The Veganistas: How Veganism Is Becoming A Way Of Life

If not for that goat milk, Gandhi would have been vegan. Yes, that바카라�s how close India is to having a ­patent on one of the biggest global fads of recent times. 바카라�Fad바카라� or 바카라�trend바카라� perhaps would be a wrong word for something that comes out of a deeper philosophy. Veganism, after all, rests on the idea that humans are compassionate beings and it is in their nature to choose kindness over killing바카라�or that such a state must be aspired to and can be taught or inculcated. Those who turn vegans see it as a life-­changing transformation free of any religion, propaganda, violence, lies, guilt, ­cruelty, rules, agenda, guru or a guidebook. A lot of that can be admired, a lot of it can also be submitted to a careful, ­respectful and sceptical analysis. But whichever side of that cheese omelette or chocolate sundae (or smoked pork) you stand, there are things here that we can learn from and apply바카라�for the sake of the planet.

But back to Gandhi first. Whether you prefer to bring him down a few notches, thinking of him as a faddist, or to ennoble the 바카라�fad바카라� itself by linking it to him, the ­historical connection is interesting. From a family steeped in Vaishnav traditions in Gujarat바카라�with the very visible imprint of Jainism바카라�it바카라�s easy to trace that movement in the mind towards non-­violence as a moral ideal, leading up to a whole worldview around collective ­sustainability. It바카라�s also easy to see how these ideas also link up with a kind of monkish renunciation. How thinkers have associated vegetarianism with celibacy (even if a handful of hundreds of millions in India will not agree). How Gandhi, before journeying to England as a young man, swore to his mother that he would not touch 바카라�wine, women and meat바카라� (an association that will strike us now as anachronistic and sexist). Or how he linked intake of milk to 바카라�animal passions바카라� (remember all those film scenes with the coy bride). A freeze-frame of the noble intent and a touch of the mental confusion going with it, therefore, is already available in the early Gandhi, way before British woodworker Donald Watson coined the word 바카라�vegan바카라� in 1944.

The confusions around veganism ext­end beyond how the word is to be pronounced. For starters, it바카라�s not the same thing as being vegetarian. A masala dosa from that neighbourhood Udipi joint would be vegan (if there바카라�s no ghee), but the butter milk you wash it down with is not. And yet, a lot of its primary impulse comes as a reaction to the cruelty and excesses of the meat industry, which it shares with vegetarianism. Paul McCartney famously said, 바카라�If all slaughterhouses had glass walls, everybody would be vegetarian.바카라� That simply gets extended to dairy products. Actress Richa Chadha became a vegan two years back when she realised the kind of unethical practices that goes into keeping cows pregnant throughout their life because humans want to have milk. 바카라�I think to be a vegan is a compassionate choice,바카라� she says.

Taken to its logical extreme, any kind of animal product would be forbidden in veganism as a lifestyle choice. And not just most Indians, but most of humanity would fail the test. For it바카라�s not just that tall glass of lassi, that plate of thair saadam, or ice cream or mango shake, that would be sinful. You can바카라�t carry a leather bag, or wear wool in winter, that pearl necklace is a no-no, so is that Kanjeevaram, all the piano you바카라�ve heard is a sin (the keys are ivory), so are all the songs with tabla or most other drums (animal skin), or even string instruments where animal gut was used. Yes, ethical alternatives can be found in many instances, but you get the drift. Don바카라�t even call your darling 바카라�honey바카라�.

The other big strand in veganist thought has to do with biology. The idea that humans are naturally vegetarian; that monkeys are vegetarian; that the convoluted shape of our ­intestines are more like that of deer and not the linear one of lions; that drinking milk beyond infancy is ­unnatural to all other mammals (not to speak of snatching some other ­animal바카라�s milk).

