Once you turn vegan you can’t even fathom how you weren’t one in the first place

Beti Thomas is a PhD student from North Wales. After doing her undergrad in English studies and her masters in International Relations, she received a scholarship to continue her studies and complete a doctorate. Her studies focus on activism identity and although her studies isn’t on veganism, it was a driving force for her interest in the field.

Alongside her studies, Beti runs a vegan food account to document her meals and to highlight that vegan foods can be simple and easy, and even appeal to fussy eaters 🌱. Beti and her partner are committed to the vegan lifestyle and are passionate about advocating for animal rescue and welfare.

Meatless Movement recently had a chance to chat with her.

Tell us more about yourself, please

Hi! I’m Beti, I’m a PhD student in North Wales. My thesis is on activism and identity using the Black Lives Matter movement as a case study.

What has started your vegan adventure?

I’ve always been a very sensitive child when it came to animals. I remember watching the movie Babe for the first time when I was around 7 and deciding to turn veggie. Admittedly that lasted a day. I had tried a couple of times to turn veggie in high school but my binge eating really stopped me from that journey.

I finally turned pescatarian in university. I then gradually cut out meat, then diary and then eggs. It was a gradual process for sure. I read up about the impact of agriculture once I turned vegan because I wanted to do it myself without resources etc.

My boyfriend of 8 years also turned veggie and then vegan after me
Beti Eats

My boyfriend went veggie because he saw a (live) gold fish on the telly and he said ‘it looked into his soul’ 😂 after that he stopped eating meat. That’s all it took!

For us it was about framing our beliefs and morals and drawing a conclusion from that. I’ve been vegan for around 4 ish years now and I’ve never looked back.

What challenges have you faced as a vegan?

Luckily for me I surround myself with amazing humans who understand my purpose for being vegan. Unfortunately I live in a rural area of Wales which is very narrow minded and is a very agriculturally driven area. So you do have judgments.

I have family members who are farmers. So because of this, vegan options can be sparse around here. There is definitely less options in the supermarkets than the big cities. I lived in Liverpool for 4 years and I miss the vegan restaurants for sure. I’m however not fussy when it comes to food, so most of the time the one vegan option on a menu will do.

My boyfriend on the overhand is quite picky, so a lot of the times we stick to the same restaurants or I cook from home.

How does being vegan impact your life?

It makes me feel powerful. There’s a level of consciousness and connection to the world around you when you become vegan. I feel connected to the farm animals I see when I walk past them on my walks. I’m so proud and equally as proud of my boyfriend. I feel stronger both mentally and physically and I’m generally much healthier. I eat way more protein as a vegan than when I wasn’t!

How do you convince someone to eat vegan?

I’m probably the wrong person to ask this because I do get frustrated when people don’t want to at least try it. It’s the level of arrogance. If you don’t like it after you try it then fair enough. But if you don’t even try it you have no right to diss it. I let people come to their senses in trying vegan food because persuasion doesn’t work with arrogant people.

There is a lot of debate online about what ‘real’ veganism is. Don’t get into these debates. Be true to what you think veganism is. Nobody’s perfect but we can try our best to be. As long as you don’t eat anything or buy anything containing animal products or by products then that’s better than most of the population. There is also no wrong or right way to start. If you find gradually cutting products down is the best way for you then start with that! Try different ways until you find what works for you. As long as you’re trying your best.

I’m still learning to keep calm amidst arguments with meat eaters. I have not once had anyone tell me anything that debunks veganism for me. The biggest misconception is it’s unhealthy to live as a vegan. I’m sure for some who would probably only eat plain pasta or bread for breakfast lunch and dinner then yes it is unhealthy. But that is far from our diet. I’m conscious of hitting all my food groups.

I’m so much healthier now as a vegan because I’m educated in what my body needs to fuel it. Whereas as a meat eater it not something I thought about. Some will argue this while eating a rustler burger. I’d argue vegans know way more about what goes into their food and what they need to survive than generally meat eaters. I know my facts thanks to Earthling Ed (big shoutout to him). So I can argue all day, but unfortunately people are reluctant to listen. Deep down it’s because they feel attacked because of their way of life.

The best places for food are the ones you stumble across!
Beti Eats

Our go to place to eat was Frost Burgers in Liverpool- a vegan fast food place. Unfortunately because of the cost of living it has closed down, as has a lot of vegan restaurants. It’ll go down in history for us. A part from that we like Barburrito (see picture of me trying to recreate it). At home my favourite kind of things to eat are normally fajitas or anything with spice.

What is interesting about veganism?

This might not be interesting haha. But for me being vegan is also about reducing harm to domestic animals too. For example I’m really passionate about rescuing/ adoption animals and hope when I’m retired to adopt many old, smelly three legged dogs and cats. I have 3 dogs at the moment. They are my babies and they bring me so much love. Rescuing is so much more rewarding #adoptdontshop

Veganism is a strange thing in a lot of ways. It’s strange for those who aren’t vegan. But once you turn vegan you can’t even fathom how you weren’t one in the first place. It really opens your mind, heart and eye to things and really makes you understand how messed up the system is. This is without persuasion of anyone else, this is genuinely what you see and feel. I’m so lucky to have been opened up to it.