Being Vegan Isn't Simple Anymore

[Lou]

What was veganism like in early 2000s? Curious if I really did try when I was a little kid.

It certainly was simpler. There just weren't a lot of choice. Maybe 3 alternative meats in the frozen food aisle. Just a few things in the dairy aisle. If you were on the road - only Taco Bell was a safe bet.

 

[Danielle]

You'd think you'd feel restricted with less options, I would.
I do feel restricted at times. Because there are less options. Especially after moving from Chicago to Mississippi.
One of the most exciting things about veganism is exploring all the alternatives.

 

[silva]

It certainly was simpler. There just weren't a lot of choice. Maybe 3 alternative meats in the frozen food aisle. Just a few things in the dairy aisle. If you were on the road - only Taco Bell was a safe bet.

Your idea of "simpler" is much different than mine
There was nothing for me at Taco Bell, I had to hope for Subway.
2000's-- brings me back to buying Fritos at gas stations when on the road! More filling than a pack of nuts

 

[Danielle]

Depends if you like bean burritos or not.
I'm not sure if I'd be strong enough if I didn't have access to the alternatives. I'd probably feel bad, but my hunger would win. Like, do I really want to eat *that*? No.

 

[permabulk]

The choices are still relatively simple for the poor and health-conscious, at least where I live.

 

[Mufflon]

The choices are still relatively simple for the poor and health-conscious, at least where I live.

In my area you neither have to be health conscious nor poor to have limited options, lol. I always look at the UK product thread with a mix of awe and jealousy.

 

[FlandersOD]

– eh Germany has a better selection of products than where I live by far.
I live in what americans call a food desert.

Even here their are choices I guess all be it extremely limited compared to most places around the world.{this applies to most any diet actually}

 

[Lou]

I think the dairy aisle provides a good example of what I'm talking about. Twenty years ago there was maybe one shelf with a couple of brands or types of soy milk.
then it expanded to a few shelves, with a couple of types of milk and brands.
Five or ten years ago it became a section. Soy, almond, rice. Then each had some flavors and multiple brands.
By the time oat milk hit the shelves it was two sections. There was soy, almond, rice, oat, pea, in multiple flavors, and brands. And there were mixtures too. like cashew/almond. or ones that included pea protein. And creamers. and protein drinks...
Now we have Next Milk and Not Milk. with various flavors and fat content.

It used to be an easy decision. now I need charts and spreadsheets.

BTW got some Not Milk the other day. Pretty good.

 

[Stardust1986]

I have been thinking of posting something like this for a while now but I couldn't figure out how to phase it to make it a fun post.

in some ways vegan life is getting more complicated - there are more choices than there used to be. And maybe that isn't totally positive. So I decided to go ahead and start this up and see if it goes anywhere. Or goes anywhere close to where I expect or intend.

One of my original ideas was going to about which kind of milk do you buy. Natural, organic, free range, grass fed? Well if you are vegan you don't have to worry about that kind of choice. You just don't buy milk. But that was before plant based milks took off. It used to be the only choice was soy milk. or maybe rice milk. but now there are dozens of plant milks on the shelf.

or what kind of eggs to buy. Cage free, or natural, or antibiotic free, or organic, or humane? Well if you are vegan you don't have to worry about that kind of choice. You just don't buy or eat eggs. Except now there is plant based eggs. Although there aren't too many choices there.

Same thing with meat. Free range or grass fed. Antibiotic free or organic. So if you are vegan you don't have to worry about that either. You just don't buy meat. But now we have almost a dozen makers of plant based meats.

then there is fast foods. it used to be it was an easy decision - there was no vegan fast food. but now BK sells impossible whoppers and McDs has the McPlant. And other fast foods have plant based foods, too.

In a way I'm nostalgic for the good ol' days when decisions were simple because there were no or few choices. or maybe I'm grateful that now I can have choices.

I know that anything humane certified is supposed to be best. However, they do use labeling to mislead the public into thinking some animals are treated better than others, when it's not realistically possible given the population. The "exotic meat market" boasts the best treatment of animals, but a carton of eggs will cost you about $100. There is more types of food available now, creating temptation, but also domt forget modern plant based foods are on the cutting edge of technology, making it more possible than ever before to satiate your cravings. I like oat milk, and coconut milk, all cow milk products have certain amount of puss in them, that turned me off, chicken nuggets are mostly blood vessels etc. I've only been vegan for about four months, and I think it's important to focus on all the good you've done, if a person slips at some point in their life, dont feel discouraged, just dont give up

 

[Lou]

I know that anything humane certified is supposed to be best.

Perhaps the "best" of a bunch of bad choices.

According to my reading humane certified is BS. Well from an ethical vegan's point of view.
Its good that there is enough concern for animal welfare to make these things in demand. however in a way its just hypocritical. If you are concerned with animal welfare - you don't kill, harm, or imprision animals. This guy expresses it well.

The very existence of labels like “free range,” “cage-free,” and “humane certified” attests to society’s growing concern for the welfare of animals raised for food. But any time consumers of meat, eggs or dairy advocate for “humane” treatment of farm animals, they confront an unavoidable paradox: the movement to treat farm animals better is based on the idea that it is wrong to subject them to unnecessary harm; yet, killing animals we have no need to eat constitutes theultimate act of unnecessary harm.​

The Humane Myth

Harming Animals for Pleasure Is Not Humane The very existence of labels like “free range,” “cage-free,” and “humane certified” attests to society’s growing concern for the welfare of animals raised…

ichoosevegan.org

I think it's important to focus on all the good you've done, if a person slips at some point in their life, dont feel discouraged, just dont give up

Absolutely.

