(With BOROKINNI JOSHUA – Vegan; Author; Climate Activist)
Hope you’ve been learning? How about a quick review of the key terms, ‘veganism’ and ‘vegan’ before taking a deep dive into today’s special feature?
Recall: Veganism is a lifestyle that prohibits any exploitative usage of animals or their products. It promises great benefits for our health, environment and climate. Of course, one of the hallmarks of going vegan is the avoidance (and replacement) of animal-based products in one’s diet; so, vegans go for ‘green’ diets.
But then, it appears that the major concerns for most individuals who may want to embrace the vegan culture (whether actively or passively) often question the affordability (would going vegan be tantamount to embracing bankruptcy?) and availability (where do I get ‘real’ vegan foods?) of the acclaimed healthy plant-based alternatives for meat, fish, eggs, honey, milk and other animal-based dietary products. To answer these and other questions about veganism, I had interview sessions with two vegans – Borokinni Joshua and Tomi Makanjuola (you wouldn’t want to miss next week’s episode) – who provided overlapping, yet distinct insights into veganism. Enjoy your read!
‘Borokinni Joshua (BJ) is a young, energetic and passionate climate activist (well, you’d agree it’s quite an herculean task to find one in this part of the world) advocating for the birth of a sustainable planet – one this generation can proudly call theirs. To his credit, he authored a book – ‘Akindele: an Anthology of Poems, Stories and Articles’ – in his undergraduate days, as a student of the University of Benin. He is the founder of ‘NaijaGoesVegan’; a social movement fuelled by its desire to make veganism mainstream in Nigeria. Working with the ‘NaijaGoesVegan’ team, he is keen on making veganism an easily-adopted and widely-recognised approach to reducing animal suffering and environmental damage.’
In this interview, he shares thoughts on the vegan movement; and to spice up this delicacy, he is not hesitant to take us through his rough journey into veganism.
| What does it mean to be a vegan?
BJ: A lot of Nigerians often confuse Veganism for Vegetarianism. Although, both vegans and vegetarians choose not to eat meat, veganism is stricter. It prohibits dairy, eggs, honey, and other items derived from animal products, such as leather and silk. *Vegetarianism, on the other hand, has several variations.
*See the ‘Learn a new Term’ section for the Vegetarian Variants.
| What are the major focal points of the Vegan Move?
BJ: There are no defined focal points for Veganism. People go vegan for different reasons – including religion, health, justice, environment, amongst others.
| Apart from say climate change, what else could have inspired your interest in veganism?
BJ: Animal welfare – definitely! Non-human animals are sentient beings as well; they possess emotions just as humans do – consequently, they deserve a measure of respect and care.
| What about your colleagues (I mean, fellow vegans), did they also go through similar paths in their journey into accepting veganism?
BJ: I can’t give a definite answer; everyone has his own unique story. I have a friend who because of his religious beliefs, has been vegan since birth. The same ‘uniqueness’ applies to every other vegan.
| When did you go vegan?
BJ: Going vegan was top of my new year resolutions; it served as a means of fostering my relationship with the environment and playing my part in procuring a world without climate disasters. I went fully vegan in May 2019, after an initial four (4) months of rough transitioning.
| How has the experience been?
BJ: It has been characterised by a mixture of feelings. I came to understand that the process of transitioning takes time; so, I never felt bad whenever I slipped. At first, I was more of a *’Flexitarian’ – switching between meat and plant-based meals. But, with the help of guides and introduction of some meat alternatives, it became way easier for me to transition totally.
| What is the perspective of the average Nigerian towards veganism?
BJ: Nigerians have a lot of misconceptions about Veganism, especially in viewing vegans as ‘leaf-eaters’. Since meat consumption has become a deep-rooted culture in Nigeria, bringing the vegan discourse into the picture is a ‘No-No’ for the majority. Nonetheless, re-orientation and enlightenment has proven effective in changing the narrative.
| What would you have to say about the availability and affordability of vegan products in Nigeria?
BJ: Vegan products are not readily available in Nigeria, except for major malls in cities where they can be found; then, the question of ‘affordability’ pops up – ‘how much do they cost?’. Vegan products are most times way over the budget of the average Nigerian, making it a luxurious item on the cart. This is a gap NaijaGoesVegan seeks to bridge via trainings on ‘How to Grow a Variety of Vegetables and Make Home-made Vegan Diets’ for the low-income Nigerian. Well, with a rise in the number of vegans, a resultant rise in the availability of these products, and regulation of their prices will ensue.
| I often wonder (and I believe others do, too) what could happen if we all went vegan; would the available plant resources be able to sustain both man and animals?
BJ: According to Dr. Walt Willett, Professor of Medicine (Harvard University), we could eliminate the worst cases of world hunger today with just about 40 million tonnes of food. Currently, farm animals consume up to 760 million tonnes of food; besides, food production is in surplus of the amount needed to feed humans – it just doesn’t get to everyone in need. The United Nations also states that farmed livestock accounts for 14.5% of all man-made greenhouse gas emissions; roughly equivalent to the exhaust emissions from cars, trains, ships and aircrafts. Following a report in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), if we all went vegan, the world’s food-related emissions would drop by 70%, and economic savings would be up to £440 billion by 2050.
| What significant health benefits do you enjoy as a vegan? Are there associated health risks you may want to warn intending vegans of?
BJ: Being vegan does not necessarily translate to being healthy. For example, vegan diets are generally low in Calcium, Iron, Zinc, vitamin D, vitamin B-12 and omega-3 fatty acids. Thus, if following a vegan diet, it is important to incorporate a variety of plant-based products – nuts, seeds, beans and pulses in your meal. There are also a couple of vegan junk foods that might not contain vital nutrients.
| So, what are your final words on veganism and climate change?
BJ: Climate change does not exist outside of our current social, economic, political and cultural systems. It magnifies existing patterns of inequity and affects people already experiencing social, political and economic exclusion. Last year, up to 24 million people were displaced by weather-related disasters like flood and hurricanes. While financial losses will amount to billions (USD) by 2050; non-financial losses, which include our cultural ways of living in our immediate environment would be irreparable, if we fail to act. Our feeding pattern is key to deciding the future of the planet – we all need to cut down on our meat consumption, and imbibe a green culture.
| Thank you so much for sharing your time, knowledge and experience; I hope we meet again!
(Tomi Makanjuola’s session comes up next week; don’t miss it!)
Learn a new Term
VEGETARIAN VARIANTS: Vegetarians are the ‘liberal vegans’. They do not mind garnishing their so-called vegan diets with a few animal products. The common variants in vegetarianism are;
| the FLEXITARIAN who consumes meat once in a while: he is not yet a vegan, but he is no longer a meat-eater;
| the PESCATARIAN who allows fish and sea foods in his diet;
| the LACTO-VEGETARIAN who consumes dairy products, but neither meat nor fish;
| the OVO-VEGETARIAN who allows poultry products in his diet;
| the LACTO-OVO-VEGETARIAN who merges lacto-vegetarianism and ovo-vegetarianism.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
For Questions or Comments: [email protected]
