Hi, Kim. No one really ever asks me why I am vegan…it’s pretty accepted here in the Pacific Northwest, fortunately. But if I am asked to explain why I don’t consume animal products, I tell people it’s a personal choice that we’ve made. If they are interested in learning more about it, I talk about the mistreatment and unsanitary conditions at factory farms. I talk about how I raise my children to treat animals and life in general with respect. I talk about how I cannot wrap my brain around the idea of drinking a milk that was created for another species’ babies. I talk about how for the last fifty years, we’ve been fed propaganda about the “need” to eat meat and drink milk by government agencies and big businesses who have no interest in my “real health” and more interest in making a buck. I tell them I’ve seen Food, Inc. and the Earthlings trailer. I tell them I’ve read Fast Food Nation, In Defense of Food and Diet for a New America. I also tell them that I really feel good eating a plant based diet, that I have more energy and that I am proud of what I feed my family. And I offer them a vegan meal any time they’d like to come over!