3 Valley Vegans Newsletter
Squirrels lifting small pumpkins
Hello To You All This October

Thank you joining the 3 Valley Vegans this month for our October newsletter.

Oranges, reds and yellows are now bursting from the branches of the woodlands surrounding our visually stunning valley.
It is a beautiful time of year with the crisp air and the crunchy ground underfoot.

Like the seasons, things are forever changing within the 3 Valley Vegans, with new members and lots of new ideas to make it even easier for people to be vegan.

Read on for information on animal matters, health, nutrition and of course what events are happening in the following weeks. 

Thank you x

3 Valley Vegans website | Subscribe to the newsletter 

World Vegan Month logo
Join us to celebrate World Vegan Month

November is World Vegan Month and we'll be holding a food and information stall on Todmorden market on Thursday 1st November which is World Vegan Day. The stall will be a celebration of veganism and will promote all things vegan.
We will provide information about how and why to go vegan and where to buy and eat vegan food in the area. There will be vegan recipes demonstrated and written down for people to take away and free samples of vegan food for people to try. 

If anyone would like to help out either by baking or creating some food samples to give away or by helping out on the stall then please contact Hilary on hils46@yahoo.co.uk. Even a few hours would be wonderful.

Contact us to help
many chia seeds
Food For Thought: The Marvel of Chia Seeds

Chia seeds are a food that on the surface look quite unremarkable. They are small, dull and forgettable. 

However, these little black or white seeds are hidden treasure troves of nutritional gems. They are packed to bursting point with protein, antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids. And are an amazing source of vitamins and minerals. 

Chia seeds contain:

  • 6 times more calcium than milk 
  • 3 times more iron than spinach
  • More antioxidants than blueberries
  • 15 times more magnesium than broccoli
  • And 2 times more potassium than bananas

Some chia food facts:

  • They can be used in baking to replace eggs.
  • They can absorb 10 times their weight in water. 
    This means that they are excellent in helping keep the body hydrated.
  • They are easily digested and absorbed without needing to be ground up
  • Once ingested they turn into a gel and line the stomach wall, energy is released slowly and they keep you feeling full for longer.
  • Chia seeds can be grown very easily with not much requirement of pesticides, as bugs and insects tend to not be attracted to them. Therefore this means they are environmentally friendly and it is also easy to get obtain them organically.

The Protein Content

Although Chia seeds are very high in protein, this is not a complete protein. It actually lacks some of the essential amino acids. 
But if combined with other foods that are rich in lysine, such as nuts, then a complete protein source can easily be attained.

Healing Nature

Click on the link below to see in what ways these amazing seeds can boost your health and what ailments they help us fight too.

Health Benefits Of Chia Seeds
chia cookies and pudding
Chia Seed Recipes

These cookies are the perfect way to incorporate chia seeds into your family's diet.
They are full of nutrition, but also a great little naughty treat.

Deliciously divine. 

Peanut Butter & Chia Seed Cookie Recipe

Chia seed puddings are very easy to make and delicious too.
They can be eaten as a desert or alternatively for breakfast as a great nutritional start to the day.

The link below shows you how to make 5 different flavours of this super pudding.

Chia Seed Pudding Recipes

pigs in cages
Mega Farms

Mega farms, or super farms as they are sometimes referred to are large scale, intensive farms. 
They lack normal farming traditions and animals are not able to express their natural behaviour due to the way that they are housed in mass sheds, many never seeing daylight or ever going outdoors.

The definition of a mega farm is that the farm must have warehouses containing in excess of 2000 pigs (or 750 breeding sows), 700 dairy cows, 1,000 beef cows or 40,000 birds.

So why are the general public not aware of these mass institutions if there are so many of them existing already? 

The answer is that existing farms have opted to expand, rather than seek new plots. This keeps them under the radar from groups and local residents that may create opposition. Also the buildings can be mistaken for large storage facilities, as there is often no sign that animals are there.

It is quite shocking to know that there is no official records held by DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) on how many intensive beef units there are and that these farms do not require a government permit as the poultry and pig ones do.

It is all too easily assumed that this type of farming is something that only happens in other countries, as we see cows and hens roaming in pretty fields that we drive past.

