VEGETARIANISM: MAINSTREAM OR CARE FOR ANIMALS

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VEGETARIANISM: MAINSTREAM OR CARE FOR ANIMALS

Vegetarianism: mainstream or care for animals?

Polina Sergeevna Ustinova

Russian State Social University

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Abstract

Dear reader, have you ever thought on the main issue of this research: "Vegetarianism:

mainstream or care for animals?" If you have never done it, you should read this essay! Many

people are interested in this issue. The research explores the problem of refusing to eat meat not

for the sake of caring for animals, but as a mass insanity to something new. There you can find

the answers to the essential questions. What is vegetarianism? Is vegetarianism became

mainstream? How people can care for animals? Also, there are a lot of explanations of words

from various resources, for example Oxford and Cambridge dictionaries. This essay considers

some articles that prove and describe connection between vegetarianism and mainstream. . You

can read the opinions of famous vegetarians, scientists and analyze some statistics on the main

issue of this essay. In the result of this research, mostly people are understand that animals, also,

want to live and support them to exist in this dangerous world. It is wonderful!

Keywords: vegetarianism, mainstream, connection, care.

Vegetarianism: mainstream or care for animals?

People face one major question: vegetarianism: mainstream or care for animals? Some of

them think that people become vegetarian only because it is very trendy. But others might think

that people who do not eat meat are care for animals. There are a lot reasons why people prefer

live without eating meat and other animals products.

Vegetarianism. What is the vegetarianism for you, dear reader? In Cambridge dictionary online there

is definition: "Vegetarianism is a practice of not eating meat, for health or religious reasons, or

because you want to avoid being cruel to animals." Also, there is another definition according to

Collins Dictionary (2011), "Vegetarianism is a principle or practice of excluding all meat and

fish, and sometimes, in the case of vegans, all animal products (such as eggs, cheese, etc) from

one's diet." In my opinion vegetarianism is a lifestyle and care for health and, of course, for

animals. James Cromwell (1995) wrote:

If a child understood what was happening on industrial farms, he would never touch

meat again. I was so moved by the mind, the sense of humor and the nature of the animals I

worked with in the movie "Babe", by the end of filming I became a vegetarian.

According to this article, we can prove that being a vegetarian we can save a lot animals and can

help them to live without fear of death with which they live all their short life. David Stroud of

the American University of meat thinks differently:

Some people still want to eat meat but despite that, we agree that a vegetarian diet is

healthier.

From this statement it follows that vegetarianism is one of the ways of a healthy life. Therefore,

vegetarianism has a lot of meanings and definitions. Many men, many minds.
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Mainstream. Dear reader, have you ever thought about what is mainstream? Firstly, you can

learn definition of this word from English Oxford living dictionaries "Mainstream is ideas,

attitudes, or activities that are shared by most people and regarded as normal or conventional."

Secondly, Cambridge dictionary gives you other definitions of this expression "Mainstream is a

way of life or set of beliefs accepted by most people." And finally, mainstream is most of

a society. Mainstream makes all things trivial and uninteresting for people who really fond of

this or that doing.

Connection. Is there a connection between vegetarianism and mainstream? Michele Simon is the

Executive Director of the Plant Based Foods Association (PBFA) (2017). She said: "The plant-

based foods industry has gone from being a relatively niche market to fully mainstream." "Data

from Nielson (commissioned by the PBFA) (2017), shows the plant-based foods industry has

experienced dollar sales growth of 20 percent over the last year with sales topping $3.3 billion."

Michele Simon, also, said:

Plant-based meat and dairy alternatives are not just for vegetarians or vegans anymore;

now even mainstream consumers are enjoying these delicious and innovative options

in the market today.

