Also exploring ultra-processed food, which I think is against the spirit of veganism. The few vegans I know make everything themselves from stuff that’s one step away from being pulled from the ground or a plant.
The spirit of veganism is excluding consumption of things that result in animal cruelty, exploitation, or death. There is no requirement to avoid ultra-processed foods
Not necessarily, palm oil itself can be vegan since it is plant derived, but the practices to extract it most often are not vegan. There are many things that aren’t vegan that many people wouldn’t think of unless they’re really questioning the production of what they consume. Another good example is that a lot of beers are made with animal byproducts as part of the processing such as fining agents. If you just look at the label you wouldn’t know it’s not vegan unless you know to ask the manufacturer about their process. The same would apply to palm oil since some is supposedly sourced ethically and sustainably. Personally i avoid it because i think a lot of places green wash their process and it is easier to just avoid it than to verify if the palm oil was really ethically/sustainably sourced or not.
There’s many more examples of “gotchas” like this that new vegans with good intentions may not know about. It’s a learning curve. When i was early on in my journey there was a lot of things i didn’t really understand but i just do my best and continually learn.
Sure, and many vegans do end up eating less ultra processed foods. But my point is that eating healthier isn’t what being vegan is about. Vegan isn’t a diet like many people think. It’s a way of life to reduce and eliminate harm to animals
Also exploring ultra-processed food, which I think is against the spirit of veganism. The few vegans I know make everything themselves from stuff that’s one step away from being pulled from the ground or a plant.
The spirit of veganism is excluding consumption of things that result in animal cruelty, exploitation, or death. There is no requirement to avoid ultra-processed foods
https://www.vegansociety.com/go-vegan/definition-veganism
So palm oil is definitely something that makes a product non-vegan, right?
Not necessarily, palm oil itself can be vegan since it is plant derived, but the practices to extract it most often are not vegan. There are many things that aren’t vegan that many people wouldn’t think of unless they’re really questioning the production of what they consume. Another good example is that a lot of beers are made with animal byproducts as part of the processing such as fining agents. If you just look at the label you wouldn’t know it’s not vegan unless you know to ask the manufacturer about their process. The same would apply to palm oil since some is supposedly sourced ethically and sustainably. Personally i avoid it because i think a lot of places green wash their process and it is easier to just avoid it than to verify if the palm oil was really ethically/sustainably sourced or not.
There’s many more examples of “gotchas” like this that new vegans with good intentions may not know about. It’s a learning curve. When i was early on in my journey there was a lot of things i didn’t really understand but i just do my best and continually learn.
but it’d probably be very good to, wouldn’t it?
Sure, and many vegans do end up eating less ultra processed foods. But my point is that eating healthier isn’t what being vegan is about. Vegan isn’t a diet like many people think. It’s a way of life to reduce and eliminate harm to animals
No? Nothing forces food processing to be unethical.
i was thinking more about the health implications rather than the ethics.