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But where do you get your protein?
VEGAN Q and A
Please read: The 60 Most Common Arguments Against Veganism [Debunked]
I get my protein from plants. Just like elephants and gorillas do. There are plenty of plant foods that have a good amount of protein: Beans, peas, lentils, peanut butter, quinoa, and many other veggies, nuts, seeds, and grains.
There are also plenty of meat substitutes and soy foods even higher in protein: Tofu, tempeh, textured vegetable protein (TVP), seitan, Tofurkey, and all the other “mock meats.”
There are also vegan protein powders. Pea protein specifically is a complete protein with similar muscle-building effectiveness as whey. And there are many other vegan “protein blends” that are also complete proteins.
Most Americans eat far above the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for protein, while a vegan diet naturally falls closer to the RDA. And even if you want to eat a lot of protein as an athlete or bodybuilder, you can do it on a well-planned vegan diet using the high-protein foods above.
I only eat humanely slaughtered and
humanely farmed animal products. Isn't that ok?
Labels are very misleading.
First—most terms like “humanely raised” are not legally defined. So depending on the exact term, it could mean different things. Many such terms are empty—they’re more about marketing than actual animal welfare.
“Grass fed” cows can still be fed grass indoors, for example. “Cage free” chickens are often stuffed by the thousands into sheds. The actual farms don’t necessarily look like the commercial with happy cows in a meadow.
Second—even when you see the best animal welfare certifications on a product, like Animal Welfare Approved (AWA) or Certified Humane (CH), there are still some cruel practices allowed. One example is castration without pain relief, which is allowed on both AWA and CH products. So even the best certifications do not guarantee a complete lack of cruelty.
Third—there is just inherent exploitation in animal agriculture. One example is the heart-breaking separation of mother and calf in the dairy industry—it can’t be avoided, even on the most “humane” farms.
Also, farming animals pretty much necessitates keeping them confined and then eventually killing them. Even when those actions are done in less-cruel ways, it’s still confinement and killing.
“Humane meat” is an oxymoron.