The connection between vegetarianism and mainstream can be easily demonstrated by the Media

Communications Manager Claire Wotherspoon (2017). According to her: "Insight from the

Kantar Worldpanel Usage panel shows that consumers are already increasingly choosing to eat

meat-free dinners, potentially making the jump to veganism less daunting. 29 percent of our

evening meals are veggie, and this has grown consistently over the past few years. The biggest

spike has been over the past year, during which we ate an additional 200m meat-free evening

meals." Researchers from "The Independent" make a conclusion: "With more than 3.5

million Brits now identifying as vegan and more than 57 million #vegan posts on Instagram, it’s

safe to say that plant-based living is more popular than ever before." "Vegetarianism has
VEGETARIANISM: MAINSTREAM OR CARE FOR ANIMALS

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officially permeated into the masses." In the 21st century, Instagram is one of the main platforms

for human interaction. Thus, it becomes clear that the mainstream of vegetarianism began in

social networks for the sake of a large number of likes and followers.

Care for animals. Is it really need to give up meat to save animals from death? People can care

for animals in many ways, but I believe that refusing to eat their meat is the most effective

method. According to  Roger Panaman (2008), "Billions of food animals are killed every year.

For instance, the US annually slaughters two million pigs per week and China slaughters 12

million pigs per week (see Pigs / Hogs Statistics). Statistics show that the average amount of

meat eaten per person per year worldwide has doubled from 21 kilograms in 1961 to 40

kilograms in 2002." The Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom (n. d.) spoke:

In the UK alone, over 2.5 million land animals are slaughtered daily and 600,000 tonnes

of fish are killed each year. Calves have to endure castration, disbudding and

dehorning. Increasing numbers of beef cattle are housed in pens on concrete or slats

without bedding.

According to them: "Birds factory farmed today grow three times as fast as they did 50 years

ago. Broiler chickens have been selectively bred and reared for their meat. The majority live in

large, crowded, windowless sheds with tens of thousands of other birds." Scientists of Vegetarian

Society of the United Kingdom (n. d.) thought: "Most land animals killed for food in the UK are

stunned before bleeding to death. We have some of the most stringent regulations in the world,

but still many animals die in fear and pain. For many vegetarians, no form of slaughter can ever

be considered humane." To summarize, eating vegetable food, people allow animals to live on,

because if people stop eating meat, killing animals will be unnecessary. Do not kill - The First of

the ten commandments in Christianity and the first of the five rules in Buddhism.
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Conclusions

In conclusion, it is significant to take care not only about yourself but also about

defenseless animals. There are a lot of different thoughts about peoples` lifestyle. The connection

between vegetarianism and mainstream exists. It is proved. Vegetarianism is a way to save some

animals, how you, my dear reader, can understand reading my thoughts with examples of

statistics and facts. Dear reader, remember that they you in a big planet where live animals and

fish which are, also, want to live.

References

The Vegetarian Society of the United Kingdom. (n. d.). Compassion for animals is one of the main reasons why
people become vegetarian. Retrieved from:
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https://www.vegsoc.org/animals

Roger Panaman (Ben Isacat) (2008). Vegetarian and Animal Rights - How to Do Animal Rights.

http://www.animalethics.org.uk/vegetarian.html

Christian Broughton, Doug Wills (2018) "The Independent" The surprising reason why vegetarianism become

mainstream. Retrieved from:

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/veganism-rise-uk-why-instagram-mainstream-plant-

based-diet-vegans-popularity-a8296426.html

Michele Simon Executive Director of the Plant Based Foods Association (PBFA) (2017). Vegan And Plant-Based

Diets 'Now Fully Mainstream', Says Expert. Retrieved from:

https://www.plantbasednews.org/post/vegan-plant-based-diets-now-fully-mainstream

Claire Wotherspoon Media Communications Manager (2017). Vegan And Plant-Based Diets 'Now Fully

Mainstream', Says Expert. Retrieved from:

https://www.plantbasednews.org/post/vegan-plant-based-diets-now-fully-mainstream

Mainstream (n. d.) Cambridge Dictionary online. Retrieved from:

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/ru/словарь/английский/mainstream

Mainstream (n. d.) English Oxford living dictionaries. Retrieved from:

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/mainstream

Vegetarianism (n. d.) Cambridge Dictionary online. Retrieved from:

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/ru/словарь/английский/vegetarianism

Vegetarianism (n. d.) English Oxford living dictionaries. Retrieved from:

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/vegetarianism
VEGETARIANISM: MAINSTREAM OR CARE FOR ANIMALS