A few contrasting thoughts here ­before going to the practitioners, the evangelists and the sceptics. The ­vitamin B12 cannot be got from anywhere other than animal sources, and most vegans have to pop a pill to make amends there. Then, teeth: ­humans are heterodontic. We have incisors to tear/cut plant food and molars to grind them, but also ­canines for meat, a sign of our omn­ivorous nature. And our closest ape relatives, chimpanzees and bonobos, are omnivorous too. Frugivorous mostly, subsisting on fruit. But they are more than just opportunistically non-vegetarian (consuming meat if they come across a carcass), they act­ually hunt monkeys, birds and smaller mammals, and chomp down termites and insects (even if all that forms just 3 per cent of their diet). There바카라�s also the troubling thought that it바카라�s precisely the expanded nutritional palette brought about by cooked meat that may have made the ape brain grow and created the human being in evolution.

But now that we are here, and in billions, and since the planet groans under our weight, choices can still be made. Richa Chadha was quite clear about it. The dairy industry doesn바카라�t function the way it used to when 바카라�our parents were consuming milk바카라�, she says. Lord Krishna wasn바카라�t vegan either, but the cows then were kept in good conditions (and heard a lot of good flute). Now they have chemicals and steroids pumped into them to stimulate them to produce more milk, while the calf is cruelly separated from the mother. 바카라�If you ever witness that, I don바카라�t think anybody will ever have the desire to drink milk again,바카라� says Chadha.

She doesn바카라�t believe in lecturing people, though, because 바카라�the entire philosophy of veganism is based on live and let live바카라�. The desire must come from within. 바카라�I work with the NGO ResQ and I바카라�ve seen how male cattle get thrown out of trucks. It바카라�s inhuman to drink milk when you know how female cattle are pumped with hormones and forced to give milk. Sometimes blood comes out from their udder. The male cattle are not even this lucky바카라�they often get separated at birth, to be given away to slaughterhouses because they are of no use in the dairy industry. There바카라�s a lot of cruelty and I don바카라�t want to carry all the negativity in my head. Plus, meat can cause cancer and this has been confirmed by WHO.바카라� And how does she feel, physically, after becoming a vegan? 바카라�My hair and skin are better,바카라� she says.

Dr Nandita Shah is one of the earliest stalwarts of veganism in India바카라�in 2005, she founded Sharan, wishing to connect people to animals and nature in order to heal themselves and the planet. 바카라�It바카라�s a documented fact that the slaughterhouse worker suffers from emotional problems바카라�violence, anger, suicidal and homicidal tendencies, drinking, addiction바카라�­because they are always dealing with death. They do the work nobody else wants to do,바카라� she says.

Does the seed of human violence spring from our acceptance of ­bru­tality vis-a-vis how meat and milk come to our table? It바카라�s not a self-­evident fact, but what Hannah Arendt called the 바카라�banality of evil바카라�바카라�how cruelty, when repeated, ­becomes so mundane that we no longer balk바카라�does resonate here. If we see an animal being stoned, we want to stop it. But meat, leather, wool, silk and animal testing happen out of our sight. Veganism, Dr Shah says, 바카라�is a social justice movement where equality and justice to every living being is asked for. When one stops commodifying any living ­creature, one starts seeing the world in a whole new way.바카라� It바카라�s conditioning that allows us to ­selectively love animals, she adds. To feel pain when a dumb tourist stones an egret in Bharatpur, but calmly dig into chicken curry at the jungle lodge afterwards.

If you바카라�re an environmentalist by orientation, consider the fact that animal agriculture is the world바카라�s leading cause of habitat destruction and species extinction. Research published by cbsnews.com says salt water fish will be extinct by 2048. An international team of ecologists ­predicts our oceans will be empty of fish by then. Why? Overfishing, for starters. Already, 29 per cent of edible fish and seafood species have ­declined by 90 per cent. But it바카라�s not just about having seafood on our plates. Aquatic animals also filter toxins from water and protect the shorelines. A natural coast guard.

