Friend wants me to try Vegan

[ironmaniac508]

Other than going vegan, what would you say are ways to address these issues?

Raise your own livestock or buy from farmers who you know don't partake in such practices.

[Emma-Leigh]

Other than going vegan, what would you say are ways to address these issues?

Raise your own livestock or buy from farmers who you know don't partake in such practices.

This is not something that can be answered easily - living as a 'human' in modern society comes at such a cost (environmentally, socially, and in terms of animal welfare)...
So it is about doing what you CAN to help...

Educate yourself (and your children and family) - Make informed choices that cause the least impact with in your means.

Eat a mostly plant based diet.

With veggies - Grow your own if you can (anyone can put a few pots on their balcony / window/ in their backyard).
Support smaller, local or community based gardens or co-ops.
Support farmers who are local to your area and who are practicing responsible farming / sustainable farming/ low chemical farming etc.

For your meats -
Hunt your own game or fish your own fish.
Source local WILD fish - not those farmed or overfished with large trawlers or nets (get pole and line caught).
Buy small scale eggs from small farms or co-ops - from animals who are healthy, and well looked after.
Source your meat and milk from similar places - small scale co-ops or farms who actively practice responsible farming with the least impact they can / least harm they can.

Speak with your $$ - For things you can't get from these places, seek out companies who are doing the right thing and don't support industries and companies that support or are involved in environmentally or socially irresponsible acts.

http://eatkind.net/
http://www.sustainabletable.org/1117/sustainable-table
http://www.sustainabletable.org/566/...stainable-food
http://www.sustainabletable.org/274/animal-welfare
http://www.ethicalfarms.org/ethical_farms.html
http://thisfish.info/ecorating/

[ScottAllan77]

I've had vegan friends. I've enjoyed the meals they prepped for me. For me it's not a sustainable diet.

OP try a couple "vegan days" and see if you enjoy the change. Do your research though. Animal byproducts hide in foods you'd never guess