MISLEADING LABELS
Freedom Farm Cruelty
Free-range
The conditions in which free-range animals may be kept are much more confined than people would imagine. Although given more room than other commercially produced animals, those reared under free-range systems can still be kept intensively in small living spaces with restricted access to the outdoors. For example, there are no limits on the number of birds that can be kept in a free-range chicken shed, as long as pop holes allow them outside access, which needs to be provided for only half of their lifetime.
The conditions in which free-range animals may be kept are much more confined than people would imagine. Although given more room than other commercially produced animals, those reared under free-range systems can still be kept intensively in small living spaces with restricted access to the outdoors. For example, there are no limits on the number of birds that can be kept in a free-range chicken shed, as long as pop holes allow them outside access, which needs to be provided for only half of their lifetime.
ORGANIC
Organic animal farming is primarily to benefit people who do not want to consume pesticide and chemical residues when they eat meat. Organic farms should automatically provide higher welfare standards for the animals, because a low-drug regime invariably means keeping them in better conditions so that they become sick less often. But organically reared animals are still mass produced and subjected both to the trauma of transportation to the slaughterhouse, and to the same terrifying, bloody death. |
'HUMANE' KILLING
So-called 'humane' methods of slaughter involve, for poultry, being shackled upside down and then lowered head first into an electrified water tank. If their wings touch first, they receive a painful electric shock. Some raise their heads and miss the water, so they are fully conscious when they reach the automatic neck cutter. Other farmed animals are stunned using electric tongs, which, if applied wrongly, can cause agonising pain and also leave the animal conscious. Surely the most humane choice is therefore not to kill at all? There is no need to eat animals when people can live longer, healthier lives on a meat-free diet. |
In many cases, the carbon footprint is even greater for organic animal products. A 2007 report commissioned by the British government found that organic milk actually generates 20% more CO2 than conventionally produced milk, and organic chickens generate 45% more CO2 than hens raised in battery cages and barns.In contrast, researchers at the University of Chicago calculated that eating a vegan diet prevents the equivalent of 1.5 tons of CO2 emissions every year - even more than the 1 ton of CO2 emissions prevented by switching from a large sedan to a Toyota Prius.
Free range animal products harm your health
While organic animal products don't have the artificial growth hormones and antibiotics often found in factory farmed products, they still have a number of nutritional negatives:
They contain artery-clogging saturated fat and cholesterol.
They're devoid of fiber, phytonutrients and many antioxidants that help protect the body from ill health.
In contrast, according to the American Dietetic Association:
"Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein, as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than non-vegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer."
Being Vegan is More Practical
Free-range products are hard to find. Very few grocery stores, and even fewer restaurants, carry these products, and even when they do, there is no way to know how the animals were actually treated without visiting the farms first-hand. For these reasons, consistently following a free-range diet is incredibly difficult and inconvenient.
Vegan foods, on the other hand, can be found in every grocery store and almost every restaurant, and do not raise the same ethical concerns as do the free-range animal products. To find veg-friendly restaurants in your area, check out VegGuide.org.
Ultimately, eating vegan is simply putting into practice the ideals we already have such as preventing needless violence, respecting animals, and living in a way that moves us toward a more just and peaceful society for all.
Free range animal products harm your health
While organic animal products don't have the artificial growth hormones and antibiotics often found in factory farmed products, they still have a number of nutritional negatives:
They contain artery-clogging saturated fat and cholesterol.
They're devoid of fiber, phytonutrients and many antioxidants that help protect the body from ill health.
In contrast, according to the American Dietetic Association:
"Vegetarian diets offer a number of nutritional benefits, including lower levels of saturated fat, cholesterol, and animal protein, as well as higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber, magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants such as vitamins C and E and phytochemicals. Vegetarians have been reported to have lower body mass indices than non-vegetarians, as well as lower rates of death from ischemic heart disease; vegetarians also show lower blood cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer."
Being Vegan is More Practical
Free-range products are hard to find. Very few grocery stores, and even fewer restaurants, carry these products, and even when they do, there is no way to know how the animals were actually treated without visiting the farms first-hand. For these reasons, consistently following a free-range diet is incredibly difficult and inconvenient.
Vegan foods, on the other hand, can be found in every grocery store and almost every restaurant, and do not raise the same ethical concerns as do the free-range animal products. To find veg-friendly restaurants in your area, check out VegGuide.org.
Ultimately, eating vegan is simply putting into practice the ideals we already have such as preventing needless violence, respecting animals, and living in a way that moves us toward a more just and peaceful society for all.