Eggs: Vegetarian or Not?

lovegood90 · April 2015

Eggs aren't vegan, but they are vegetarian. Eggs, like, milk, are an animal by-product, which vegetarians can eat.

(FTR, I'm a vegetarian-well pescetarian actually- so my info is based on the research I've done on this. However I'm not a perfect resource).

mikenberger · April 2015

Maggie0829 said:

amelisha said:

Dreamergirl8812 said:

JCbride2015 said:
By definition, vegetarians do not eat meat. Eggs are not meat. Therefore, eggs can be eaten by a vegetarian.

Vegans would not eat eggs, because eggs are an animal product like honey or milk.
Vegans can't eat honey?
That's a point of debate among vegans, but most don't.
I find that being a vegetarian or a vegan has a lot of debate to it. In those dietary communities there are different levels and some vegetarians/vegans don't think that other vegetarians and vegans are vegetarian or vegan enough. They can get down right vicious with each other.

For example I read a vegan (well no longer vegan, but rather plant based) blog and she was stating that she was not going to raise her child vegan but rather let her child choose how she wants to eat when she grows up. Her H eats mostly plant based but does eat meat sometimes so she doesn't think it is right to limit her child when her Dad doesn't follow the diet fully as well, etc, etc. Well people got nasty telling her that she wasn't a true vegan and that how dare she allow her child to eat meat because if you are a true vegan you would never allow that and you would never allow your husband to eat meat, and on and on and on.

ETA: And no I am not a vegetarian. I love me a good steak and burger. But I read that blog because I find her life interesting.

I recall an article about a family of vegans giving their animals a vegan diet. Yeah... not so much.

Maggie0829 · April 2015

pinkrevenge said:
Eggs are not really unborn chicks. They're unfertilized.

Eggs are like chicken periods.

Love!

[Deleted User] · April 2015

redoryx · April 2015

Maggie0829 said:

amelisha said:

Dreamergirl8812 said:

JCbride2015 said:
By definition, vegetarians do not eat meat. Eggs are not meat. Therefore, eggs can be eaten by a vegetarian.

Vegans would not eat eggs, because eggs are an animal product like honey or milk.
Vegans can't eat honey?
That's a point of debate among vegans, but most don't.
I find that being a vegetarian or a vegan has a lot of debate to it. In those dietary communities there are different levels and some vegetarians/vegans don't think that other vegetarians and vegans are vegetarian or vegan enough. They can get down right vicious with each other.

For example I read a vegan (well no longer vegan, but rather plant based) blog and she was stating that she was not going to raise her child vegan but rather let her child choose how she wants to eat when she grows up. Her H eats mostly plant based but does eat meat sometimes so she doesn't think it is right to limit her child when her Dad doesn't follow the diet fully as well, etc, etc. Well people got nasty telling her that she wasn't a true vegan and that how dare she allow her child to eat meat because if you are a true vegan you would never allow that and you would never allow your husband to eat meat, and on and on and on.

ETA: And no I am not a vegetarian. I love me a good steak and burger. But I read that blog because I find her life interesting.

It can be a rough scene. One of my good friends is vegan and when I went back to eating meat I was so nervous about having that conversation with her. Not that I was really worried about her reaction, but still I felt like I was letting her down in some weird way, even though I went veg for health reasons, not ethical reasons.

southernbelle0915 · April 2015

JennyColada said:
I'm a level 10 vegan. I don't eat anything that casts a shadow.

This sounds very important.

I'm really glad I'm not a vegetarian anymore. I did it for about 5 years because.... I don't really know, I was a teenager and can't remember if I had reasons. I broke the streak by going to Burger King and getting a double cheese burger. Big mistake, puked my guts out. But meat hasn't been a problem since then.

littlepep · April 2015

pinkrevenge said:
Eggs are not really unborn chicks. They're unfertilized.

Eggs are like chicken periods.

ACK. I can't unthink that.

lovegood90 · April 2015

ElcaB said:

This isn't as easy as yes or no, it depends on what type of vegetarian you are. I was ovo-lacto vegetarian for six years so, yes, to me eggs were okay to consume, along with dairy products. Other vegetarians might disagree, I think in part because an egg could become a chick. Milk isn't going to grow up to be a cow. I love eggs and I could easily have given up cheese but you'd have to pry eggs from my cold dead hands.

That being said, the main defining characteristic between vegetarians and vegans is whether or not the person eats animal by-products. Neither eats flesh (meat) but most vegetarians eat by-products, that is products that come from an animal but can be sourced without killing the animal. Vegans won't eat by-products, such as dairy and eggs, even if humanly sourced.
You make a good point. I feel like there are a lot of vegetarians that don't specify what kind of vegetarian they are --- my BFF is actually a pescetarian who calls herself a vegetarian, which drives me bonkers.

