Category Archives: Nature

A Question of Ethics: Dairy Farming

Milk: the “nutritious” white stuff that played a huge part of my childhood memories; from drinking vats of banana Nesquik, to turning it multi-coloured in my Lucky Charms cereal. We were advised to drink it daily, and were outraged when Margaret Thatcher “took it away from us” in the 80s.

According to This is Dairy Farming, British dairy farmers produce around 11 billion litres of milk annually; of which 5 billion litres is sold for drinking, and 6 billion litres is used for dairy products such as cheese and butter. We really do love the stuff!

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It’s been in my life for nearly 30 years and a key part of our nation’s diet; so – as a vegan – what’s my beef (pardon the pun) with milk now? Well, it wasn’t until I actually knew where milk came from, and how it’s made, that my taste for dairy soured altogether. I used to love creamy yogurts, and sprinkled cheese on almost everything. Now, not only do I avoid the stuff, I disagree with the ethics of the whole industry entirely.

I personally found my discoveries of the dairy industry rather emotional – so much so that I became vegan as soon as I found out. But in order to really explore the ethics, I want to let the facts speak for themselves; and allow others to share their thoughts and experiences of dairy farming. So here goes… Continue reading A Question of Ethics: Dairy Farming

Natural Flea Repellents for Pets 

I have two wonky cats that I love very much. Timid but loving Merlin is my 3 legged black wonder and Mango, the one-eyed ginger, is a sleepy ball of fluff.

But as much as I love cuddling up with them whenever I get the chance, this time of year they are prone to fleas and those blighters aren’t so fun! As Merlin has a skin allergy problem, I treat them both with stronghold every month, which usually does the trick. But often my soft furnishings get left out of the process! Continue reading Natural Flea Repellents for Pets 

Fast for Compassion

Today I am taking part in a fast for World Day for Farmed Animals (WDFA), a day dedicated to exposing the needless suffering and death of animals, raised and slaughtered for food. Every day, as millions of animals are transported to slaughterhouses across the world, they are denied food and water for several hours, up to days. So in protest of this, I am going just one day without food. Continue reading Fast for Compassion

Is Soy really the greener option?

Soy is fast becoming a healthier, greener option for meat and dairy; not just for vegetarians, vegans, and the dairy intolerant, but for the environmentally, ethically and health conscious too. As most coffee shops now offer soy milk, and soy based products – such as tofu and tempeh – become a standard option in many restaurants and cafes; it’s provided the world with a widely available alternative, in which to get your protein, calcium and B vitamins.

Over the last few months I have certainly become a bit of a soy fiend; and find I rarely go a day without some kind of soy based product. The convenience of tofu burgers, soy milkshakes and tempeh “bacon” rashers have largely made my transition to veganism almost seamless; in a world where I can lazily keep my eating habits if I want, simply by switching to this magic bean ingredient!

But this has got me thinking. Making these switches has been fantastic for avoiding animal products; but as the industry continues to grow, how green can soy really be? So I did a bit of digging, and opened a whole can of worms… Continue reading Is Soy really the greener option?

Understanding: Plastic Pollution

This month, thousands of people across the world are taking part in the fourth year of Australian born awareness campaign: Plastic Free July. Aiming to raise global awareness of just how much we reply on plastic, their challenge is simple: refuse single-use plastic for one whole month.

But simple in theory is not always simple in practice; and I have watched in awe over the last few weeks as people think creatively and resourcefully to dodge those pesky plastics! One of my favourite fellow bloggers, Westywrites, has been sharing her plastic free progress; from buying bag-less tea (yes, even they contain plastic!) and bottle-less shampoo, to sending twitter questions to the companies who produce plastic laden products. But as I’ve seen for many plastic free heroes, it’s a tough old slog and can feel like a never ending battle. Plastic is literally everywhere!

But this got me thinking. Just how critical has plastic pollution become, and what can be done to rectify the devastation it’s causing? I learnt a little about plastic bottles when I switched to my reusable water bottle, but I have a feeling its a little more complex than that. Cue some Lazy Green Girl research… Continue reading Understanding: Plastic Pollution

Review: Pure Chimp Cleanser

I’m excited. It’s Saturday morning, my cold has gone and this morning I received a parcel containing something free! Always a good start to the weekend…

The reason I hadn’t paid for the Pure Chimp Super Cleanser inside, was because I’d managed to break my spell of never winning anything in my life, and won a competition with The Vegan Society earlier this month. And of all the competitions I’ve entered in the past – from holidays and cars, to  electric powered cat hair removers – I feel justice has been served by winning what I may well now define as my new favourite cleanser!  Continue reading Review: Pure Chimp Cleanser

Understanding: Palm Oil

In an interview with the Ecologist last week, one of my favourite green cleaning brands, Ecover, revealed their use of algal oil (a synthetic biology oil) in replacement of palm oil. This sparked my curiosity. Why would a company who pride themselves on using “plant and mineral based ingredients…without those chemical nasties” switch from naturally grown Palm oil to a genetically modified organism (GMO) ingredient? We have all heard of the issues surrounding palm oil, but is it really that bad?

So I did a little bit of digging (lazy girl style) to get to the bottom of this natural, but controversial oil; and made a few discoveries of my own very close to home… Continue reading Understanding: Palm Oil

Lazy Indoor Gardening for the non green-fingered

When I started A lazy Girl Goes Green a few months back, I said that you really don’t need to be a green fingered, creative up-cycling goddess to live a greener lifestyle. There really are hundreds of ways to green up your life, which don’t involve sowing seeds, or sewing machines. I mainly said this because I am neither crafty or green fingered; therefore I whole-heartedly stick by that statement! That said…I did make a promise on World Environment Day to appreciate my surrounding; pledging to attempt a little indoor Cornish garden at home. I am a queen procrastinator, but I never break a promise… Continue reading Lazy Indoor Gardening for the non green-fingered