Any intense pressure on natural resources is detrimental to ecology바카라�livestock meat is a good example. Forests need to be cut down to create ranches, and you could drown many times over in the amount of water a bovine needs to drink so it can become that burger on your table. Says Tiasa Adhya, conservationist and wildlife biologist, 바카라�Converting our diet in ways that reduce our pressure on the natural world and, in turn, on our own future is a significant step towards conservation. Our personal choice of meat-eating disintegrates the very natural system that sustains us. Chemical treatments to increase food production are a health concern for the planet, causing terminal illnesses like cancer.바카라�

Dr Shah started her vegan journey in the early 1980s when she understood that to consume cow바카라�s milk, a cow is artificially inseminated and her baby taken away from her. 바카라�I imm­ediately thought about my grandmother바카라�s 바카라�chikh바카라�, a pudding made from colostrum. I felt a knot in my stomach. I realised that when we consume colostrum, the calf hasn바카라�t even had the first drop of milk from its mother,바카라� she says.

Veganism alone cannot guarantee love for all. Says Sayan Mukherjee, marine engineer, vegan activist and a fitness freak from Calcutta, 바카라�There바카라�s a growing movement to integrate speciesism into the intersectionality movement.바카라� The idea of human ­superiority over animals is just ano­ther axis on the interlocking systems of power that impact the most marginalised. Very often ­speciesism language is used to des­cribe the marginalised. Carol J. Adams, in her feminist vegan critical theory laid out in the book The Sexual Politics of Meat, says how ­misogyny and meat-eating are similar in mechanism. Both req­uire ­objectification바카라�the separation of mind from matter. And women are frequently referred to as meat.

Beyond the social, there바카라�s pure biology: diet, nutrition and our bodies. Says Dr Shah, 바카라�Greens and beans have more protein per calorie than chicken or steak. We are told lies by the companies that want to sell animal products. Excess protein causes acidity, gout, kidney failure, ostoeoporosis, allergies and cancer, and yet we are urged to have more of it.바카라�

There바카라�s a lot of confusion on whether animal protein increases the risk of cancers. The answers are not as straightforward as the question. According to research commissioned by Cancer Council in Australia, there exists a clear body of evidence to link bowel cancer with consumption of red and processed meat (but it바카라�s just one in six cases). WHO classifies processed meats바카라�ham, salami, bacon and frankfurters바카라�as a Group 1 carcinogen, indicating strong evidence of causation, including for stomach cancer. Beef, lamb and pork are classified as 바카라�probable바카라� carcinogens.

바카라�The way the meat is cooked is very important,바카라� says Dr Jaskaran Singh Sethi, director and head of department, Radiation Oncology, Fortis Hospital. 바카라�Cooking meat at high temperatures above 100° C, in direct contact with the flame, creates possible carcinogens like heterocyclic amines and polycyclic aromatic ­hydrocarbons. Stewing, poaching and steaming create lesser amounts of those. Processed meat has a lot of nitroso compounds and nitrites, ­potential carcinogens. The way ­animals are reared in the farms is also a factor.바카라� He means the pesticides and hormones used in feed, which result in toxic residues.

But does animal protein itself pose a risk? 바카라�There isn바카라�t sufficient data and direct evidence to say that,바카라� says Dr Sethi. 바카라�Further studies of biomarkers of intake and metabolism need to be done to fully understand the association between these food items and cancer risk. Still it바카라�s advisable to limit the consumption of red meat and processed meat in particular.바카라� Nutrients like high fat content, heme iron and choline are on the radar; the latter is linked to 바카라�increase in inflammation바카라�.

Actress Kajal Agarwal turned a vegan a couple of years ago for health reasons. 바카라�I was extremely sensitive to gluten and milk: they caused chronic stomach pain. A vegan diet doesn바카라�t by itself help in weight reduction. But I feel energetic,바카라� she says. Genetically babies need milk, adults don바카라�t. Every animal eats according to instinct. But humans eat according to advertisements and social conditioning. 바카라�In the animal kingdom, it바카라�s only humans who drink others바카라� milk,바카라� she adds.

