Ricardo Moreira doesn’t worry about not getting enough protein. This vegan cage fighter is solid as steel, but with a heart of gold. Moreira will be donating a portion of his winnings from his upcoming fight on February 11 to In Defense of Animals. If you are in the San Francisco Bay Area, be sure to check out Ricardo’s adrenaline-pumping cage fight and support the animals at the same time! IDA interviewed Moreira about his veganism and unique profession.

IDA: Why did you become vegan?

Ricardo Moreira: I’ve always loved animals, and I am a lifelong martial artist. Within the martial arts, there are many codes of conduct, one of which is to respect all forms of life. Veganism goes hand in hand with my martial arts training and philosophy.

IDA: When did you go vegan?

Moreira: I went vegan in 2006. I was lacto/ovo vegetarian prior to the transition. I was initially a bit hesitant to go full-blown vegan due to all the misinformation I had come across concerning athletic performance on a vegan diet. Luckily I was put in touch with two vegan bodybuilders, Kenneth Williams and Robert Cheeke, who helped me develop a high-protein vegan diet to fit my sport’s needs.

IDA: What is your martial arts/fighting background?

Moreira: I grew up studying martial arts, starting with Kenpo Karate. I simply fell in love with the virtues and lifestyle. I quickly realized that teaching was going to be my life’s aspiration, and that competitive fighting was intricate to that goal. I started competing in professional kickboxing over ten years ago, and in 2007, I made the transition to mixed martial arts. With a 2nd degree black belt in Kenpo Karate and a competition background in Muay Thai, I am best described as a “stand up” fighter within my current sport.

IDA: Are fellow fighters supportive or critical of your diet?

Moreira: At the professional level, the other fighters are both respectful and supportive of my veganism. Initially I stood alone but, since 2006, there have been a few high level MMA fighters that adopted the diet, including top-ranked UFC fighter Jake Shields. There are also a lot of vegetarians in the sport; in fact, mixed martial arts has the most vegetarians of any contact sport.

IDA: What are your plans for the future?

Moreira: When the time comes for me to walk away from the cage altogether, I intend to open a martial arts gym. I’m looking forward to producing an environment where the athleticism of today’s fighters meets the discipline and virtues of the traditional arts. I will also continue to spread awareness and fight my most important fights… the ones outside the cage.

For more information and to buy tickets,

http://www.facebook.com/events/279809845410731/

Or e-mail: kickboxer415@live.com

IDA neither endorses nor opposes any sport with all willing participants. What we do support is compassionate athletes speaking for the animals through their sport.

New to veganism? Click here to order a free Vegan Starter Kit.

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In recent years, undercover investigators have successfully exposed horrific cruelty in the animal agriculture industry, documenting abuse on video and in photos. Mainstream news outlets have aired the footage of graphic violence and miserable conditions farm animals endure daily in commercial animal agriculture. Viewing this appalling treatment of farm animals can make even a strong stomach turn and with each new investigation it becomes clear that the callousness is widespread; misery is the industry standard, not just a few rotten egg facilities. Yet, instead of improving conditions for animals and workers, big agribusiness is trying to draw a curtain to shield their inhumane operations from public accountability.

So-called “ag-gag” or whistleblower suppression bills are a violation of free speech rights and an attack on the freedom of the press. For democracy to function properly, the public must be well informed. Whistleblowers exposing the wrongdoing in this or in any other industry should be protected, not victimized.

“Big Ag” has a reason to be concerned. These videos are instrumental in furthering laws to protect farm animals from cruel and unnecessary suffering. By informing consumers about the wretched conditions of these facilities, the public may choose to reduce the amount of animal products consumed and create consumer demand for alternatives and more humane production. Humane standards may detract from the inflated revenue streams of industry moguls, so the industry has elected to keep the pubic ignorant.

It is imperative that people continue to have access to factory farming operations to witness and expose their abusive activity. The abuse that years of undercover video has revealed should prompt the USDA and other oversight committees– and, frankly, any farming operation that claims to care about welfare– to mount video cameras themselves throughout animal agriculture facilities, to oversee employees and keep a watchful eye for further abuse, rather than keeping the public in the dark.

