Post Punk Kitchen Forum

You are welcome! Your original post though indicates you are asking if you are vegan despite eating eggs.

Seriously? You've been told you're welcome, this is a board for everyone but you've moved the goalposts from your first post and insist on justifying your misuse of the term vegan. Don't ask what people think if you don't want to hear their thoughts. And cut the drama, no one has implied that you aren't welcome.

You're welcome, as was said above. Everyone is welsome as long as the recipes and conversation is vegan! or that was my assumption.

Really? I assumed strict vegetarians called themselves thusly because there was something about them that wasn't quite vegan.

Well, you know what they say about assuming.

I think strict vegetarians can still use/wear animal products, they just don't eat them.

I believe you decide for yourself where your veganism begins and ends, it is just a label anyways and it is still useful when you go out to eat to call yourself a vegan because you said you don't eat chicken eggs other than the ones from your own chickens. Plus it will be easier to call yourself vegan then "I'm a vegetarian who doesn't drink milk, consume honey, or eat eggs except the ones from my own rescue chickens."

One thing you could do instead of eating the eggs though is selling them. We used to sell our chicken eggs on the roadside for $3 a dozen and all the profit went to the Children's Hospital.

Quote The Vegan Society

[T]he word "veganism" denotes a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude — as far as is possible and practical — all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals.

You could argue that the lifestyle choices are vegan but the diet is not?

An unfertalised egg comes from a hen sure but so does poop.
Very rock ground I know :P
The same could not be said of a cow giving milk of course.

All the same, I respect that I am not seen as a vegan, will be vegan -ish (to say strict veggie still implies dairy usage and (shudder) even fish in some omnies eyes) when they say "whats the -ish" I can explain then.

I would just try to keep vegan out of it and not think of veganism as the be all and end all of ethics. I mean, there are a lot of vegans who do rude things like flash people in subways or gross things like talk about their poop or do unethical things like buy non-fair trade bananas.

What you decide to call yourself, I don't care that much, really. But a lot of vegans do care, so why tread on that?

I'm also going to say that if you eat chicken poop, you aren't vegan.

I would be seriously worried about ANYONE who ate chicken poop.

Well you gotta get your vitamin B12 somehow...

You're welcome, the ppk is for vegetarians and vegans.

AND brian

You go first.

Well, the fish thing comes from people saying they are vegetarian but still eat fish. Thus, someone who says they're vegan but still eats eggs (albeit their rescued chickens' unfertilised eggs) causes a similar issue. There are no burning torches chasing you from the PPK, though! Everyone is welcome so long as they respect the vegan outlook of this board. But eating eggs is not vegan, whichever way you come by them :)

While I see no problem with what you do, I agree it's not vegan. Also, you might try feeding them back to the chickens as making so many eggs saps nutrients from their bones and this is a way to give it back to them. I know Farm Sanctuary does this.

I see that this thread has split into two parts:

1) Yes, you're totally welcome here, for sure. It's great to share ideas, and even have discussions about things like eggs. Heck, in a recent photography project, I used a pair of harvested eggs. I did not consume them, but I did photograph them. Is that vegan? :)



2) As a vegan who was omnivorous 37 years, I've spent a lot of time reading about the differences between the different lifestyles, and embracing all folks who make steps toward being more compassionate. I know that the major pro-veggie organizations try by getting people to eat less meat and dairy - even if it's only one day a week - and that's a great place to start. Once you click into the vegetarian lifestyle, now you're saying you don't eat meat at all, which in and of itself is a great step toward being more compassionate, it's a big commitment and, luckily, it's much easier to find resources for than veganism. Almost all restaurants have vegetarian offerings, whereas many don't have much in the way of vegan offerings.

I think the main concern that vegans have with someone mislabeling themselves as vegan, particularly with eggs, is that it does potentially make things harder for us when we use the term "vegan" with the general public: waitstaff, chefs, family and friends. "Oh, my friend is vegan, and SHE eats eggs..." might translate to pureed eggs hidden in my food, or someone not properly checking the ingredients list before they dump the can, bag or box into the pot on the stove. It's an uphill battle of education sometimes, so it's important to keep terms as clear as possible.

On the other hand, I don't see a problem with saying "I follow the vegan lifestyle, although I still eat eggs." Technically, plenty of people who claim to be vegan yet still eat honey, aren't truly 100% vegan in the purest sense of the word. Having said that, there are so many products out there that are built around animal products, no one is truly, 100% vegan - you'd go mad trying to extricate all animal products from your life. Keeping things simple, buying wholesome, vegan products from companies that you can trust, or better yet buying vegan ingredients and making things from recipes - which is why a lot of us are here - is one easy way to be vegan and stay sane. Sanity is good.

So, someone who eats eggs a vegan? Probably not. Are you cool for being a kind-to-animals vegetarian? Absolutely!

OP: Everyone is welcome on the PPK. We have lots of members who aren't vegan, and plenty who aren't vegetarian. It's not a value judgment when people tell you that eating eggs (no matter how ethically sourced) is not vegan. It's just a fact.

What you are doing seems pretty ethical to me, but it's not vegan in any universe.

If being vegan is important to you, it's easy enough to just not eat those eggs. If you'd like to continue to eat the eggs, then just don't call yourself vegan, and be content with being an awesome friend to animals.

Yes.



and yes.

Could you maybe say, instead of "I'm vegan" or "veganish" or "strict vegetarian" or anything like that, that you don't want to eat or use things that hurt animals? That lets you loose from eating eggs, dairy etc. at restaurants or with your friends, yet lets you eat your own chickens' eggs without confusing anyone?

You're definitely welcome though!

You're welcome to stay! And as someone else said, there's no shame in being a strict vegetarian. Just the term "vegan" means someone who does not consume animal products, which you admittedly do on occasion. There's nothing wrong with that, but there is a pretty set-in-stone definition for veganism. But stick around the PPK! There's room for you here.

Oh, that's much simpler: yes.

My parents are planning to have their own chickens when they start their own Bed & Breakfast a couple of years into the future, and they asked me if I would eat the eggs. I can't really think of any reason why it would be WRONG to eat their eggs, but I'm not sure if I want to, since I don't need to and they can use it themselves. I don't think it's wrong though. Regardless of that, I also know that if I do, I'm no longer a vegan. Not because I've done something wrong, but because the definition of veganism means you don't eat eggs. Again - I don't think there's anything wrong with that. But it means you're not a vegan. Which is just a label! I think what I mentioned earlier is just as good a thing to say about yourself as "I'm a vegan" is. As long as you're trying to help, that's good enough!

If they are buying their chickens and not rescuing them, then they are supporting an industry that kills the undesirable male chicks, and transports the chicks in very cruel ways (they will mail them right to your house and send an extra five (or more depending) to cover any that may die).

I'm aware of all of this, and obviously they'd be rescuing them, as I've told my parents exactly what you just told me and they agreed with me that saving chickens (as well as cats, dogs, etc.) would be a lot better than buying them. I'm sorry I didn't clarify that - I thought it'd be obvious. Sorry I made you angry, awesome owl. :)