Dr Melanie Joy turned a vegetarian in 1989 as she contracted a food-borne disease after eating a hamburger. This decision proved to be a life-changing one for her as she began to study the effects of eating meat on health and also the psychology behind it. She eventually turned a vegan after she learned about the unethical practices followed in dairy farms. She introduced the term ‘Carnism’, which tries to understand why people eat certain kind of animals. In her book, ‘Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows’, Melanie argues that a violent ideology has conditioned people to disengage from their natural empathy and eat animals. The Harvard-educated psychologist, who has been touring India to raise awareness on carnistic meat and dairy consumption, talks to Express about being vegetarian in India and more:
In your book, you said that people are conditioned to eat animals. Do you mean that it is not natural for human beings to eat meat?
I am not saying that, but I am not saying it’s natural either. We automatically assume that we are supposed to eat animals. People need to know not only why we should not eat animals, but the psychology behind it.
Why did you choose to come to India?
There are many studies which suggest meat consumption is growing in India. Another change that is happening is that the western model of dairy production is becoming popular here, in which animals are treated very cruelly.
In India, being vegetarian involves religion and caste equations too…
I agree. The situation in India is very different. People who are raised vegetarians are different from people who have given up on eating meat for health or environmental concerns. For upwardly mobile people, eating meat is about freedom of choice. This is a difficult conversation to have, but an important one. In a country over billion people, increase in the consumption of animals can cause significant environmental problems and animal suffering. A part of vegetarianism here might evoke caste sentiments, but we need not reject vegetarianism as a whole due to that. Vegetarianism advocates a world which is Ahimsa-based and ensures justice for all living beings. We have a lot of information now on how eating meat can cause a number of health problems. After I gave up meat, I felt much better and my energy levels were higher.
There are a large number of omnivores in the animal kingdom, just like human beings. How do you explain their eating habits?
There are many large animals like elephants which are herbivores. We should not be asking ourselves here what is natural or not natural. It is not natural for us to take medicines like penicillin when you are sick ,as it’s not good for us. Studies have shown that people consuming meat are more susceptible to lifestyle diseases like diabetes.
Animals like elephants cannot digest meat, but human beings can...
Human beings can digest a lot of things like metals, but that does not mean it’s good for us. Our intestines are much longer compared to animals, and food rots in the process of being digested. Studies have also shown that people consuming meat can have more intestinal problems. I am not saying anybody should be vegetarian or has to be vegetarian. I am saying in this time in India , which to me form an outside perspective looks like a time of great transformation, a progressive change. In this perspective, we have to understand the psychology behind eating animals, which is Carnism. If we are aware of Carnism, we will be in touch with the choices we make. If you have seen my videos, you might have seen how people balk at the thought of eating a hamburger which has dog meat...
But a lot of people eat dogs...
India is my 44th country. Around the world, people’s food choices differ, but their relationship with eating meat remains the same. In Korea, a section of the people eats dogs. However, even among them, they agree that they might eat stray dogs, but not their own pets. Similarly, a person who might eat dog might not eat a monkey. A better example is of soldiers who are conditioned to kill certain kind of human beings. They are conditioned to disconnect from their feelings. It’s similar to Carnism. It teaches us to disconnect from certain feelings, and that’s determined by culture.
In a country like India with widespread poverty and malnutrition, making such choices is difficult...
Yes, true. When I am talking about people who can make such choices in food habits, I am talking about those who are privileged. I will never have this conversation with a person who has accessibility to limited sources of nutrition. It is the privileged who should ask themselves how desensitised they can become.
Some reports suggest that the damage caused by turning vegetarians will be more than that caused by the animal industry…
Some very prestigious institutions like the UN and WHO have said that animal agriculture cause significant harm to the environment. No questioning that. We have to see if the reports you are talking about are from credible sources, as the meat industry is a multi-billion dollar industry, and many would like to debunk vegetarianism to keep their industry thriving.