As a vegan for almost 40 years, I agree with much of what Dean Weston says about animal welfare (Letters, December 30). But as a former civil engineer, I can't ignore the huge category errors in his claim that the government's animal welfare strategy “treats animal suffering the same way Victorian engineers treated cholera. Add a valve here, a filter there, and never question the sewer itself.”
Victorian engineers did not “cure” cholera, but they may have been more effective than physicians in combating the disease. They reduced the prevalence of cholera precisely by building adequate sanitation facilities. “The sewer itself” was the solution, not the problem.
Weston says, “If animals matter, stop eating them.” This is a cry from the heart (with which I agree), not a policy for meaningful change. Victorian engineers can inspire us to make structural changes to animal welfare that will actually make a difference.
The Rev. Canon Dr. Rob Kelsey
Norham, Northumberland
We had fried chicken one Sunday when my son was six and my daughter was three. He, already a vegetarian then, looked at her plate and said: “How can you eat animals?” “I don’t eat animals,” she replied. “I eat meat.” He then asked, “Where do you think the meat comes from?” She replied: “At Marks and Spencer – bought with my dad.” My son, now in his 40s, is still a vegetarian, and my daughter is still a meat eater. Perhaps if young children were more acutely aware of how animals end up on their plates, many would choose not to eat them.
Jennifer Jenkins
London
Could 2026 be the year we start catering to cool vegans and vegetarians? As much as I would like to give up meat, my digestive system has a very strong objection to eating anything containing chili or mustard. I can't be the only person who would like to see foods flavored with other herbs and spices beyond the constant offerings of vegetarian curries and chilli dishes. Please, please, take care of the cool vegetarians.
Sheila Cole
Evesham, Worcestershire