How did it go for her? Well, it바카라�s dif­ficult for anyone turning vegan in India, one of the world바카라�s top milk-­producing countries, where no vegetarian spread is complete without paneer, raita, ghee and milk-based sweets. But not impossible. Just that one needs to plan. Kajal recalls, 바카라�It used to be a task to find almond milk. I바카라�d make it at home. But now everything is just a phone call away.바카라�

A 2016 poll by Ipsos MORI showed the number of vegans has risen in the UK by 360 per cent in just a decade. And in the US, there were 600 per cent more vegans in 2017 than there were in 2014. In India too, a recent article on a website run by Franchise India Holdings Limited pegs the ­recent rise at 360 per cent, though absolute numbers may look more meagre. Chirag Medira, an ­ethnographer, design thinker and ­ex-army man, is one of them. For him, veganism is not just a diet, but 바카라�an identity that surpasses all man-made lenses of culture, traditions, society and nationalities, a more conscious and intuitive global identity. It바카라�s NOT a choice, but a moral obligation for the three trillion animals slaughtered every year, a massacre we are a part of in our daily lives,바카라� says Medira.

Medira also believes he is in his best physical and mental health, even better than what he was during his army days바카라�he finds living without conscious and subconscious guilt quite freeing. 바카라�All health starts with mental health, and in today바카라�s world the suppressed truths of us being murderers affects us at a deeper level. When I turned vegan, I felt this uncontrollable surge of clean, dynamic and natural energy I had never experienced before,바카라� he says.

Author and travel blogger Shivya Nath had no idea an ordinary 바카라�chicken bus바카라� ride in Nicaragua would transform her life. But that바카라�s how it is with the road; it changes you when you least exp­ect it. 바카라�I no longer remember what our destination was, only that the chicken bus바카라�so called because people are crammed in like chickens바카라�was far more crowded than usual because it was New Year eve, and locals were heading home to the countryside,바카라� says Nath. 바카라�An old lady kept her sack next to my feet, and I felt something moved.바카라� When staring didn바카라�t work, she asked her politely in Spanish to move it. Minutes later, she felt something poking her back. Much to her horror, inS­ide were three little squeaking chicks trying to survive in a sack without a hole to breathe. 바카라�I brea­thed a sigh of relief when the lady got off at her stop. Clearly, she had taken the 바카라�chicken bus바카라� literally,바카라� adds Nath.

A month or so later, when Nath was making an egg in her friend바카라�s apartment, the incident came back to haunt her. 바카라�I knew the eggs we eat wouldn바카라�t become chicks, but I wanted to know what eggs really were, what conditions they came from.바카라� When she started reading, she was shocked. She had been vegetarian for over a decade, but had no idea that by consuming milk products, honey and other animal products, she was still contributing to animal cruelty. This was Nath바카라�s foray into veganism.

The lifestyle choices it implies means abjuring not just leather, silk and wool, but also cosmetics that have been tested on animals; also, not visiting places based on captivating and commodifying animals such as the zoo, ­circus and water worlds. 바카라�I avoid any lifestyle products that feature animal products like honey, beeswax and goat milk. It바카라�s a myth that one can get protein only from meat or eggs. I get mine through a balanced diet, which features lots of legumes, green vegetables and soya tofu,바카라� adds Nath.

Most cities around the world have a vegan movement in swing, and apps like Happycow make it easy to discover vegan-friendly places. Nath has been travelling constantly for over five years now, and has been vegan for the last three. 바카라�It sounds difficult, but actually, every cuisine has dishes that are accidentally vegan or can be customised. I바카라�m happy to drink green tea. Many of my vegan friends have mastered the art of coffee and chai with almond, soy or oat milk,바카라� she says.

But what바카라�s with milk? 바카라�Infants and children produce enzymes that break down lactose, but as we grow up, many of us lose this capacity,바카라� says Anuradha Sawhney, former head of PETA India and author of The Vegan Kitchen: Bollywood Style!. 바카라�Lactose intolerance is common, affecting about 95 per cent of Asian Americans, 74 per cent of Native Americans, 70 per cent of African Americans, 53 per cent of Mexican Americans, and 15 per cent of Caucasians.바카라� See that last figure against an old pastoral history, which India shares.

