See also: Vegan FAQ
Every year, tens of billions of land animals are raised and killed for food — most of them in conditions that would be illegal if the victims were dogs or cats. They're capable of fear, bonding, and suffering, yet our systems treat them as units of production rather than individuals.
Going vegan starts with a simple idea: a being's capacity to suffer, not its usefulness to us, is what should determine how we treat it. If we wouldn't accept these practices done to an animal we love, consistency asks us not to fund them for animals we've simply never met.
That's the heart of it, but it's not the whole picture.
The planet. Animal agriculture is one of the leading drivers of deforestation, freshwater use, and greenhouse gas emissions — a plant-based plate is one of the most direct ways an individual can shrink their footprint.
Health. Whole-food, plant-based diets are linked to lower rates of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers, and major health organizations now recognize well-planned vegan diets as suitable for every stage of life.
Compassion, health, and sustainability tend to point the same direction — but even if you only ever cared about one of them, it'd still be a reason to try.