‘I DON’T VIEW MEAT AS FOOD’
Vegans from Truro area share why it’s the right choice for them
Vegans share why it’s the right choice for them.
Five years ago, Joel Adams adopted a vegan diet for the health benefits.
Today he’s still vegan, but the reason has changed.
“It did help health-wise, but as I learned more, my main reason for being vegan became the welfare of animals, with the environment a close second,” he said.
“I believed I needed animal products at first, but now I know I don’t, and learning more about the animals changes your perspective.”
For a short time, he ate a vegetarian diet, but after about three months cut out all animal products.
Adams said, although he lost a considerable amount of weight after first becoming vegan, he gained most of it back after discovering vegan treats.
“There are a lot of choices in vegan diets, and I don’t view meat as food anymore.”
His wife, April Sanson, became vegan about three months after he did.
The couple live in Hubbards, but are often in Truro, where Adams grew up, to visit family and friends.
“We have a few places in Truro where we can go out to eat,” he said. “Social gatherings can be difficult, and we often bring our own food to those. We don’t usually mention we’re vegan until we know people for quite a while.” Shannon Crowe changed her diet after watching documentaries and reading articles about animal welfare. She’s been vegan for three years, and was vegetarian for one year before that.
“When I watched documentaries, I saw the conditions animals were in on factory farms; there was no quality of life at all,” said the Bible Hill woman. “When you see neatly-packaged meat at a grocery store, you’re not aware of the process behind it.
“I watched a video about dairy and learned how calves are taken from their mothers when they’re small so that people can drink the milk.” She also looked at the environmental impact of meat.
“A lot of deforestation takes place to grow crops to feed animals raised for meat. The ecosystem is being destroyed, rainforests are being demolished, enormous amounts of water are used. If you consider yourself an environmentalist I don’t see how you can eat meat.
“People talk about plastic straws, Joel Adams and is wife, April Sanson. Admas adopted a vegan diet five years ago and Sanson, became vegan about three months later.
but the amount of damage they cause is small compared to the meat industry and fishing. The best way to help the earth is to avoid meat and dairy and eggs.”
Crowe found the most difficult food to give up was cheese, but she no longer misses it. She uses dairy free cheese when making meals. Like many vegans, she takes B12 supplements and eats B12-fortified foods to ensure she gets enough of that vitamin.
Although her husband and stepson eat meat, they are supportive of her choice. Restaurants have made adjustments to their menus to accommodate vegan diets.
“We tweak our menu twice a year, and we can also tweak items on the menu,” said Derek Forsyth, owner of the Nook & Cranny in Truro. “For vegans, we offer multiple options.”
A & W brought out the vegan Beyond Meat Burger in 2018 and were surprised by its popularity, with restaurants quickly running out of stock.
“Some people think being vegan means there’s not much you can eat, but there’s a lot,” said Adams. “It’s not a choice that makes us feel we’re missing something; it’s a choice that’s enriched our lives.”