And what about dairy products and bone health? It바카라�s apparently debatable. An analysis published in the British Medical Journal says most studies fail to show any link between dairy intake and fractures. In one study, researchers tracked the diets, exercise and stress fracture rates of adolescent girls, and concluded dairy products and calcium do not prevent stress fractures. Another study of over 96,000 people found the more milk men consumed as teenagers, the more bone fractures they experienced as adults!

바카라�Milk is not the problem, the quality of milk is,바카라� says Luke Coutinho, who styles himself as a 바카라�holistic lifestyle coach바카라� using integrative medicine. 바카라�Most of us have grown up drinking milk and eating milk products. So, have our grandparents. Its source and the way the source has changed create the problem.바카라� Sawhney cites how cruelly cows are kept tethered. The milk-extracting machines are fixed to their udders, even if they are turned on and off during milking timings. Even if a cow has an infection or her milk has run dry, these machines keep on squeezing the udders. Cows and buffaloes are also inj­ected with Oxytocin, a drug banned for humans, to stimulate milk production.

Vegans believe lactose and casein are not really great for our health. 바카라�In fact, people who consume milk are more prone to ostoeoporosis and cancer, contrary to the dairy industry line that says 바카라�drink milk for healthy bones바카라�. Moreover, dairy is one of the leading causes of obesity and cholesterol. No external cholesterol is good for our body,바카라� says Medira.

Becoming a vegan needs a lot of thought, effort and investment, if there바카라�s no easy access to good quality produce. Being creative with cooking is the trick. An ideal vegan diet includes fruits, vegetables, whole grain products, nuts, seeds and legumes. A typical menu might include grain porridge with fresh fruit for breakfast, a veggie stir-fry with quinoa for lunch, and a bean and vegetable soup with a leafy-green salad for dinner.

Being a global fad helps. The mushrooming restaurants, cafes, snacks, ice-cream parlours, clothing concepts and home decor devoted to veganism attest to it. 바카라�It바카라�s unfortunate that very few people follow veganism with the right intention,바카라� says Coutinho. 바카라�For most, it바카라�s just about following what others are doing...herd mentality.바카라�

Sawhney feels it바카라�s not too difficult in India: there are already so many vegetarian places. One only needs to inform the server that you don바카라�t want any dairy products. 바카라�Today in India, chefs and waiting staff in restaurants understand this term. It바카라�s no longer like what it was back in 2000 when I turned vegan, when we had to sing a long litany of stuff to avoid in one바카라�s food바카라�no ghee, no cream, no cheese, no curd, no butter, no white sauce, no paneer바카라�and invariably the food would have to be turned away because there would be some dairy product or the other in it,바카라� she recalls.

Milk may be essential to the Indian palate. But unfortunately, milk production can바카라�t keep pace with our population growth. It바카라�s adulteration that chips in. And you get pesticides, urea, aflatoxin and such like, all potential ­carcinogens. 바카라�They바카라�re linked to the dev­elopment of various cancers바카라�hepatocellular, colon, lung, prostate, brain, kidney and leukemia바카라�as per multiple reports from across the world,바카라� says Dr Sethi. 바카라�Ammonium sulphate is associated with respiratory diseases.바카라� In a ­cohort study published in the British Medical Journal, the galactose in milk, associated with higher oxidative stress, is cited as the villain.

But some nutritionists believe completely eliminating animal food can lead to a lot of deficiencies. 바카라�Vegan diets are low in vitamin B12, which can be reconciled with supplements,바카라� says Karishma Chawla, a Mumbai-based nutritionist. 바카라�There바카라�s a risk of low protein as well. Hence it바카라�s important to plan meals to include a variety of ­nutrient-dense foods.바카라� Many people find it easier to start by eliminating one or two things from the diet and ­replacing them with healthy vegan ­alternatives. Coutinho is harsher. 바카라�Any diet that바카라�s not flexible in terms of ­options and requires you to eliminate a certain food group forever is a fad. A good diet is the one that바카라�s flexible and dynamic in nature,바카라� he says.

