Gray Matter: Supply and Demand
I haven’t called something a Gray Matter for a while, though I’ve had plenty of them. Here’s another. Dairy Queen now has a vegan treat. Like the BK Veggie (let’s assume it’s vegan–I have no idea and have read conflicting reports), it helps its manufacturer diversify its offerings. And while we might see the benefit for us (if you’re in bind you can . . . eat some non-ice cream for lunch?), look at the benefit for the manufacturer: another stream of income. They get to appeal to nearly every type of consumer in the marketplace. They get to rake in everyone’s consumer dollars, vegans included. You support institutionalized use of animals by buying a BK Veggie, or even french fries (and if you’re going to do that, you may as well go to McDonald’s, as Burger King’s french fries, as I recall, are not very tasty).
I understand that the more vegan items we buy, the more will be made (theoretically), thus making it easier to live a mainstream life (re: life of convenience). But wouldn’t it be a better investment to buy from companies who make more vegan than non-vegan products? Some say: Yeah, well, we don’t have to convert them. We don’t have to make a statement to them. But that’s like penalizing them for having the right idea to begin with.
Because we must consider this Gray Matter every day, every time we have to buy something, and it’s not going away any time soon, what trumps what? Is it more important to buy vegan products–no matter who is selling them–to send a message of demand? And therefore is it especially important to buy vegan products from places that don’t ordinarily sell vegan products to let them know that you support their decision? Or, should we be trying as hard as we can to patronize companies that cater to us, as a vote of support and in the hope that if we all vote for them, they might someday become mainstream (and then get bought by a multinational, putting us back where we started, but we don’t have to look that far ahead)? Is it more important to try to influence through your investment/consumer dollars, or to support those who already have the right idea?
this assumes that companies like bk and dq who put out a vegan product do have the 'right' idea. it is certainly a 'green' idea (and i don't mean environmentally), but it is doubtful whether it is the right idea.
yet another reason to not buy vegan products from companies like them . . .
I support the vegan businesses when I can. It just makes the most sense to me. The fact that more of these businesses seem to be opening fairly often and most of the old ones are not closing makes me think that the existence of this growing niche market puts its own pressure on the mainstream stores to carry the vegan products. But I want to support the vegan businesses because I care whether they stick around, and not so much the mainstream places. There are enough other people who will pick up the vegan items from the mainstream stores that I don't need to worry about it.
So I guess I think that it is most important to support vegan businesses, but I also think my support of the vegan businesses influences those other companies anyway.
I could be wrong. I'm not much of a business person.
The BK Veggie burger is not vegan. Burger King itself makes a point of clarifying this in its ingredient list online (it even features "This is NOT a vegan product" in italics):
http://www.bk.com/Nutrition/PDFs/ingredients.pdf
BK VEGGIE® BURGER
Vegetables (Mushrooms, Water Chestnuts, Onions, Carrots, Green Bell Peppers, Red Bell Peppers, Black Olives), Textured Vegetable Protein (Soy Protein Concentrate, Wheat Gluten, Water for Hydration), Egg Whites, Cooked Brown Rice (Water, Brown Rice), Rolled Oats, Corn Oil, Calcium Caseinate, Soy Sauce (Water, Soybeans, Salt, Wheat), Onion Powder, Corn Starch, Salt, Hydrolyzed Corn, Soy, and Wheat Protein, Yeast Extract, Natural Flavors from non-meat sources, Sugar, Soy Protein Isolate, Spices, Garlic Powder, Dextrose, Jalapeño Pepper Powder, Celery Extract. Contains: Soy, Wheat, Milk and Egg. This is NOT a vegan product. The patty is cooked in the microwave.
Just goes to show you how much I know about Burger King and how much I shop there. (Never.) You can substitute other examples, and the idea holds: like the Dairy Queen item (and by the way I've never been to a Dairy Queen in my life, and the item wasn't on their website, which I thought was odd.)