Prince Harry and a vegan diet.

I don't feel superior to carnivores - some of my family are carnivores! I see it as a choice I'm lucky enough to have , having witnessed horrible animal cruelty at a young age which turned my stomach, and I couldn't face eating the result on a plate. Others make their choices, thats up to them.

You don't always know what people eat when you see them do you?
How about Venus Williams and Lewis Hamilton ? Look healthy to me.
uk.businessinsider.com/elite-athletes-who-are-vegan-and-what-made-them-switch-their-diet-2017-10/#venus-williams-tennis-player-1

Animals very few would exist that we have no "need" of, humans are a very destructive species. I do eat wild. I eat all I can of any animal. No I am not a vegetarian or a vegan, never find the dishes tasty or filling enough, possibly many vegans or vegetarians do feel superior to us carnivores, sometimes I reflect that many mask eating disorders. As for the grandchildren as my daughter will attest, the news is not met with wild enthusiasm. I am intrigued at how much criticism this all is going to stir.

Have never seen a vegan who looks healthy.
It may not be true about Harry eating this kind of diet but in any case Meghan needs to eat a little more, her stick thin arms and legs look in danger of breaking.

Farm animals have been bred by humans and aren't "natural" in that sense, their wild equivalents would still exist, in as far as human activity hasn't made them extinct. Should animals only exist if humans "need" them?

Oh yes, I agree with that too Carol. Too many people. Now who’s going to agree to not having any grandchildren..........

The world needs a moratorium on breeding people, then maybe there would be more habitat to sustain us all and the animals. It seems we are the rats in the maze experiment, squabbling and blaming. If no humans ate other animals, would they not cease to exist as we would have no need for them?

Maybe we'll have to go back to being more self sufficient, growing our own, raising chickens or hunting the odd rabbit, as industrial scale farming becomes less sustainable. I'm sure further dependence on processed food is not the way forward for health or the planet.

That was a very interesting linksuzied. Thank you. I certainly think he made a good case for drastically reduced meat consumption. I don’t think total is a possibility without some kind of world domination!

Do you have anything on, I don’t quite know how to put this, but “wild” meat eating. Like sea fishing for instance. Or rabbit. Could people look to this for a limited amount of animal protein? Are we part of the balance of nature as hunters?

I hope you understand what I mean.

Yes we can certainly find vegans who don't eat well, but we can also point to people who eat junk food, processed burgers etc , which makes them obese, give them heart disease etc.,of which I would guess there are far more. So its not as simple as vegan diet =bad, meat eating =good.

www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/may/31/avoiding-meat-and-dairy-is-single-biggest-way-to-reduce-your-impact-on-earth

My vegan niece brought her daughter up to be vegan,she also cooked chicken for her cat !!My great niece has been called "transparent" because of her thin frame and white transparent skin.Due to her diet, her GP says, so she has supplements .

All medication for humans will have been tested on animals, again, some fanatics will refuse medication, but why criticise people for not being perfect when they just don't want to eat animals? Or they want to cut down on eating meat or dairy? Surely cutting down isn't a bad thing? Is eating a load of processed junk, like many in the west do , preferable?

I know many vegans, don’t eat flesh, don’t wear / use leather etc, only buy cosmetics not tested on animals, never known one to refuse medication or even ask hospital staff “ has this drug been tested on animals”

I agree the west eats an excess of meat but Im still worried about the impact that the promotion of veganism in the west is having on the third world. It’s quite clearly not better for some of the planet. Just the richer bits!

And like I said, I’m not sure anybody has actually calculated the impact of a trend towards veganism on the planet as a whole. Better for the planet just seems like a mantra that hasn’t actually been thought through to me. A kind of repeat it often enough and it must be true. I’d like some well researched facts.

Any comment on my questions above?

No-one is saying everyone should be vegan or you have to be perfect vegans in every regard if you wish to stop eating animals. It makes sense from an environmental point of view to cut down on meat eating, even if you haven't a problem with the ethical issue of eating animal products. Many people want cruelty free cosmetics and clothing, but we don't live in a vegan world so we can't avoid all animal products. No-one is perfect, but if we choose not to eat animals, for what ever reason, its a legitimate choice. Meat eaters seem to be more hostile / critical of vegans than the other way round.

Especially this summer Julima.

I understand the thinking is that it is exploitation.

I think it's helping the sheep to keep cool in summer otherwise they can suffer.

As I understand it from a vegan it is still an animal product. Cant understand the thinking.

I am not sure why a vegan would not wear a pure wool jumper because the sheep (presumably kept for their wool only) or alpacas need to be shorn every year to keep them comfortable.

Or pure wool jumpers?

And is Harry still wearing leather shoes?

Fully-grown male gorillas can eat more than 40 pounds of food per day.
mostly fruit and plants but also some insects.
That's quite a quantity of food

However, we are more closely related to the chimpanzee and bonobo and chimpanzees do eat meat.

Some good points Eglantine
especially about the human emissions - would that contribute to global warming and subsequent climate change? Dry earth turns to dust and blows away, providing fewer nutrients to grow all the produce required for a vegan diet; with no nutrients from animal waste we could end up in a vicious downward spiral.

I’m all for it!
I love a good rare steak now and again and I’m quite keen on fish now and then too. However on the whole I do favourite a plant based diet on a day to day basis as I seriously believe it’s healthier and I enjoy a lot of what I eat.
Also just look at the shape of those gorgeous gorillas aren’t they closely related to humans.