Vegan Year Two

Today as well as starting my 38th consecutive ‘dry January’ I am starting my second year as a Vegan. Overall it has been pretty easy being vegan, although it does exclude you to an extent, and I have focussed on making it as easy as possible i.e. a very limited diet and far too many snacks!

I am really glad that I made the decision: a simple ethical one for me as I don’t want any animal to suffer or die so that I can eat/drink. Of course it extends beyond that to include the use of animals in cosmetic testing, clothes etc and whilst I have no intention of throwing away any of the clothes I already own (that would just lead to unnecessary consumerism) I am doing all I can to buy synthetic materials.

Ironically the one area that this is impossible is in cricket with cricket balls, but I accept that life isn’t perfect, we do what we can, and cricket has made big changes sustainability wise and are researching alternative cricket balls, something I was interviewed about for the 2025 Wisden Almanack as a result of the Vegan Cricketer Diary that I posted throughout the season: which appeared to reach quite a wide audience and provided some interesting research, including working with Edgbaston on their 2025 Vegan Offerings.

This year then I will be combining a better diet based on more natural foods and spending more time in the kitchen, with a fitness programme which I can now do because of all the work I have put into rehab over the last two years, and a far more active life (again because I can now do things with this old body that I hadn’t been able to), so ….. golf, longer walks with the dogs, running and cycling, a few light weights for some general strength, shooting (I finish my probation at the end of the month so hopefully get Firearm License by the end of 2025), less alcohol and even less snacks.

I mentioned the Cricket Diary above and it was a pleasant surprise just how positively it was received by many, and how educational it was on the issue on exclusivity.

Whilst I focussed solely on cricket it made me more aware of the issue in general: golf clubs have pretty much the same issue and when you think about it have the same transitional issues – dominated by white, middle aged men for years brought up with ‘traditional’ values and cultures, it is currently very focussed on the integration and levelling out of female golfers (long way to go according to many that I have spoken to), and has yet to address different diets and lifestyle choices, mainly I like to think because they haven’t ‘had’ to yet and are unaware, but I will be taking my quest for vegan inclusivity on menus to the golf clubs I play at in 2025.

Of all the conclusions the two that were the most apparent and would make a huge difference are: 1) make it very clear that you are asking people to let you know and that the onus is on you to ask, not them to tell, and 2) when you do include vegan foods make sure that they are both clearly labelled (something that would assist people with all dietary requirements and would stop people handling food to see what was in it), and the same range of options are offered – a couple of plates of vegan junk food from a freezer is not the same as a plate of sandwiches, cakes, pastries, biscuits, crisps …… there is a world of difference between accommodating and including!