Vegetarian and/or vegan members of BYC!

[Buster52]

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Have you figured out why since then?

 

[Chicken Boo]

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Have you figured out why since then?

Yes. Sorry, I guess I was a bit ambiguous. Vegetarians were behaving in the way I should be behaving if I really believed that animals deserved a good life and some respect. Just by being good examples, vegetarians were pointing out the disconnect between my beliefs and my actions and making me very uncomfortable, thus angy.

I keep that in mind when my eating habits get challenged (as opposed to queried out of curiosity).

 

[Buster52]

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Have you figured out why since then?

Yes. Sorry, I guess I was a bit ambiguous. Vegetarians were behaving in the way I should be behaving if I really believed that animals deserved a good life and some respect. Just by being good examples, vegetarians were pointing out the disconnect between my beliefs and my actions and making me very uncomfortable, thus angy.

Oh. Sorry I asked.

 

[fowltemptress]

Hi, not a vegetarian or vegan here, and have no desire to become one, but I hope you don't mind me asking a question. Has anyone found it hard to financially support the vegetarian lifestyle? I've gone through recipes and looked it up, and have determined that I'd really be straining my food budget if I became a vegetarian. All that healthy stuff gets expensive! Are there tricks to bringing down the price? I do no financially strapped people who probably would prefer to be vegetarians if they could at all afford it, but it seems to be more a diet for people of means . . . at least in this country. The financially strapped vegetarians I know resort to a diet consisting of nothing but carbs, and their health obviously suffers for it.

If there are tricks to finding a cheaper way to support this diet choice, I'd love to hear them. Though I won't take meat out of my diet, I do want to add more diversity to it without going into debt. I'm trying to get this family to eat healthier, but gosh, it's hard when it's the junk that makes up the cheap stuff in grocery stores.

 

[Bantimna]

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Well think about it. Lets say you buy a pound of chicken right that costs $2 a pound. Now you soak the chicken in water and remove the bones etc... How much chicken do you have left? (Remeber 75% of a chickens body is made up of water now.) The price doubles as you cut remove to get your desirable clean chicken. Now look at a cashew nut. 100% of the nut is food.
It's your choice but think of the price and try work out how much it would cost in the end term. To buying more expensive to cheap but expensive.

 

[fowltemptress]

Well, I wouldn't pay two dollars a pound for chicken. That's about how much I pay for four pounds, and I get lamb for free. The difference is probably less obvious for the people who are focusing more on quality of food than bang for their buck, I suppose. Getting more vegetarian dishes into my life may have to wait until we're more comfortable, I guess.

 

[Mom 2em All]

Fowltemptress,

We are a 75% vegetarian family, and I agree with you. It costs so much money to get good quality vegetables and fruits that usually carbs are used to stretch a meal here. I was just at a whole food market yesterday and my brother called it a whole PAYCHECK market.
The cheapest way for me is to get the WHOLE product, not the nifty packaged pre-cut/peeled ones. Much easier to buy carrots already bite size and peeled ie. baby carrots, instead of the ones that still have the greens on them, but not cost-effective.Another tip is to buy what is in season, for your area, at a local farm market instead of a large chain grocery store.
Winter is tough, and this one particularly for fruits=I cant afford to keep a staple of certain vegetables and fruits here. The more perishable, the more expensive. Those we will indulge in in the summer. Whole strawberries bought in bulk at the farm market can be cleaned sliced and frozen for winter treats. Same with corn. Buy it on the cob (or grow it) and cut it off the cob and freeze for winter use.

You are absolutely correct about the cost. I prefer to consume organically grown, pesticide/fertilizer-free products but it simply costs too much.

 

[fowltemptress]

Mom 2em All,

Thank you. It seems to me our Farmers market is more expensive than the large stores, but I'll double check and really get down and compare. I won't rule out that I might not have been paying enough attention. I've never been in a situation where finances were such that I actually had to pay attention to the food budget before, so I've been getting a crash course in figuring this all out. I really appreciate the tips, especially about freezing strawberries and corn. When it comes to freezing stuff for later, fruits and veggies are things that aren't first to come to my mind. It's simple tips like that that can seem obvious to other people, but it really helps me out.

 

[Bantimna]

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I'm quite surprised that it's difficult to find quality veg. in your country.

 

[Bantimna]

Hi All,
I would like to join this thread.

1. How long have you been vegetarian?

I've been a vegetarian for about 2 years now.
It started with my parents and then I decided to join the vegan van.

2. Why did you choose to go vegetarian?

It was about our beliefs, health safety

3. Has raising and caring for poultry changed your opinion of farm animals, or helped affirm your vegetarian lifestyle?

Yes and No. I don't like seeing animals stuck in trailers, left in the sun while the driver takes a break.
And because of what they are being fed.

4. What are some of your favorite foods?

I enjoy pasta with some cheese, home made bread, tamoto sauce, tofu, Wheat-grass juice
And nearly anything that doesn't have a vial taste.