However, there are now close to 800 of these farms in the UK and the numbers are rising constantly. In fact there has been an incredible 26% rise in just 6 years.

Approximate figures obtained in 2017 show that a staggering 80% of chickens and 75% of breeding pigs are factory farmed. And 48% of eggs are produced from hens held in battery cages.

Almost every county in England has a Mega farm now. There are now only 12 counties out of the 48 that host no pig or poultry intensive farms in our "animal loving" country.

Article by The Bureau Of Investigative Journalism July 2017: "The rise Of The Mega Farm"
Intensive Farm Permits Granted In The UK

This map highlights the number of permits that have been allowed since 2002 across the UK for Mega Farms to house poultry.

The map is broken down into counties and the colour key shows the levels of these farm permits within each of the local authorities.

This graphic was produced by Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) and published by the Guardian in July 2017.

alcoholic beverages
Is Your Alcohol Vegan?

It is sometimes hard to know which brands of alcohol are vegan friendly as they are rarely stamped as such. Also some of the animal derived ingredients are quite often not listed on the menu.

As well as being aware of ingredients, it is also worth knowing that alcohol sometimes uses processes that involve filtration using fish bladders (known as isinglass), gelatin, egg whites and more.

Barnivore is a great site, which has a huge database of brands, is easy to use and quickly tells you whether your chosen drink is animal friendly or not.

Barnivore site
Knowledge is Power

Did You Know?

Did you know that by eating a vegan diet, every day you save one animal's life, 1,100 gallons of water, 30 square foot of forested land, 45 pounds of grain and 20lbs of carbon dioxide equivalent.

Pretty amazing, right?

sheep in truck
Raising The Standards Of Animal Welfare

Ensuring Ethical Treatment At The Time Of Slaughter

The number of sentient beings that are slaughtered for human consumption annually is catastrophic.
Figures currently stand at 2.6 million cattle, 14.5 million sheep including lambs, 10 million pigs, 950 million birds and 80 million fish.

Surveys in 2017 by the Bureau Of Investigative Journalism and the Food Standards Agency revealed that a shocking percentage of animals and birds actually die during transportation to abattoirs or whilst waiting to be slaughtered. These surveys also concluded that a huge number of poultry and cattle are slaughtered without being stunned effectively beforehand.

Due to these findings CCTV has been introduced into all abattoirs across England and DEFRA has recommended other amendments within the Animal Welfare 2017 draft bill, one being to increase the maximum sentence for animal cruelty from 6 months to 5 years.

So whilst there is a lot more that needs to be done, these proposed changes and improvements are definitely small steps in the right direction which will hopefully help to improve the lives and conditions of farmed animals in the UK.

Overview Of Discussion by the Policy Exchange
Last month Cruelty International added Nutura to their list of cruelty-free companies
Keep In Contact


We would like to remind you that 3 Valley Vegans have a Facebook page, a Facebook group and our own website...


Our Facebook page is open to the public and is updated with lots of  events both local and national, interviews, videos, information, news and tips from the wider vegan community. 
To like, or visit this page please click:

Facebook Public Page



The Facebook group is a closed group and is a good place to air and vent any local vegan issues.
Information relating to local shopping and/or eating out can be posted by members of this group and also if any businesses in the local area would like to promote any vegan products or offers then this is the group to use.
If you would like to join then please click:
Facebook Private Group

On our website you will find local eating guides, recipes, up coming and past events, blogs and lots of vegan articles.
What our group is all about is detailed on this side and our location and contact detai
ls. 
To visit the website please click on link:

Website

Map of Calderdale
UPDATED! Local eating and shopping guides

Eating out and shopping can be tricky when you're vegan, especially when just starting out. To make things a little easier, we have compiled a list of vegan-friendly eateries and shops in Calderdale:

View our Guide to Eating Out in Calderdale

View our Vegan Friendly Calderdale Shopping Guide

Have we missed anything off these lists? Please send your suggestions to tech@3valleyvegns.org.uk 

 

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3 Valley Vegans

3 Valley Vegans, 24 Park Road, Todmorden OL14 5 NJ

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