Vegan Ethics & Morality

Veganism takes a moral stand: that the exploitation and harming of animals is wrong, and that animals should not be treated as commodities. The terms “ethical vegan”  or “moral vegan” is often applied to those who in addition to following a vegan diet also oppose the use of animals for any purpose.

Ethical issues arise in discussions about veganism.  Resistances come up and many non-vegans experience a sense of unease.  There are a myriad of ways in which cognitive dissonance can arise.

Here are some of our news stories on this topic:

• Countryfile’s host urges schools to teach about agriculture so as to stop “vegan vigilantes”;
• the inaugural parliamentary speech by Emma Hurst MP for the Animal Justice Party in the NSW parliament; 
• a well-known Australian farmer and author claims that an ethical diet is not just a matter of going vegan;
• a New York Times columnists urges people to stop mocking vegans;
• a USA Today editorial says that people should become better meat eaters not vegans;
• the NFU criticises a Tesco’s TV advertisement for demonising meat;
• a TV reality show is set to confront an animal’s journey “from field to plate”;
• a full range of divided opinions is unleashed following Tesco’s TV advertisment;
• Starbucks is still charging a vegan surcharge;
• Scientists at Tel Aviv University have shown that plants do give out an “ultrasonic scream” when they are stressed, in a study that could have an impact on “precision farming”;
• pro-vegan advertising campaigns on buses in the UK appear to have been censored after “complaints” were received.