I've gotten into the habit of calling myself a vegetarian instead of pescetarian just because no one seems to know what that is when I say it; maybe she's had a similar experience?

lurkergirl · April 2015

Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?

JennyColada · April 2015

southernbelle0915 said:

JennyColada said:
I'm a level 10 vegan. I don't eat anything that casts a shadow.
This sounds very important.

It's a quote from The Simpsons. Haha.

emmaaa · April 2015

lurkergirl said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?

Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

novella1186 · April 2015

emmaaa said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?

Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

My mom has a parrot that eats off her plate, and he eats chicken. The first time I saw him do it I was a bit horrified because it seemed to cannibalistic to me. But that parrot is an evil asshole anyway, so whatever.

[Deleted User] · April 2015

Maggie0829 · April 2015

Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?
Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

A lot of animals are cannibals. Like male polar bears will eat baby polar bears if given the chance. Animals are just horrible, horrible creatures and that is why we, as humans, should eat them!

[Deleted User] · April 2015

tpwkalyn · April 2015

pinkrevenge said:
Eggs are not really unborn chicks. They're unfertilized.

Eggs are like chicken periods.

HAHAHA oh fuck gross, thank you for giving me another reason to not like eggs.

mikenberger · April 2015

pinkrevenge said:
Speaking of dinosaurs and gross facts: all the water in the world at some point in time has been dino piss. All of it.

Hence why I drink beer and vodka. Hello boiling and distilling.

hellosweetie1015 · April 2015

I'm going to stay out of the actual debate, but I am going to ask that people fact check before they spread misinformation. There is a lot of it widely available on the internet, especially about the meat and dairy industries, including eggs, and while I certainly wouldn't say it is ALL false, a fair amount of it is.

And I'm not faulting anyone for choosing to be an ethical eater, either. I think there are absolutely ethical questions raised in the treatment of farm animals, especially for mass production as is done in today's First World farms. A lot of people who eat meat don't consider that when you go to the store and buy meat, it had to come from somewhere, and we don't have the technology to create meat from nothing yet. I just think you should choose based on accurate information instead of fearmongering done by extreme animal rights groups, or the countermoves made by the industries. The USDA is the only really good source for accurate information - failure to follow their regulations at any point in the process can (and has) led to shutdowns of plants and farms, and there's no way (ETA: mass) cruelty could get by them - there are inspectors in the farms, in the slaughter houses, in the production lines, and in the packaging lines.

As FI's degree is in poultry science (technically food science but our school lumped it into poultry science "because reasons"), I've gotten a little better about thinking where my meat comes from, and finding out everything I can about how it gets from the farm to the table.

JennyColada · April 2015

I saw fat-free half-and-half at the grocery store the other day.

Color me confused.

tpwkalyn · April 2015

Maggie0829 said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?

Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

A lot of animals are cannibals. Like male polar bears will eat baby polar bears if given the chance. Animals are just horrible, horrible creatures and that is why we, as humans, should eat them!

emmaaa · April 2015

khugs15 said:

Maggie0829 said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?
Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

A lot of animals are cannibals. Like male polar bears will eat baby polar bears if given the chance. Animals are just horrible, horrible creatures and that is why we, as humans, should eat them!

****BOX****

HAHA!

I've seen our boars eat piglets before if you don't separate the sow soon enough. So sad.

madamerwin · April 2015

Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?
Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

THIS. So disturbing. We have 3 chickens, and while they will not crack into their own eggs on their own, if one breaks before we get it, they dive right in. There is little more disgusting than watching a chicken eat their own raw eggs.

If I break an egg by accident, I will scramble it up, shell and all, and feed it to them. They love scrambled eggs.

As for the vegetarian-or-not debate, eggs are an animal byproduct, so I voted that they are vegetarian. However, I can see ethical vegetarians avoiding eggs because of factory farm conditions, but if that's the case, shouldn't they avoid milk too? And then wouldn't that make you pretty much vegan? I have never been a vegetarian, so maybe I just don't get it.

Maggie0829 · April 2015

tfmrserwin said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?

Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

THIS. So disturbing. We have 3 chickens, and while they will not crack into their own eggs on their own, if one breaks before we get it, they dive right in. There is little more disgusting than watching a chicken eat their own raw eggs.

If I break an egg by accident, I will scramble it up, shell and all, and feed it to them. They love scrambled eggs.

As for the vegetarian-or-not debate, eggs are an animal byproduct, so I voted that they are vegetarian. However, I can see ethical vegetarians avoiding eggs because of factory farm conditions, but if that's the case, shouldn't they avoid milk too? And then wouldn't that make you pretty much vegan? I have never been a vegetarian, so maybe I just don't get it.