If you choose to go vegan, it바카라�s important to carefully plan your nutrition. One cannot wake up one morning and decide to go vegan. Veganism requires you to eliminate all sources of meat, fish, eggs and dairy. Hence, a vegan diet should be designed in such a way that it makes sure one is eating adequate protein via lentils, pulses, legumes, nuts and seeds. Most non-vegans consider protein the mysterious element in a vegan diet. 바카라�Vegans can either be under-­eating protein or overeating ­protein,바카라� says Coutinho. 바카라�Cereals and pulses offer a complete protein. A vegan diet has enough options to meet a person바카라�s dietary needs, just that it needs to be planned and executed well.바카라�

Delhi-based nutritionist Kavita Devgan says, 바카라�The best option to mark up the protein math of our body requirements can be pea or soy.바카라� A lot of vegans, anticipating deficiency, turn to protein powder. But consuming too much protein can itself be dangerous. 바카라�Our body can digest only 12-15 gm of protein during a meal, and this can be met with our regular intake. Too much protein isn바카라�t digested well by your body and it piles up as fat,바카라� says Coutinho.

Research shows that the average vegan diet is higher in vitamin C and fibre, and lower in saturated fat, all of which are beneficial. Vegans also have a lower BMI than meat-eaters바카라�in other words, they are skinnier. 바카라�Being a bodybuilder, I was initially sceptical of a vegan diet바카라�s efficacy in helping me build and retain lean muscle,바카라� says Sayan Mukherjee. 바카라�But the more I read, the more I found that a vegan diet is adequate in providing all essential macro- and micro-nutrients, including vitamins and proteins.바카라�

Bodybuilding on a vegan diet was an issue. 바카라�My gym trainer was disappointed with my decision. But I was determined to prove them wrong and I had the science on my side. I definitely felt more energetic than ever, though some would say it바카라�s a placebo effect. My cardiovascular capacity ­increased and my lifting prowess went through the roof.바카라� He encountered an obstacle when it came to protein supplements: the standard is whey protein. But he soon came to know of vegan protein powder brands in India made of high-quality pea.

And what of restaurateurs who keep the faith? Vikramaditya Sharma, founder of Purple Greene, Delhi, knew he would use stoneware and avoid bone china as it contained bone ash, not serve food made with cheese containing animal rennet and serve gelatos not containing any gelatine. 바카라�Cooking vegan was never the challenge,바카라� says Arun Tyagi, chef at Purple Greene. 바카라�The process remains the same, just some ingredients aren바카라�t easily available. The key was to adopt some of the soups, salads, small bites, main meals and desserts to the vegan grid, ensuring they continue to be delicious.바카라�

The converts are happy. 바카라�I have emb­raced a vegan lifestyle for a year and it바카라�s indeed one of my best decisions in my 61 years on this planet,바카라� says Subrata Ghosh, an architect in Calcutta. 바카라�I feel sorry it took so long.바카라� Personal and professional issues drove him바카라�last May, it suddenly struck him that no other species had ever hurt him as much as his own kind. His response: veganism. 바카라�It바카라�s difficult for people to be 100 per cent vegan; some medicines are coated with animal fat,바카라� he says. But he knows children who follow selective veganism, on a few days of the week, just 바카라�to reduce the carbon footprint바카라�.

