1 October is World Vegetarian Day
After the North American Vegetarian Society has established it in 1977, vegetarian communities everywhere have celebrated the World Vegetarian Day every year. This special day is intended to promote the joy, compassion, and the many life-enhancing aspects of vegetarianism in the field of ...
How many Veggies ... ?
Here we summarise official figures - how many vegetarians live in which countries?
Updated August 2005
Australia:
Inhabitants: 20,385,903
Vegetarians: 2% (estimate)
(Source: Australian Vegetarian Society)
Austria:
Inhabitants: 8.1 million
Vegetarians: 4%
(Source: Vegane Gesellschaft Österreich)
Belgium:
Inhabitants: 10.2 million
Vegetarians: 2%
(Source: survey done for GAIA)
Canada:
Inhabitants: 31.9 million
Vegetarians: 4% (estimate)
(Source: Toronto Vegetarian Association)
Czech Republic:
Inhabitants: 10.2 million
Vegetarians: 1-2%
(Source: StemMark Agency, Prague, Czech Republic)
Denmark:
Inhabitants: 5.4 million
Vegetarians: 1-2% (estimate)
(Source: Dansk Vegetarforening)
France:
Inhabitants: 60 million
Vegetarians: less than 2%
(Source: Alliance Végétarienne)
Germany:
Inhabitants: 82 million
Vegetarians: approximately 8% (survey)
(Source: Vegetarier-Bund Deutschlands e.V.)
India:
Inhabitants: 997.5 million
Vegetarians: between 15-20%
Ireland:
Inhabitants: 3.7 million
Vegetarians: around 6% (estimate)
(Source: Vegetarian Society of Ireland)
Italy:
Inhabitants: 57 million
Vegetarians: 5%
(Source: EURISPES - European Institute of political, economical and social studies)
Norway:
Inhabitants: 4.6 million
Vegetarians: 2%
(Source: Norsk Vegetarforening)
Poland:
Inhabitants: 38.6 million
Vegetarians: under 1%
Portugal:
Inhabitants: 10 million
Vegetarians: approximately 2% (estimate)
(Source: galaxia-alfa.com)
Romania:
Inhabitants: 21.7 million
Vegetarians: approximately 4%
(Source: Romanian Vegetarian Society)
Slovakia:
Inhabitants: 5.4 million
Vegetarians: approximately 1%
(Source: Vegetarianska spolocnost)
Spain:
Inhabitants: 40.5 million
Vegetarians: approximately 4%
(Source: Asociacion Vegana Espanola (AVE))
Sweden:
Inhabitants: 9 million
Vegetarians: 3% (estimate)
(Source: Animal Rights Sweden)
Switzerland:
Inhabitants: 7.3 million
Vegetarians: 9% according to the Nutritrend-Study from Néstle from 2001 are "almost" vegetarians (around 3% are really vegetarians).
(Source: Swiss Union for Vegetarianism)
The Netherlands:
Inhabitants: 16.3 million
Vegetarians: 4.3%
(Source: Nederlandse Vereniging voor Veganisme)
United Kingdom:
Inhabitants: 59.6 million
Vegetarians: 9 % (high in younger age groups)
(ICM Poll for the Daily Telegraph, 2001)
USA:
Inhabitants: 265.9 million
Vegetarians: 4%
(Source : Time/CNN poll 15 July 2002 - Note: A surprising 42% of all "vegetarians", or 4.8 millions adult Americans, considered slaughter of animals to be murder)
Note: Because it is not possible to obtain data from the Ministries or Statistical offices of the various countries, we have made a compilation based on other sources available to us.
The DaVeggie Code
Professor of Symbology Fielding George felt the pain in his back getting worse. He was tired, thirsty and hungry and he felt as if he could hardly breathe. The air in the vault of the tiny Roman church was heavy with age and the damp rising from the floor seemed to take away all the oxygen.
George had been crouching down for a long time. He stood up gingerly, careful not to bang his head again on the uneven stones above him. He checked the bump on his head. Yep, it was still there.
Behind him, he could hear special agent Louise Wells' steady breathing. He saw her silhouette in the yellow light of their torch. For the umpteenth time that day he was amazed at how determined she was to find the symbol they were looking for. He wondered whether she had ever in her life conceded defeat. [continue]
1 October is World Vegetarian Day
After the North American Vegetarian Society has established it in 1977, vegetarian communities everywhere have celebrated the World Vegetarian Day every year. This special day is intended to promote the joy, compassion, and the many life-enhancing aspects of vegetarianism in the field of ...
… health considerations
* "… appropriately planned vegetarian diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases." (Position of the American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada -June 2003)
… compassion for animals
* "800 million chickens, 15 million sheep, 9 million pigs and 3 million cattle are slaughtered every year in the UK". (Compassion in World Farming)
* "The question is not, Can they reason nor, Can they talk? but, Can they suffer?" (Jeremy Bentham)
… ecological awareness
* Example water shortages: It takes 100.000 litres of water to produce one kilogram of beef and just 500 litres for one kilogram of potatoes. (from Compassion in World Farming Trust, 2002). Experts say that the growth in demand for meat and dairy products is unsustainable.
… the global hunger problem
* About three-fifth of world consumption of coarse grains is used for animal feed.
* A growing share of wheat is used for animal feed in the industrial countries – 45 percent of total use in the EU.
* It is expected that "even by 2030 about 440 million undernourished may remain" (Source: FAO – World agriculture 2015/2030)
Here are some other ideas of how to make the World Vegetarian Day a success:
* Invite family and friends to a special dinner
* Arrange a vegetarian meal and invite the public and local VIPs to join
* Set up stalls at public places and distribute information material
* Sell cookbooks
* Arrange special programs at schools, colleges, and universities
* Do radio or TV shows
* Put ads in the local newspapers
* Request your newspaper to feature articles on vegetarianism.
* Organise vigils and marches
* Hold an essay and art contest for young people on vegetarian topics
* Request vegetarian food in public establishments
* Show solidarity by collecting vegetarian food items and arrange a free meal
发表于 2005/9/25 05:38:56
