Dear all,
Pravinbhai delivered an excellent lecture yesterday at the Jain Centre in Colindale on cruelty to cows in dairy production. For those of you that there unable to make it, we have produced three short videos (in simple Gujarati and English - links below) where Pravinbhai describes: - what he saw at the dairy farm he visited in 1995;
- why he believes Jains should follow a vegan diet;
- the considerable health benefits he has experienced since following a vegan diet (his cholesterol levels dropped considerably and he is now 72 and is not on any medication).
Video 1: Why vegan in Gujarati (no health info)
Video 2: Why vegan in English (some health info)
Video 3: 10min interview featuring some health information and references to Jain scriptural texts
You can of course read more about his visit to the dairy farm and reasons for following a vegan diet in his book 'The Book of Compassion' (free download). Many thanks to Pravinbhai for giving us the opportunity to film him, and for enriching the UK Jain community with his wisdom and knowledge. We also have a couple of spaces left at the event with Dr. Jina Shah, so if you are interested in attending, please sign up as soon as you can.
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1. Few places left on vegan health/nutrition talk with Dr. Jina Shah - Sun 22 Sep 4pm We now only have a couple of spaces left at this event, so if you are thinking about attending please sign up as soon as possible. For those unable to attend, there is the possibility of getting the chance to meet Dr. Jina Shah at the social dinner later that evening.
Date: Sunday 22 September
Time: 4pm - 6:30pm
Location: Edgware (details to be confirmed after signing up)
Registration required: Click here to sign up or email
Price: Free for Vegan Society Members, but we ask non-members to make a small donation to the Vegan Society (£5 recommended)
Ever wondered whether a vegan/vegetarian diet might be lacking in certain nutrients, or how to maintain a healthy, balanced diet without spending lots on exotic superfoods? If so, next Sunday's event with Dr. Jina Shah is definitely for you.
Jina, a california-based physician and vegan Jain (who also runs www.veganjains.com), will begin by delivering a presentation on important issues related to vegan/vegetarian health. This will be followed by a roundtable discussion where everyone attending will get the chance to ask questions and share health tips with one another.
You can see some clips of Jina speaking on her Vegan Health Nutrition via the Vegan Jains website (Profile of Jina, Caclium, Protein and B12 and Talk on the Ahimsak Diet at the Jain Centre of Northern California).
For further information about the event, please e-mail | | |
2. Jain Vegans Social Dinner - Sun 22 Sep 7pm Time and Date: 7pm Sunday 22 September
Location: Loving Hut Vegan Restaurant, 236 Station Road, Edgware, HA8 7AU
Cuisine: Chinese
Sign up: Required, please e-mail
Following the health event with Dr. Jina Shah, we would like all members of the London Jain community interested or curious in a vegan lifestlye to attend a social dinner, at the Loving Hut Vegan Restaurant in Edgware, starting at 7pm.
Loving Hut is one of the few 100% vegan restaurants in North West London, and is luckily also very happy to cater for the requirements of Jains who refrain from eating root vegetables.
Jain Vegans Social Lunch at Loving Hut, Edgware in Winter 2011
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3. Upcoming UK / European based vegan-related events VegfestUK London, Saturday 5th & Sunday 6th October
Further details: www.vegfest.co.uk
Paris Vegan Day, Saturday 12th October
Further details: www.facebook.com/pages/Paris-Vegan-Days/174580412589850
East Midlands Vegan Festival (Lincoln), Saturday 12th October
Further details: www.eastmidlandsveganfestival.co.uk
Live A Better Life (Liverpool), Saturday 19th October
Further details: www.ethicsandhealth.org.uk/LABL_Fair_Liverpool.html
Animal Aid School Speaker Cookery Demonstration (London), Saturday 19 October
To book your place or further information, contact Animal Aid.
West Midlands Vegan Festival (Wolverhampton), Saturday 26th October
Further details: www.midlandsveganfestival.org.uk
North East Vegan Festival (Sunderland), Sunday 17th November
Further details: www.northeastveganfestival.co.uk
Animal Aid's Christmas Fayre (Kensington Town Hall, London), Sunday 8th December
Further details: www.animalaid.org.uk/h/n/NEWS/news_living//2724// | | |
4. Abuse and the killing of cows in milk production 
The abuse and killing of cows on dairy farms is the main reason why many members of the Jain community have decided to make a switch to a vegan lifestyle:
- The cow is forcefully impregnated by means of artificial insemination. If a cow isn’t made pregnant, she won’t produce milk.
- The newborn calf is normally taken away from its mother within 24-48 hours. This is traumatic for cows, who, like human mothers, are very motherly and develop strong bonds with their babies.
- Male calves are killed shortly after birth or sold on for meat/leather production. They have no other use to dairy farmers.
- Female calves are kept on to replace their mothers as milk-producing cows.
- The mother cow will be killed when 5-7 years old, even though she could live for 20 to 30 years if given the chance. This is because after bearing a calf and giving milk each year, her milk yield drops such that it is no more profitable for a dairy farmer to keep her alive.
Even though cows on organic farms might experience slightly better conditions, they are still artificially inseminated and killed long before they would leave their bodies. For further information about the way in which cows and other animals are exploited in the milk production process, please visit the Vegan Society website: http://www.vegansociety.com/ | | |
5. Alternatives to dairy to help you give up It is possible to get a range of dairy free alternatives to traditionally animal based products. Normally available from free-from sections of supermarkets and also from healthfood stores. - Cow milk with Soya/Rice/Almond/Coconut Milk (Supermarket ownbrands, Alpro, Provamel, Bonsoy, So Good, Ecomil, Koko)
- Yoghurt / Dahi with plant based curds (Provamel, Alpro, Sojade)
- Butter with vegetable spreads (Pure and Vitalite are commonly available from supermarkets. Note many margarines contain butter milk and thus are not suitable for vegans)
- Cheese / Paneer with Dairy Free Cheeses (Tofu, Redwoods Cheezly ,Scheese,Tofutti, Vegusto, Vegourmet)
- Ice Creams with sorbets or dairy free ice creams (Rice Dream,Swedish Glace,Tofutti, Booja Booja, Worthenshaws)
- Chocolate with dark chocolate (Plamil and Organica do specialist dairy free ‘milk chocolate’ and many brands do vegan dark chocolate)
- Eggs with egg replacement powder (baking) or tofu (scrambled)
- Honey with fruit syrup or golden syrup
For further listings of animal free products, please see the Vegan Society Animal Free Shopper online database: http://www.vegansociety.com/afssearch.aspx | | |
6. About Jain Vegans Jain Vegans (www.jainvegans.org) was established in 2008 to support Jains in the transition towards a low-himsa lifestyle, largely in response to the abuse and violation of cows in milk production. Though we are not formally established as an organisation, we organise regular events and workshops on a plant-based lifestyle () and interact with member and supporters through the following channels: 
..a friendly online forum where you can exchange and ideas about veganism and Jainism with other members from around the world....
...follow us on Twitter (@JainVegans) for instant news and information...
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..'like' us on facebook for updates on our activities and invitations to events... | | |
If anything we have written has caused offence, we humbly seek forgiveness. Michhami Dukkadam.
With best wishes,
The Jain Vegans Team
(www.jainvegans.org) | | |