These so called “ag-gag” bills are being condemned as unconstitutional by civil liberties, public health, food safety, veterinarian, environmental, food justice, and workers’ rights organizations. They are excessive and unnecessary as there are already extensive trespassing and slander laws that protect private property owners. The public has the right to know about illegal and unethical practices on farms such as food safety issues, working conditions and blatant animal abuse.

IDA has joined a coalition of powerful animal organizations including HSUS, ASPCA, Mercy for Animals, Compassion Over Killing, Farm Sanctuary and more to combine our efforts and defeat these bills. IDA will be sending alerts to states where bills are appearing, asking our members in those states to contact their legislators and tell them that lawmakers should be holding animal agribusiness accountable for cruelty, instead of falling under the influence of industry that seeks to censor whistleblowers and keep the public uninformed for their own financial motives. Be on the lookout for those alerts and please take action against these dangerous and unethical bills.

For more information on the ag-gag bills, contact hope@idausa.org

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There’s a phenomenon online where people feel free to say whatever they want to strangers, even when they wouldn’t say the same things in person. I have heard many people say that vegans and vegetarians are some of the rudest and nastiest people they have ever encountered on the internet and I’ve witnessed this myself.

What we should be hearing is that vegans and vegetarians are some of the most compassionate and respectful people on the internet and in the world, and even though I don’t adhere to their principles, I have the highest respect for their compassion and commitment.  Only then will they be open to our message.

Non-violence leads to the highest ethics, which is the goal of all evolution. Until we stop harming all other living beings, we are still savages. –Thomas Edison

Snack time at IDA's Hope Animal Sanctuary

As Animal Advocates, many of us frequently watch horrific videos of animal neglect, abuse and slaughter. It is quite natural when watching a defenseless child or animal being abused to become angry and have unkind thoughts toward the person committing those heinous acts. Those “unkind thoughts” need to be kept to yourself as private thoughts in order for us to be effective.

Recommending the eye for an eye philosophy only hurts animals and our efforts on their behalf. At IDA, we do not condone verbal abuse or acts of violence.

We want to win people over and make them comfortable with vegans. No one makes changes in their lifestyle if they are demeaned or addressed with disdain. Negative attacks will only push people further away from our message and deeper into their own denial and excuses. People change when a “friend” or respected authority gives them information in a caring and compassionate manner.

Speak up for animals, speak up for what is right, and speak loudly. Never be afraid to be labeled an extremist, but be an extremist for peace and compassion for ALL beings!

So the question is not whether we will be extremists, but what kind of extremists we will be. Will we be extremists for hate or love? Will we be extremists for the preservation of injustice or for the extension of justice? –Martin Luther King, Jr.

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Work every day of your life to right what is wrong.

If this rate continues, vegans will be 10% of the U.S. population in 2015, 40% in 2019, and in 80 % in 2050! This would mean an end to the exploitation and suffering of billions of farmed animals. The study also revealed that 33% of U.S. citizens are eating vegetarian meals a significant amount of the time and ordering vegetarian meals at restaurants, though they are not vegetarians. That is over 100 million people, one third of the country!

Interestingly, the demographic breakdown of the study discovered that it was equal percentages of Democrats and Republicans eating vegetarian. Perhaps these two parties CAN agree on something- the vegan lifestyle is healthy and compassionate. Conscientious eating is going mainstream so if you haven’t already, reduce or eliminate your consumption of animal products- everyone’s doing it!

New to veganism? Click here to order a free Vegan Starter Kit.

To support our work please click here.

These beautiful birds have been genetically manipulated over the years to grow rapidly and have enlarged and unnaturally exaggerated breasts. The result is a multitude of health and mobility issues including inability to fly or to breed (they must be artificially inseminated, or the males would crush the females) and, in some cases, to even walk. Turkeys are raised in high-density, indoor confinement containing thousands of birds to a building and often have their toes cut off to prevent injury if there is fighting in the tight overcrowding. These windowless warehouses where the birds must live in day in and day out have poor sanitation and can have an overwhelming stench of ammonia.

As society is becoming more aware of the plight of factory farmed turkeys, some people are buying “humane” or “organic” turkeys. While this is an honorable pursuit, most people don’t realize that these farms are not much better than a factory farm. The turkeys might have access to the outside, but they are still overcrowded and may also be left outside in extremes of weather with no shelter. They still come from the same inhumane industrial hatchery where they never knew their mothers, and go to the same frightening slaughterhouse for a bloody and brutal death as a factory-farmed turkey. Birds are exempt from the Humane Methods of Livestock Slaughter Act so there are no regulations to ease their suffering.

