Please, no sarcasm about "extremists" and no theology. Let's just address the empirical facts.
Veganism, as I understand it, promises that if everybody would eat only plant-derived foods then the entire human population could be adequately nourished.
Well, people need calories, nutrients and drinking water--preferably clean drinking water. However, it is not "one size fits all". I assert that the number of calories and the kind of nutrients that a person needs, and the food that a person is able to eat, varies greatly throughout the human population. Such needs and such abilities vary with age, sex, pregnancy, illness, disability, allergies, body type, the altitude that one is preparing food at, etc.
If we limit the food supply of the entire human population to plant-derived foods, can all of those different needs really be met? We are talking about the entire human population. Billions of people--or whatever the latest estimates are.
Furthermore, we use plants for more than just food. We use plants for fibers, beautification of the landscape, beautification of our homes, medicines, cosmetics, building materials, and countless other uses. After we produce all of the food needed to meet all of those varying nutritional needs and abilities will there be enough resources left to produce plants for all of these non-food uses? If not, are people going to be willing to give up a lot of those non-food plant products?
The important thing to keep in mind is that we are not talking about people being forced to give up animal-derived foods due to ecological disaster. We are talking about everybody making a conscious choice to willingly give up all animal-derived foods and other animal-derived products for moral reasons. Given the above analysis about our diverse needs and wants, is this realistic?
Veganism, as I understand it, promises that if everybody would eat only plant-derived foods then the entire human population could be adequately nourished.
Well, people need calories, nutrients and drinking water--preferably clean drinking water. However, it is not "one size fits all". I assert that the number of calories and the kind of nutrients that a person needs, and the food that a person is able to eat, varies greatly throughout the human population. Such needs and such abilities vary with age, sex, pregnancy, illness, disability, allergies, body type, the altitude that one is preparing food at, etc.
If we limit the food supply of the entire human population to plant-derived foods, can all of those different needs really be met? We are talking about the entire human population. Billions of people--or whatever the latest estimates are.
Furthermore, we use plants for more than just food. We use plants for fibers, beautification of the landscape, beautification of our homes, medicines, cosmetics, building materials, and countless other uses. After we produce all of the food needed to meet all of those varying nutritional needs and abilities will there be enough resources left to produce plants for all of these non-food uses? If not, are people going to be willing to give up a lot of those non-food plant products?
The important thing to keep in mind is that we are not talking about people being forced to give up animal-derived foods due to ecological disaster. We are talking about everybody making a conscious choice to willingly give up all animal-derived foods and other animal-derived products for moral reasons. Given the above analysis about our diverse needs and wants, is this realistic?