Veganism is both the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products, particularly in diet, and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals.〔For commodification of animals in general, Kathryn Gillespie, Rosemary-Claire Collard, ''Critical Animal Geographies'', Routledge, 2015, p. 2ff; for the idea of "sentient commodities," Rhoda Wilkie, ''Livestock/Deadstock: Working with Farm Animals from Birth to Slaughter'', Temple University Press, 2010, chapter 6, pp. 115–128.
For veganism and commodification of animals, Helena Pedersen, Vasile Staescu, "Conclusion: Future Directions for Critical Animal Studies," in Nik Taylor, Richard Twine (eds.), ''The Rise of Critical Animal Studies: From the Margins to the Centre'', Routledge, 2014 (pp. 262–276), pp. 267–268.
Gary Francione, "Animal Welfare, Happy Meat and Veganism as the Moral Baseline," in David M. Kaplan, ''The Philosophy of Food'', University of California Press, 2012 (pp. 169–189) pp. 182–183.
Gary Francione, Robert Garner, ''The Animal Rights Debate: Abolition Or Regulation?'', Columbia University Press, 2010, pp. 27–29, 62–63.
Gary Steiner, ("Animal, Vegetable, Miserable" ), ''The New York Times'', 21 November 2009, p. 2.〕 A follower of veganism is known as a ''vegan''.
Distinctions are sometimes made between several categories of veganism. Dietary vegans (or strict vegetarians) refrain from consuming animal products, not only meat but also eggs, dairy products and other animal-derived substances; this is known as a vegan or entirely plant-based diet.〔"It should be noted that the term ''plant-based'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''vegetarian'' or ''vegan''." See Philip J. Tuso, et al., ("Nutritional Update for Physicians: Plant-Based Diets" ), ''The Permanente Journal'', 17(2), Spring 2013, pp. 61–66. PMID 23704846〕 The term ''ethical vegan'' is often applied to those who not only follow a vegan diet but extend the philosophy into other areas of their lives, and oppose the use of animals for any purpose. Another term is ''environmental veganism'', which refers to the avoidance of animal products on the premise that the harvesting or industrial farming of animals is environmentally damaging and unsustainable.〔Michael Shapiro, ("Sea Shepherd's Paul Watson: 'You don't watch whales die and hold signs and do nothing'" ), ''The Guardian'', 21 September 2010; Matthew Cole, "Veganism," in Margaret Puskar-Pasewicz (ed.), ''Cultural Encyclopedia of Vegetarianism'', ABC-Clio, 2010 (pp. 239–241), p. (241 ).〕
The term ''vegan'' was coined in 1944 by Donald Watson when he co-founded the Vegan Society in England, at first to mean "non-dairy vegetarian" and later "the doctrine that man should live without exploiting animals."〔Donald Watson, (''Vegan News'' ), No. 1, November 1944, p. 2; Leslie Cross, ("Veganism Defined" ), ''The Vegetarian World Forum'', 5(1), Spring 1951.〕 Interest in veganism increased in the 2010s; vegan options became increasingly available in many countries, including in supermarkets and chain restaurants.〔
Vegan diets tend to be higher in dietary fiber, magnesium, folic acid, vitamin C, vitamin E, iron and phytochemicals, and lower in calories, saturated fat, cholesterol, long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D, calcium, zinc and vitamin B12. Well-planned vegan diets can reduce the risk of some types of chronic disease, including heart disease,〔 and are regarded as appropriate for all stages of the life-cycle by the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, and Dietitians of Canada.〔 Because uncontaminated plant foods do not provide vitamin B12 (which is produced by microorganisms such as bacteria), researchers agree that vegans should eat B12-fortified foods or take a supplement.
==History==