If we want to truly give thanks, we should thank the earth for the life, resources, and delicious plant food it provides. It takes approximately 10 pounds of vegetables to make 1 pound of turkey, so we are wasting precious water, land, and fossil fuels and creating greenhouse gasses by eating meat. If we are sincerely grateful for the abundant and excessive amount of food available to us, we should eat a plant-based Thanksgiving meal, as a greater number of people could be fed with the grain that we feed the animals. Of course there are numerous faux meat options such as Tofurky and Field Roast. And any customary Thanksgiving dessert recipe can be easily veganized with a few substitutions.

Please show your gratitude to the earth, your health, and the turkeys this year and start a new tradition of compassion with a vegan Thanksgiving.

New to veganism? Click here to order a free Vegan Starter Kit.

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About Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

The award-winning author of five books, including the bestselling The Joy of Vegan Baking, The Vegan Table, Color Me Vegan, Vegan’s Daily Companion, and The 30-Day Vegan Challenge, Colleen Patrick-Goudreau has guided people to becoming and staying vegan for over 12 years through sold-out cooking classes, bestselling books, inspiring lectures, engaging videos, and her immensely popular audio podcast, “Vegetarian Food for Thought.” Using her unique blend of passion, humor, and common sense, she empowers and inspires people to live according to their own values of compassion and wellness. She also contributes to National Public Radio and The Christian Science Monitor, and has appeared on The Food Network and PBS.

Visit colleenpatrickgoudreau.com for more.

The chill in the air and the turning of the leaves means it’s almost time to celebrate the autumn harvest à la Thanksgiving! However, when non-vegetarians think of the idea of eating vegan on Thanksgiving, they’re often aghast. They can’t imagine what vegans eat if they don’t eat turkey, as 45 million of these beautiful birds are killed in the U.S. each year for this holiday alone.

I’ve also heard the accusation that vegans are flying in the face of tradition – that it’s culturally blasphemous not to eat turkeys on this day. The truth is we’re ALL breaking tradition if we use the “First Thanksgiving” from 1621 as a barometer for what we should eat today. During that first meal between the puritans and Wampanoag Indians, there were no potatoes or biscuits or apple pie or yams or sweet cranberries. And there weren’t any forks either.

Does that mean we shouldn’t eat those things today? Does it mean we shouldn’t eat with forks. No, of course not. It means we shape our traditions out of our ideals. We all do it – vegans and non-vegans.

Our vegan feast can consist of mashed potatoes, mushroom gravy, bread stuffing, cranberry relish, mashed rutabagas, butternut squash soup, sautéed green beans, roasted Brussels sprouts, cornbread or biscuits, and green salad. Dessert includes everything from apple pie, pumpkin bread, German apple cake to fruit cobblers, cranberry muffins, and other traditional, seasonal favorites. Over 150 recipes are in The Joy of Vegan Baking, including this one for Apple Cobbler.

Harvest-Stuffed Acorn Squash

For the main dish, which is really about creating a focal point on the plate, you can enjoy a beautiful stuffed acorn squash filled with a pilaf of wild rice, pecans, apples, celery, onions, and spices. You can also create a butternut squash timbale, stuffed Portobello mushrooms, or little mini-pumpkins stuffed with an array of grains and nuts. The options are endless, and over 200 are in The Vegan Table, including the Harvest-Stuffed Acorn Squash.

Of course there are other options such as Tofurky loaf or Field Roast’s grain-based loaf. And any customary Thanksgiving dessert recipe can be easily veganized with a few substitutions.

The point is we CAN celebrate tradition and honor our values at the same time. In fact, eating a vegan feast for Thanksgiving is more consistent with what this holiday is about at its heart: creating community, connection, gratitude, and compassion. I can’t think of a better way to do that than preparing food that causes as little harm as possible to animals, our health, and the Earth.

My only warning to you is to make more than you think you need, because undoubtedly everyone will covet your beautiful, colorful, compassionate recipes and, of course, you want leftovers!