 

[RawVeganer]

I think being vegan is a lot simpler and that going vegan is even easier than it was 20 years ago.
The availability both in terms of pricing and abundance of staple foods has improved dramatically by orders of magnitude.
There is a wealth of stores available and the quality of produce has also improved.
Great recipes and videos are available for instant access and the social aspect is also a lot better.

 

[bEt]

Then what about people - they are animals, too

Part of what is wrong with animal products also. The people working in the hellish (sorry for the strong language) animal warehouses and slaughterhouses and fishing boats. Yes their conditions are not as bad as the animals', but still pitiable, many of them immigrants or tricked into their job in slave labor conditions without other feasible options available to them.

 

[Brian W]

In a way I'm nostalgic for the good ol' days when decisions were simple because there were no or few choices. or maybe I'm grateful that now I can have choices.

I'm not nostalgic for the good ol' days when veggie burgers were dry textureless things that fell apart as soon as you looked at them. I'm actually a very fussy eater and would like more choice so that there is more likelihood of finding things that actually stimulate my appetite. When I look in the Supper/dinner time thread and the what are you eating thread, my stomach churns when I see what people often eat, and vegan eggs - NO THANKS! Really, I don't think there is much to choose from at all, even though it is thankfully a lot better than it used to be.

 

[Lou]

I'm not nostalgic for the good ol' days when veggie burgers were dry textureless things that fell apart as soon as you looked at them. I'm actually a very fussy eater and would like more choice so that there is more likelihood of finding things that actually stimulate my appetite. When I look in the Supper/dinner time thread and the what are you eating thread, my stomach churns when I see what people often eat, and vegan eggs - NO THANKS! Really, I don't think there is much to choose from at all, even though it is thankfully a lot better than it used to be.

Well, I suppose I'm not really nostalgic. But I am a big fan of simplifying and no doubt with less choices it was simpler.

I go to Burger King a few times a month now (on Whopper Wednesdays) and get an impossible burger. Not a great burger but its convienent and cheap. Its a nice option,

Back when Boca was the only vegan burger I always had a box in my freezer. Mostly for "emergencies". With a nice toasted bun, a slice of nondairy cheese, vegan mayo, ketchup, lettuce, tomato, and pickle it made for a nice quick and easy meal.

Now there are so many choices. but I rarely have any frozen patties in my freezer anymore. Sometimes I buy a box of something new just to see what its like. But mostly now that I'm retired I don't need "emergency meals" very often.

I do always have a box of Just Egg Foldables in my freezer. Until they came out I hadn't known how much I missed eggs. I would say that they are my new emergency go-to but that I tend to just make them on Sundays mornings with hash browns and a veggie sausage. Add a cup of coffee and a glass of juice and maybe toast and jam - its just like the Wonder Years.

You must be reading a different "Supper/dinner time thread" than I do. No you are posting to the same one I'm reading. A lot of the recent posts sound delicious.

 

[LoreD]

I was vegan in 70's in the center of meat and dairy country. If I wanted a meat or dairy alternative, I had to make it myse!f. It wasn't easy. There was nothing out there

I do appreciate the ease of finding a lot of different kinds of beans and grains in the stores and online. Also, the variety of vegetables and fruit is amazing. I remember walking into stores during the 80's and seeing this tiny vegetable and fruit area, and really long meat counter.

I just went into a local supermarket and they had an aisle long freezer section that was all vegan products. I'm really happy.

 

[Ydobon777]

Personally I am living with my family is a very rural place and we have no choice. Even we we lived in a total hermit food desert we had more alternatives choice ... i took that for granted now that i look back at it! Now we don't have those but we have access to fresh fruits and vegs. Which we didn't have

 

[jaylen1996]

I personally don't eat any plant based mock meats. I don't miss the taste and don't like the memories. I rely on more whole foods that tend to be lower calorie so I blend for more calories dense meals. My smoothies can be 1000 to 1100 calories in 4 cup servings

 

[VeganRachel]

I have been thinking of posting something like this for a while now but I couldn't figure out how to phase it to make it a fun post.

in some ways vegan life is getting more complicated - there are more choices than there used to be. And maybe that isn't totally positive. So I decided to go ahead and start this up and see if it goes anywhere. Or goes anywhere close to where I expect or intend.

One of my original ideas was going to about which kind of milk do you buy. Natural, organic, free range, grass fed? Well if you are vegan you don't have to worry about that kind of choice. You just don't buy milk. But that was before plant based milks took off. It used to be the only choice was soy milk. or maybe rice milk. but now there are dozens of plant milks on the shelf.

or what kind of eggs to buy. Cage free, or natural, or antibiotic free, or organic, or humane? Well if you are vegan you don't have to worry about that kind of choice. You just don't buy or eat eggs. Except now there is plant based eggs. Although there aren't too many choices there.

Same thing with meat. Free range or grass fed. Antibiotic free or organic. So if you are vegan you don't have to worry about that either. You just don't buy meat. But now we have almost a dozen makers of plant based meats.

then there is fast foods. it used to be it was an easy decision - there was no vegan fast food. but now BK sells impossible whoppers and McDs has the McPlant. And other fast foods have plant based foods, too.

In a way I'm nostalgic for the good ol' days when decisions were simple because there were no or few choices. or maybe I'm grateful that now I can have choices.

I like simplicity. The myriad of plant-based or vegan prepared foods is incredible, but I prefer the basics, veggies, fruits, grains, beans,
nuts and seeds--to make the vast majority of the food I eat, including nut milks. I liked health food stores when they were mostly
BULK things to buy. Now there are lots of frozen freezer stuff.

 

[Lou]

Your perspective on the nostalgia for simpler times without many choices is interesting.

My Original post was tongue in cheek. Wanted it to be a little funny.