I agree with the bolded. If you are ethically against factory farms and such and how animals are treated then all animal products should be off the table. Unless they are okay with small farms who treat their animals very well, but just against large factory farms, but then if they are okay with small farms then why not be okay eating meat as long as they eat meat from local farmers who don't treat their animals poorly?

lurkergirl · April 2015

Maggie0829 said:

tfmrserwin said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?
Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

THIS. So disturbing. We have 3 chickens, and while they will not crack into their own eggs on their own, if one breaks before we get it, they dive right in. There is little more disgusting than watching a chicken eat their own raw eggs.

If I break an egg by accident, I will scramble it up, shell and all, and feed it to them. They love scrambled eggs.

As for the vegetarian-or-not debate, eggs are an animal byproduct, so I voted that they are vegetarian. However, I can see ethical vegetarians avoiding eggs because of factory farm conditions, but if that's the case, shouldn't they avoid milk too? And then wouldn't that make you pretty much vegan? I have never been a vegetarian, so maybe I just don't get it.

I agree with the bolded. If you are ethically against factory farms and such and how animals are treated then all animal products should be off the table. Unless they are okay with small farms who treat their animals very well, but just against large factory farms, but then if they are okay with small farms then why not be okay eating meat as long as they eat meat from local farmers who don't treat their animals poorly?

BBBOOOXXXEEESSS-------------------------------------

On the topic of ethical farming...how do vegans feel about eating produce where the human workers aren't treated ethically? Do vegans ensure the source of every single thing they consume?

thisismynickname2 · April 2015

About the vegetarian / pescatarian thing, I technically did pescatarian for about 6 years but no one knows or cares what the fuck you're talking about when you say that.

People would ask, "Oh, are you vegetarian?" and I'd simply reply, "I just don't eat meat. Fish is cool though."

madamerwin · April 2015

lurkergirl said:

tfmrserwin said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?
Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.

THIS. So disturbing. We have 3 chickens, and while they will not crack into their own eggs on their own, if one breaks before we get it, they dive right in. There is little more disgusting than watching a chicken eat their own raw eggs.

If I break an egg by accident, I will scramble it up, shell and all, and feed it to them. They love scrambled eggs.

As for the vegetarian-or-not debate, eggs are an animal byproduct, so I voted that they are vegetarian. However, I can see ethical vegetarians avoiding eggs because of factory farm conditions, but if that's the case, shouldn't they avoid milk too? And then wouldn't that make you pretty much vegan? I have never been a vegetarian, so maybe I just don't get it.

I agree with the bolded. If you are ethically against factory farms and such and how animals are treated then all animal products should be off the table. Unless they are okay with small farms who treat their animals very well, but just against large factory farms, but then if they are okay with small farms then why not be okay eating meat as long as they eat meat from local farmers who don't treat their animals poorly?

BBBOOOXXXEEESSS-------------------------------------

On the topic of ethical farming...how do vegans feel about eating produce where the human workers aren't treated ethically? Do vegans ensure the source of every single thing they consume?

-----BOXBOXBOXBOX------

I was wondering this too.

amelisha · April 2015

tfmrserwin said:

lurkergirl said:

tfmrserwin said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?
Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.
THIS. So disturbing. We have 3 chickens, and while they will not crack into their own eggs on their own, if one breaks before we get it, they dive right in. There is little more disgusting than watching a chicken eat their own raw eggs.

If I break an egg by accident, I will scramble it up, shell and all, and feed it to them. They love scrambled eggs.

As for the vegetarian-or-not debate, eggs are an animal byproduct, so I voted that they are vegetarian. However, I can see ethical vegetarians avoiding eggs because of factory farm conditions, but if that's the case, shouldn't they avoid milk too? And then wouldn't that make you pretty much vegan? I have never been a vegetarian, so maybe I just don't get it.

I agree with the bolded. If you are ethically against factory farms and such and how animals are treated then all animal products should be off the table. Unless they are okay with small farms who treat their animals very well, but just against large factory farms, but then if they are okay with small farms then why not be okay eating meat as long as they eat meat from local farmers who don't treat their animals poorly?

BBBOOOXXXEEESSS-------------------------------------

On the topic of ethical farming...how do vegans feel about eating produce where the human workers aren't treated ethically? Do vegans ensure the source of every single thing they consume?

-----BOXBOXBOXBOX------

I was wondering this too.

Some do. For others, no. But in general, ethical dietary choices are really a line in the sand, right? Whether you eat all meat, choose fish only, do lacto-ovo, are a strict vegan, only eat food you've raised yourself, whatever...it's always just a line you've drawn saying "I will go this far, but no farther," and how much of that is because of your conscience and how much is convenience (or even for health) is something you have to reconcile with your own mind.