Offering motivation and to make things even more interesting, we had a contest!  Daiya generously offered a month’s supply of its delicious vegan cheese to a random participant who was successful in getting a pizza place to offer a vegan pizza. We are excited to announce that the winner of our contest is Gina Stuessy of Madison, Wisconsin. Gina got two restaurants in Madison to participate, The Glass Nickel and Ian’s Pizza. Let’s hope they will keep the vegan options on the menu beyond World Go Vegan Week.

Congratulations, Gina! We hope you enjoy your month’s supply of Daiya cheese!

Pizza wasn’t the only thing on our minds this World Go Vegan Week. Other volunteers participated in various creative ways beyond the vegan pizza project. At a church in Burnaby, British Columbia, eight families took on the challenge of eating vegan for the entire week of World Go Vegan Week and, in Sri Lanka, activists held an event with a film on veganism, speakers, and vegan food to sample. These are just a few examples of the wide reach of this important week of education. This was truly an international outreach experience!

Thank you for celebrating World Go Vegan Week with us. The animals, the environment, and your health thank you for your compassionate choices. Click here for more information on the vegan lifestyle.

New to veganism? Click here to order a free Vegan Starter Kit.

Dressed in costumes, we handed out the treats and leafleted vegan materials, asking San Franciscans to help end the horrors of factory farming and try a vegan treat for Halloween. The responses were wildly enthusiastic—in fact, people were shocked that vegan treats and chocolate were so scary delicious! It was a gratifying day of outreach with lots of people discovering just how satisfying vegan sweet treats really are.

But Halloween can also be a nightmare for vegans—seems like non-vegan sweets are everywhere. Yet the true nightmare is what happens to animals on factory farms.

Vegan treats can be found at the witching hour, and you wouldn’t have guessed that some old favorites are actually vegan. Our friends at VegNews have compiled a deliciously comprehensive list of vegan candy. Can you imagine that Dots, Pez, and Dum-Dum Pops are vegan? You can also indulge in candies that are a bit healthier, support fair trade practices, and encourage sustainable agriculture like Sjaak’s Organic Chocolates  or Let’s Do Organic Gummy Bears.

So when the little monsters come to your door, you don’t necessarily have to contribute to the sugar fest. Stickers are a great surprise for the vampires, Freddy Kruegers, and Lady Gagas. Kids love stickers, and yours will be the coolest house on the block! Colored pencils or erasers can be fun, too.

Let’s make this a safe and compassionate holiday for everyone, including farmed animals.

New to veganism? Click here to order a Vegan Starter Kit.

Click here to see a list of participating restaurants offering a vegan pizza featuring Daiya cheese (pronounced DAY-aa), a vegan cheese that melts, stretches, and tastes like traditional dairy-based cheese. If a restaurant is participating in your area, grab your friends and family and show support with a vegan pizza party!

The vegan lifestyle is picking up steam; celebrities like Ellen DeGeneres, Alicia Silverstone, Lea Michele, Carrie Underwood, Emily Deschanel, Tobey Maguire, and Bill Clinton, among many others, have all made this compassionate and healthy lifestyle choice. While the number of vegetarians is growing every year, the number of non-vegetarians who often order vegan meals at restaurants is also increasing dramatically. The National Restaurant Association named vegan entrées a “hot trend” for 2011. Many people are looking for ways to eat healthier, while at the same time, helping to reduce animal suffering and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Ordering a vegan pizza is a great way to accomplish all three!

The dairy industry is pure hell for cows. To make just a pound of cheese, which is loaded with saturated fat, 12 pounds of milk are needed for this extremely wasteful and energy-intensive process. Like all mammals, female cows only lactate after giving birth. To maximize milk production, cows are constantly kept pregnant during their entire short and miserable lives until sent to slaughter. Each year, she will be artificially inseminated, and within hours of giving birth, the calf will be ripped from her side. Males will be fattened for veal or beef, while the females will endure the same dismal fate as their mothers. The stress on the mother’s body will diminish her milk output after about 3 or 4 years. She is then what the industry calls “dried up” or “spent,” and even though her natural life span is 20 years, it is more lucrative to send her to slaughter and replace her. Her body will be sold as ground beef.

But there is a way to reduce all of this suffering—Celebrate World Go Vegan Week and GO VEGAN! Give it a try for at least one week. The animals, the environment, and your health can only benefit from your compassionate choice. Click here for more information on the vegan lifestyle.