Chances are good that if you’re reading this blog, you care about animals. In fact, polls show that most Americans do. Not only do we overwhelmingly favor laws to protect animals from harm, more than half of homes in the US have at least one companion animal and 50% of pet owners consider their furry friends as much a part of the family as any other person in the household.
We all know that trans fats are found in highly-processed, packaged foods, as well as fast-food fare. But did you know that half of Americans’ trans fats intake comes from animal products?
Starting this week, 3,000 egg-laying hens will be given a second chance at life. It will be their first opportunity to feel grass under their feet, the sun on their backs, and the ability to walk around and fully stretch their wings out beyond the confines of a tiny and overcrowded wire battery cage.
This week, environmental activists from around the world will join former Vice President Al Gore in Chicago for training through the Climate Reality Project. It’s a three-day summit focusing on public speaking, community organizing, and the latest climate science, with the expectation that in the next year, they’ll each host their own climate-related events and submit articles to newspapers about this important issue.
Childhood obesity has been increasing at an alarming rate over the past few years — it’s estimated that one in three adolescents are now obese or overweight. Interestingly, while the general public previously viewed obesity as a personal issue, it’s now widely considered to be a national one due to the associated health care costs that are continually rising.
When The Sexy Vegan — that would be the affable Brian Patton — started dating his now-wife, he wooed her with Friday night happy hours at her apartment or his. When their friends heard of the lovely summer evenings they were having, the happy hours expanded, both in terms of the number of guests and the types of tapas.
Shortly after the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) released an undercover video exposing extreme animal abuse inside Wyoming Premium Farms, a pig breeding factory farm, several employees, including two managers, were charged with cruelty to animals.
After learning that an estimated 95% of egg-laying hens on factory farms are intensively confined in tiny wire cages so small, they can’t even spread their wings, many well-intentioned urban dwellers are flocking to the idea of raising backyard chickens as a more humane alternative. Unfortunately, this trend which has gained momentum largely from the sustainable and locavore movements, is not all it’s cracked up to be, especially for the birds.
Like many new vegetarians and vegans, when I started to examine my food choices in early 2008, I needed an outlet for my new-found knowledge and enthusiasm. And just like other animal advocates in Southern California at that time, I started volunteering for the successful Yes on Prop 2 campaign (a ground-breaking initiative that bans the cruel practices of intensively confining calves, pigs, and birds in tiny cages or crates). After tabling for the campaign at just one festival, I was hooked. I knew I had found something meaningful that would remain a part of my life for years to come.