This is vegan propaganda; an eye-opening exploration into the repercussions of meat-eating and the planetary and human damage it’s inflicting on our society. Covering just shy of 300 pages, the book unveils some very harrowing topics. Revealing truths behind the meat so many of us dish up on our dinner plates each evening.
Being a person who has never been the biggest meat-eater (but has never said no to my mum’s offer of a bacon sandwich), I was intrigued to learn about this described ‘propaganda’ by the meat, dairy and poultry industries.
What was revealed from the off was gruesome and startling, to say the very least. Throughout the book, the author switches between deeply informative dialogues, coming from a place of heavily researched and investigative facts and statistics to sharing his personal background and humour.
Deeper into the book, Winters uncovers some dark trusts about product labelling, particularly the dishonesty of organisations such as Red Tractor Assured and the RSPCA. Unveiling the payoffs and lies that are behind the seemingly ‘reassuring’ certifications.
Yet vegan propaganda is often criticised in the media and such like, for being an extremist’s midset.
Winter unpacks the truth behind slaughterhouses and how they continue to operate in dire conditions. The scale of animal abuse being just some examples of the operations gaining these certifications that attempt to reassure the consumer of quite the opposite occurring.
The haunting quote “There’s no such thing as a happy farm animal” has stuck with me. As the author revealed how farming animals for food kills billions of chickens, cows each year. With animals often facing off-the-scale abuse, torture and everything in between on said farms. Yet veganism is often criticised in the media, for being an extremist’s midset. Something does not add up.
Further along, the topic of land use is explored. Mainly, how ineffective farming is vs the calories associated with animal products. Themes of environment enhancement is explored too, if a global switch were to happen to a plant-based. With topical links between poultry and Influenza (amongst other diseases).
It was a big wake up call for me and has made me question why society is the way it is towards farming.
Growing up in rural North Wales, I have become accustomed to cows roaming freely in the fields around me. With family members running the many farms in my village, I’ve seen the poor sheep being carted off to the slaughterhouses. Their bleats piercing through the quaint country air.
As I’ve said, I’ve never been a huge meat eater since a young girl. This never being a conscious decision. But rather me always preferring vegetables (you could say I was a mother’s dream). What this book demonstrated to me, is just how accustomed we as a population have become to animal-eating.
We are told to drink our milk for strong bones or our red meat for energy, without question. But when you dig deeper and learn the facts (as I have done with this book) you start to realise just how wrong it all is.
Overall it was a big wake up call for me and has made me question why society is the way it is towards farming animals for food. Definitely giving me the push I needed to reconsider my diet! This is vegan propaganda by Ed Winters is available now – I highly recommend.
For more eco-reads, you can read previous editions here.