So a lot of crops are fertilized with manure, which usually comes from the cattle industry, and to my knowledge, there’s no reliable way to tell what the plant-based foods you’re buying is fertilized with.

Some crops are fertilized with processed sewage sludge and/or food waste, but since most humans still eat meat, would you consider this vegan? Side note, processing of sewage and food waste is often also used to generate electricity, heat, and in some cases the methane is added directly to the municipal natural gas supply, would you consider these services no longer vegan in that case.

Finally, and I guess this is mainly relevant to those who are vegans for environmentalism, but the only real alternative to manure is chemical fertilizers, often made from petroleum, and have their own environmental problems. I guess you could cut out the cow by harvesting hay and putting it in a digester to make fertilizer, but as far as I know, no one currently does this since it would be a lot more expensive than both manure and chemical fertilizer.

What do you make of this? Does it bother you, or are you okay with it, or have you even found alternatives to these problems?

  • @dengismceo
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    43 years ago

    fertilized with processed sewage sludge

    thanks, i never want to eat again

    i hate the idea of fertilizer but barring growing your own food, which is not an option for everyone, we kinda just have to deal until an alternative is viable & implemented

    • @AgreeableLandscapeOP
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      3 years ago

      fertilized with processed sewage sludge

      thanks, i never want to eat again

      I mean, that’s not that different from how nature does it. Poop and corpses fertilize plants, which continues the nutrient cycle. Personally I don’t find it too gross.

      • @qoheniac
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        2 years ago

        deleted by creator

      • @dengismceo
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        23 years ago

        i know lmao it’s just that phrasing makes it sound even worse. i think it’s the “sludge” that really does it

        • @AgreeableLandscapeOP
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          3 years ago

          That’s actually the technical term for the solid stuff after sewage is separated. The water is called “effluent.”

          • @dengismceo
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            33 years ago

            huh, til. still doesn’t make it better tho :rolling on the floor laughing: