive than their non-vegan counterparts. Instead, I blame the corporations that placed greater value on their profit margins than on morality and animal welfare.
I have the privilege to go vegan, but veganism might not work with your personal situation. I strongly encourage everyone—within their own limits—to examine what steps they can take to improve the wellbeing of animals. It might be total veganism or it might be switching to cruelty-free beauty products. If you are unsure where to start there are several online resources available. You can visit the VeganBootcamp at veganbootcamp.org to browse free courses on veganism and advocacy, or use sites such as crueltyfreekitty.com to search cruelty-free brands. All I ask is that you do what you can to improve the wellbeing of animals—even the ones you don’t call pets.
