Thinking about changing your diet?
An anonymous contributor tells their story about why and how they became vegetarian & vegan...

Poor Cow

I was fortunate to be born into a vegetarian family, I just knew we did not eat meat. It was good too that there was a large vegetarian family living a few doors away from us. As my school was some distance away I had to have school dinners until I was old enough to cycle home.

I remember these clearly as most days I just had the vegetables.One day there was a big black casserole of stew,Miss Mary-a gentle soul-painstakingly removed a lot of vegetables for me,not realizing that I could not eat these as they had been cooked with the meat….

There was one other girl in my school so I wasn’t quite alone.I went back to my old school the other year and was delighted to see that there was a large vegetarian table for borders and day pupils.

One day our neighbour asked me to do some shopping for her I would be about eight years old,I went to the co-op with my list.On the list there was black pudding ,of course I did not know what this was until the grocer said I would have to go to the butcher for this. This I could not do – so all the shopping did not get done that day.

I have been off and on vegan for many years from the time the vegan society was first formed in Leicester. But over the years I lapsed – so those of you that fall by the way side take heart.

Then one Summer we were on holiday in Norfolk we were renting a cottage that backed onto a strawberry field and then open farmland. One morning the crying of a cow awakened me. This went on day after day. When I saw the farm hands I asked what was the matter with the cow and they replied” They have taken her baby away,she will cry like that for days” Poor cow I thought and gave up dairy food again.

I finally became a very strict vegan, even down to clothing and shoes.

One afternoon we, my daughter and I, were driving along a country lane when a herd of female cows crossed the road. I was appalled at what I saw, their udders swollen and obscene dragging along the ground. Dreadful. This cannot be right I thought. This was some ten years ago. Since then I have lived well,dressed well and kept well without causing any cruelty to any animals.
I do not find it easy as some folk do. I miss Marks and Spencer’s delicious vegetarian Cheshire sheese,McVite’s milk chocolate wholemeal biscuits and Cadbury’s fruit and nut chocolate. But I could not eat them now even if I tried.