Conscious Eating and the
Futility of Labeling Oneself
Beginning in college, I became what I called a semi-vegetarian. I stopped eating red meat and birds, but still ate seafood, dairy, and eggs. This was the era of the Moosewood Cookbooks and Diet for a Small Planet, and I always found a multitude of things to cook, which didn't include meat.
I did not miss meat or chicken, especially when I found out about the inhumane conditions on factory farms, where most of our animal-based food originates. (see information at right and on my links page). But I will admit that I ate bacon and ham once in a while until I saw a film from Pigs Peace Sanctuary.
I could have used the label pescetarian, since I occasionally ate fish.
I might have been labelled flexitarian, which is mostly used to describe folks who are mainly vegetarians, yet sometimes eat meat.
Until 2009 I couldn't imagine a life without cheese. But after 30 years as a semi-vegetarian I finally found out about the direct connection between dairy products and the meat industry: Even if I didn't eat beef, consuming dairy products is part of the industry that turns "spent" dairy cows into hamburger meat. And cows must be pregnant for most of their lives, in order to produce milk for humans, while their calves are usually taken away right after birth, and raised as veal.
I used to eat free-range eggs, since they are not from hens living in battery cages. But then I found out that the poultry industry is the worst in terms of inhumane conditions: Even chickens who are not confined in a battery cage (the size of a sheet of paper) are still likely to have their beaks seared off, to be fed a hormone-laced diet until they're so heavy they can barely walk, to rarely see daylight, to not be able to spread their wings, and to live in filthy, inhumane conditions. And male chicks regularly get ground up alive.
I'm not a 100% certified vegan, because I won't completely rule out eating seafood and eggs once in a blue moon, and I still own wool sweaters and shoes made from leather. But that is where my heart and my intentions are.
I have sensitivities to some major food groups, such as sugar, potatoes, and gluten (which rules out meat substitutes containing wheat as a main ingredient). But I manage to "go without" major staples of the American Diet and still feel as if I have a huge variety of options.
So I fall somewhere along the spectrum of health-conscious, health-challenged, intentionally humane eaters. How would you label a gluten- and sugar-free, whole food, 99% vegan eater? Let me know if you have any ideas.