Animals are feeling sentient beings, there is worse effect to environments and the world with animal agriculture and there is much more water, land and resources used, and it isn’t even better for our health. So we in our modern society do not need any of the things from animals. There is no good reason for people to not know about this, so all this should be communicated. People decide what to do themselves, and hopefully they will the right way.
It’s good to recognize these things, but it is a mistake to assume that people who are not vegan don’t know this yet. You feel like your conclusion is obvious and irrefutable, and if people could just understand the logic, we’d all be vegans.
You’re going to be disappointed to learn that a lot of non-vegans know this already, and a lot more don’t but learning it won’t change their minds about using or consuming animal products. Very few will actually change their habits, and even fewer will campaign for animal rights.
Don’t be discouraged, though! It’s not up to you to change the world. You do your best, live your life, and try to make the world better one decision at a time. Don’t hate the people who don’t see things your way, because you never know how close to convincing them you actually are. Somebody’s going to learn this today and change how they make decisions, and that’s good enough.
That is simply plain wrong as most people do not know of the plant-based alternatives to the animal-deriving products. Like for example I didn’t know there omega 3 capsules were made out of Algae oil or that you can get your required protein from beans, lentils and nuts.
I was brainwashed into believing that “milk, meat and fish was necessary to survive” until I learned better.
I wouldn’t even guess at the statistics of nutritional education, but I would believe you that most people don’t know about algae oil. What I’m saying is that there exist a significant number of people who do know about the inherent cruelty of factory farming, and the availability of cruelty-free alternatives, and they still won’t change their habits or consumption. It’s not a big secret anymore, and the internet exists to provide all information to anyone who wants it.
It’s like assuming Americans use the imperial measurements because they don’t know about metric. Sure, many Americans don’t know the metric system, but just learning it exists and understanding the advantages doesn’t compel Americans to switch.
Going vegan is a disruption. At a minimum, it means changing the groceries you buy. It means reading ingredients and scanning menus at all your favorite restaurants. It means depriving yourself of some previous enjoyment.
There are many people who don’t know the extent of cruelty. There are many people who are unaware of their options. And there are many people who, upon learning these things, immediately change their consumption behaviors because the thought of enjoying food or products that come from suffering is abhorrent. For OP, just knowing that suffering is not required for survival is enough motivation to stop consuming animal products. My point is that it is a mistake to assume that the same knowledge would move the needle for most people.
I said I don’t want to guess at statistics, but let’s do a thought experiment. Imagine you went to a barbeque and told everyone standing around that you had a video showing how the animals people are eating are treated. How do you suppose people would react to you offering to show them that video? How many would watch it? How many would react with anger and disgust because they already know what’s in the video? How many of them would trade their burger for a veggie patty?
My point is, it’s not that they don’t know. People know. People don’t want to think about it. And yes, share the info and maybe a few more people stop eating meat. I’m not suggesting that you or OP shouldn’t share information. All I’m saying is that if you expect it to be enough, you’re setting yourself up for a lot of disappointment.
I think yes and no.
I was shocked to find out that a lot of people I knew didn’t understand that cows needed to be continually impregnated to produce milk, or that male chicks were culled en masse as part of the chicken flesh and egg industries. So there definitely is a still a lot of ignorance out there.
I think you’re also right that there’s not a lot of awareness about what a healthy vegan diet looks like.
Further, I think many don’t understand just how cruel animal agriculture really is. But also, a lot of people just don’t want to look.
Most people I know understand that I’ve been vegan for years, so it’s obviously possible to live just fine on a vegan diet. Yet for whatever reason, they don’t seem to care enough to change their behaviour.
It seems to be a combination of anxiety about social exclusion, loss of convenience, loss of pleasure, and fear of change, among others. I find lack of knowledge to be a less common issue.
It’s honestly been a disheartening experience for me, and I’ve lost some faith in humanity as well as the people I’ve held as friends.