It's such a first-world kind of luxury to even be able to be so choosy about what you think is right or wrong to eat, though, ultimately. I'm not saying it's wrong and I personally have a lot of discomfort over certain farming practices etc., but I am very, very aware that I'm extremely lucky to even be in a position where I can say "Well, I'm only going to buy my meat from these farmers and my vegetables from this greenhouse" or whatever, if I want to.

It's not just food either, though, when virtually everything we use comes from workers in factories all over the world, particularly in less developed countries. Sometimes they're being treated decently and making a decent wage, and sometimes they're being abused and are essentially slaves, and it is really, really difficult to avoid purchasing anything that isn't being made on the backs of exploited labourers in the developing world at some point or another.

It's frustrating for sure, but I don't think there's anything wrong with saying "Well, I can choose to not buy clothes made in Bangladesh/factory farmed meat/eggs from caged chickens/etc" and choosing that as something you won't support even if you ARE still buying other stuff that might have its own ethical issues. It's still something.

hellohkb · April 2015

I'm vegetarian, FH is vegan. Eggs are vegetarian but not vegan. I won't go out of my way to eat eggs or dairy milk but if something has "hidden" dairy I'll eat it.

thisismynickname2 · April 2015

amelisha said:

tfmrserwin said:

lurkergirl said:

tfmrserwin said:
Also, now that I think about it, there are totally "vegetarian eggs" at the grocery store, which means the chickens themselves eat a vegetarian diet...right?
Hm, I never thought of that! LOL.

As someone who grew up on a farm and raised chickens, I can tell y'all that chickens will eat their own eggs. They are cannibals.
THIS. So disturbing. We have 3 chickens, and while they will not crack into their own eggs on their own, if one breaks before we get it, they dive right in. There is little more disgusting than watching a chicken eat their own raw eggs.

If I break an egg by accident, I will scramble it up, shell and all, and feed it to them. They love scrambled eggs.

As for the vegetarian-or-not debate, eggs are an animal byproduct, so I voted that they are vegetarian. However, I can see ethical vegetarians avoiding eggs because of factory farm conditions, but if that's the case, shouldn't they avoid milk too? And then wouldn't that make you pretty much vegan? I have never been a vegetarian, so maybe I just don't get it.
I agree with the bolded. If you are ethically against factory farms and such and how animals are treated then all animal products should be off the table. Unless they are okay with small farms who treat their animals very well, but just against large factory farms, but then if they are okay with small farms then why not be okay eating meat as long as they eat meat from local farmers who don't treat their animals poorly?

BBBOOOXXXEEESSS-------------------------------------

On the topic of ethical farming...how do vegans feel about eating produce where the human workers aren't treated ethically? Do vegans ensure the source of every single thing they consume?

-----BOXBOXBOXBOX------

I was wondering this too.

Some do. For others, no. But in general, ethical dietary choices are really a line in the sand, right? Whether you eat all meat, choose fish only, do lacto-ovo, are a strict vegan, only eat food you've raised yourself, whatever...it's always just a line you've drawn saying "I will go this far, but no farther," and how much of that is because of your conscience and how much is convenience (or even for health) is something you have to reconcile with your own mind.

It's such a first-world kind of luxury to even be able to be so choosy about what you think is right or wrong to eat, though, ultimately. I'm not saying it's wrong and I personally have a lot of discomfort over certain farming practices etc., but I am very, very aware that I'm extremely lucky to even be in a position where I can say "Well, I'm only going to buy my meat from these farmers and my vegetables from this greenhouse" or whatever, if I want to.

It's not just food either, though, when virtually everything we use comes from workers in factories all over the world, particularly in less developed countries. Sometimes they're being treated decently and making a decent wage, and sometimes they're being abused and are essentially slaves, and it is really, really difficult to avoid purchasing anything that isn't being made on the backs of exploited labourers in the developing world at some point or another.

It's frustrating for sure, but I don't think there's anything wrong with saying "Well, I can choose to not buy clothes made in Bangladesh/factory farmed meat/eggs from caged chickens/etc" and choosing that as something you won't support even if you ARE still buying other stuff that might have its own ethical issues. It's still something.

______________BOX____________________

amelisha here. When I was pescatarian, it was really due to factory farming issues. I ate meat on the very rare occasion I knew it came from a local farm / one that did not practice factory farming. So as you can imagine, that was so rare as to be almost never. It's time consuming to do such research.

The way I looked at it was like people look at "going green." You're never going to live fully green. You can try to recycle, try to walk or ride your bike more, or try just about anything to reduce your carbon footprint. I figured if I was one less person buying meat from a factory farm, it was something, at least. I was reducing my footprint but definitely not eliminating it.

theartistformerlyknownas · April 2015

But what about turtle eggs?

Eggs: Vegetarian or Not?

Re: Eggs: Vegetarian or Not?

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