바카라�I바카라�d turned vegetarian at a very young age,바카라� says Stefan Kaye, a Delhi-based musician and actor with roots in England. 바카라�I recall the moment as a six-year-old making the connection bet­ween animals, which, we are told as small infants, are our friends, presented to us as cuddly toys and anthropomorphised Disney characters, but also as the dead thing on my plate.바카라� Shortly after this, sometime in the late 바카라�70s, Kaye stopped eating meat, eggs and then gradually all animal products. Veganism was little understood then. 바카라�School dinners were always a problem,바카라� he recalls. 바카라�For a few years, I바카라�d eat pot­ato chips with a pickled onion from a nearby fish and chip shop. I was considered to be a problematic child with an eating disorder.바카라�

Carrots, in Bangalore, is touted as India바카라�s first vegan fine dining restaurant. They also prepare gluten-free, sugar-free and other allergy-friendly options on request. Says managing partner Susmitha Subbaraju, a vegan herself, 바카라�Our bread, dips, sauces, desserts, dairy-alternative milk바카라�everything is prepared in-house.바카라� Wholesome ingredients with maximum nutritional value: vegan milk, curds, cheeses. When someone orders a hot chocolate, they get to pick from five varieties of milk바카라�almond, soy, cashew, coconut or brown rice. They have six shakes on the menu, each prepared with a different plant-based milk. They also prepare their own seitan, a meat analog made with a blend of wheat gluten and soy. This goes into ­replacement dishes: the Chef바카라�s Special Mock Meat Curry, Sloppy Joe Burger and Seitan Stroganoff.

But is veganism a rich man바카라�s choice? 바카라�My parents have a big part in influencing my values, and being vegan is one of them,바카라� says Abhay Rangan, 21-year-old animal rights activist and CEO of Goodmylk (a plant-based dairy start-up in Bangalore). 바카라�I definitely am thankful it happened when I was 13.바카라� At 16, as an activist for the Society for Animal Rights and Veganism, he realised the difficulties people have. 바카라�People wanted to be vegans, but the ­alternatives were expensive and not easily available. That바카라�s why my mother and I decided to start Goodmylk, to make plant-based milk (cashew and oat milk) affordable and accessible.바카라�

Rangan says vegan alternatives are now more affordable and accessible, and anyway all new movements take time to scale. 바카라�In urban settings, where people spend 300 bucks on a coffee at Starbucks, or several thousand bucks on a meal at a restaurant, cost is simply a non-issue anyway,바카라� adds Rangan. The cost of Goodmylk subscription starts at Rs 400 per month, including four ­deliveries (and the price per unit red­uces the longer one subscribes for).

It바카라�s a misconception that vegan food has to be expensive. That idea probably came from Instagram. A few years ago, ultra-rich people in the West obsessed with health and fitness began to follow a vegan diet. That movement in part was responsible for veganism spilling over into the mainstream, but also for creating the impression that it was a western diet fad. Most people don바카라�t rea­lise that a lot of common Indian foods are vegan. (Many others would be vegan too if ghee is foregone.) That inc­ludes dal, rajma, potato, chhole puri, mixed vegetable curries, even street food like pani puri, vada pao, aloo tikki and jhal muri. Traditionally, non-veg food was the luxury of rich households in India. Today, a kilo of chicken costs Rs 170. 바카라�My parents joke how, after I바카라�ve gone vegan, my food expenses have ­become zero,바카라� says Mukherjee. Gandhi would have approved.

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• 619 mn humans killed in all wars and genocides in our recorded history. We kill the same number of animals every five days.

• 2.4 bn chicken raised for slaughter every year in India

• 9 mn pigs raised for their meat every year in India

• 8.6 mn cattle slaughtered every year in India for meat

Sources: PETA and FAO

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The Good Charter

Delhi-based vegan nutritionist Bipasha Das says, 바카라�One should keep in mind that a vegan diet doesn바카라�t create deficiencies if a person consumes it the right way under proper professional guidance.바카라� She points out the dos and don바카라�ts of the special diet...

Vegan Do바카라�s

All grains, fruits, vegetables, plenty of leafy greens and whole grain products

• Milk replacement: Soy milk, coconut milk, almond milk, cashew milk, oat milk and rice milk

• For protein sources: Nuts and seeds, legumes, lentils and combinations with lentils and grains to make it a good protein diet

• For good fats: Olive oil and olives, coconut oil.

