Johnathan Safran Foer is not Vegan

J.S. Foer is the author of “Eating Animals”, a book released in 2009 that includes both personal stories and investigative reporting of factory farms. The book has caused uproar among readers and critics. Many people have purported going vegetarian after reading “Eating Animals” and some, including celebrities such as Natalie Portman, have reported going vegan. But, following in the footsteps of Michael Pollan, author of “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” and Eric Schlosser, author of “Fast Food Nation,” Foer is not following the lifestyle that his investigative findings have promoted to his readers. This is not a new thing, by any means. Many authors throughout history have published literature that has acted as the backbone of social change. In the animal rights community, Peter Singer, the author of “Animal Liberation” is touted as the “Father of the Animal Rights Movement,” and has also stated that he does not follow a vegan lifestyle. You would think that the lack of connection with investigative findings and actual lifestyle change would bewilder and disappoint the followers of such authors, but people are far more forgiving than logic would have you think. When it comes to information and theory, the writers and journalists who provide the actual texts seem to be the exception to the principles they promote. Foer’s disagreement with veganism takes away more from non-human animals than it gives. Much like Schlosser, who claimed to eat fast food after his best-selling book convinced many to stop eating at large chains, Foer is saying to readers that mere changes in consumption are not practical and are not the appropriate response to the exploitation of non-human animals. What we know in the vegan community is that consumption is everything, and authors like Foer are the problem, not the solution.