Make The Difference Yourself With Vegan Body Products
There are many things people might be looking forward to this summer, including long days and hopefully some sunshine, not to mention big events ranging from the Euro 2024 football through to Glastonbury and other big music festivals.
Few expected that there would be a general election in the midst of all this, but now the date has been set for July 4th, thoughts will be turning to various important issues.
It’s certainly not for us to say how you or anyone should vote, but there will be many who hope that whatever the numbers for each party in the next parliament, there will be lots of vegan MPs in there who will push for stronger animal welfare laws and for more to be done to promote vegan products.
Meat Is Taxable
There are certainly some folks out there lobbying hard. For example, Dale Vince, the green energy tycoon who owns the all-vegan football club Forest Green Rovers, has been advocating a red meat tax, aimed at prompting people to make better choices for their own health as well as the environment.
“Red meat is the most destructive form of meat that we have available to us in terms of human health and planetary impact,” he told the Sun’s Never Mind The Ballots show.
Consequently, he argued, “It makes sense to put a tax on that to steer people’s behaviour - that’s how taxes work, it has worked before.”
In the past, governments have shied away from this sort of tax, except on non-food items like cigarettes and alcohol, but the sugary drinks tax introduced in 2018 may have opened the door for more action of this kind.
In the same way, environmental organisations like Greenpeace are lobbying hard as the election approaches, with a long list of things it wants to see in the various party manifestos.
It’s Not Just Down To Politicians
However, now can be a time to reflect that, while there are many things those who hold the levers of power can do, there is also so much more that the people as a whole can achieve. We can make choices at the ballot box every few years, but every week we can make them when choosing the products we use.
This does not just mean not eating meat or dairy produce, although the fact that more and more people have been doing so has encouraged both the increased production and more widespread stocking by retailers of vegan and vegetarian foods. But we can do the same with so many of the other things we use.
Body products are a prime example of this. There may be many people out there who will never allow a piece of meat, eggs, or a dairy product to pass their lips, yet might still use face creams, shower gels, soaps and perfumes that contain animal products.
That is where a big opportunity lies to make a real difference this summer. You can start by changing some of your regular products such as face creams, soaps and shower products. But you can also go further by considering the things you will only use in the summer when we finally get some good weather, like sun cream.
Opting to use vegan products wherever and whenever they are available can ensure you play your part in changing the world and the great thing about it is that everyone can do this; you don’t have to be sitting on the green benches down at Westminster to make a difference.
Be The Change You Want To See
Of course, we should urge those who make our laws to steer the world in a better direction in all sorts of ways and when it comes to creating a more animal-friendly and green world, there is much we can do, from grilling candidates before elections to find out their positions to writing to your MP afterward.
Indeed, you may even find that you can persuade someone in office to change their mind or to take a stronger stance on matters like preventing animal cruelty and encouraging food that is better for people, animals and the planet.
Even so, it can be refreshing to know that there is so much we can do in our own lives and consumer habits to change the world, taking action that politicians and businesses cannot ignore and making people sit up and take notice.
This starts not in Westminster or a polling booth, but in your bathroom, when you shower and when you step out on the beach - and, before that, when you make wise choices about what products to buy and what to leave unsold.
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