• For calcium: Vegan mayonnaise, peanut butter and ­sesame butter can be used as spreads and dips for calcium intake

• Vitamin D: Mushroom and sunlight (yes!); ­preferably, the morning sun

• Omega3: Chia and flax seeds

Vegan Dont바카라�s

• Those meats: Meat, poultry and fish,

• The 바카라�no바카라� ingredients: Food that contains animal ­ingredients like omega 3, gelatin and vitamin D3

• The derivatives: Dairy ice cream, cheese and dairy yogurt

• Gold hush: Honey

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Other Food Trends

• Fermented fad: Fermented food is high in demand as people are becoming aware of their inherent probiotic health benefits. Many are switching to kefir, which is almost 100 per cent lactose-free after the bacteria have metabolised the milk sugar. Korean spicy fermented cabbage, or kimchi, is another popular item at restaurants.

• Eating Wild: Many regional cuisines  incorporate wild ferns, berries, shoots and tubers into their menu. These are catching on with the foodies and turning up on five-star hotel tables.

• The Locavores: Eating moringa leaves is far more nutritious than lettuce and there are environ­men­talists, foodies and restauran­teurs who are trying hard to bring such traditional greens to fine dining. Millets, ranked as poor man바카라�s grain, are now considered a health food and used to make breads and muffins.

• Flower Power: When it comes to eating flowers, we just don바카라�t restrict ourselves to banana blos­soms. In fact, flowers have arrived in a big way; not just for decoration and garnishing, but also as essential ing­redients in dishes. Begonia, carnation, lily, daisy, hibiscus, lilac, marigold, pansy, peony, rose, sunflower, tulip, violet...Japanese honeysuckles are a huge favourite of the chefs.

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Say No Cheese, And Why

Arguments against milk and dairy products

• Skin Sensitivity: High consumption of full-fat dairy, particularly among teens increases the risk of moderate to severe acne.

• Digestive Distress: Many are unaware that milk causes digestive iss­ues; lactose intolerance often goes undiagnosed. Nutritionist Karishma Chawla says, 바카라�Sym­ptoms such as gastrointestinal cramping, flatulence, and ­diarrhoea are seen. Some also have a harder time tolerating dairy as they age.바카라�

• Cancer Concern: Experts say those who consumed high levels of dairy had an increased risk of developing ­prostate cancer.

• Contaminant Challenge: Synthetic hormones like recombinant bovine growth hormone (rBGH) are often given to cows to inc­rease milk production. They make way into our milk supply. The same goes for antibiotics adm­inistered to animals that develop infections due to milk production manipulation.

• Respiratory Risk: Many people find that they suffer less from respiratory diseases when dairy is removed from their diet.

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Animal Farm

1.  To produce foie gras, ducks are force-fed multiple times a day to inflate the liver
2. 97 per cent of dairy calves are taken from their mothers within the first 24 hours of life
3. Due to genetic modifications, 95 per cent of broiler chickens have gait abnormalities
4. More than 50 million animals are killed for fashion every year
5. Around 40 pigs are slaughtered every second globally. That바카라�s one ­billion pigs a year
6. 50 billion chickens are artificially hatched, fattened and killed after 42 days each year globally
7. The egg industry has no use for the male chick, and every year, over 6 billion male chicks are thrown into a shredder
8. Piglets born in factory farms often have their tails docked and teeth clipped usually without any anaesthesia
9. Chickens are crammed so tightly that they grow irritable and start pecking each other. So, they are debeaked without anesthesia soon after birth
10. Hens in the egg industry are kept in cages smaller than an A4 size paper, stacked up on top of each other
11. Dairy cows are typically artificially inseminated within three months of giving birth. They are fed steroids for a higher yield and kept pregnant so that they keep producing milk. Most dairy cows suffer from ­mastisis, a painful udder infection. A male calf is ­immediately sent for slaughter.