Any Hints for a new Vegetarian?

[Dave]

The biggest thing is to eat a varied diet. It's really easy to get into a rut and only eat the same things. Try a new ingredient every week.

If you do things right, you won't need any vitamin supplements. It's best to get all your nutrients as food rather than pills. But that can be easier said than done-- I still take a B-12 supplement as I don't eat nutritional yeast as often as I should.

Plenty of great advice in the thread so far though.

 

[Mehm]

All that cage free refers to is them having a door to the outside that is within view and open for at least some time during the day-- this door is not opened until the hens are 5 weeks of age and they are slaughtered a mere two weeks later.

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It's a lot better than a battery cage...which isn't saying much. Point taken.

 

[Pingu]

According to Wikipedia "the U.S. Department of Agriculture has no standards and allows egg producers to freely label any egg as a free range egg"
I'm pretty sure that where I am, in the UK, the hens are happy and allowed to cluck around

 

[Dave]

If you want good and ethical eggs, head to your farmer's market and look for SPCA (or your local equivalent) 'Certified Cruelty Free' providers. Then verify with your local SPCA to make sure that they're legit and up to date.

Honestly, farmer's markets are the bees knees in general, but especially for eggs. Granted, I don't eat eggs too often anymore, but I won't even look at supermarket eggs. If you're really lucky (like my parents), try to get to know a hobby farmer that has a few chickens and check out their setup for yourself. It might not be the most dependable supply depending on how many hens they have, but you can make sure this way to get eggs from hens that are treated just how you like.

 

[Mehm]

Pingu: I belive the designation "Cage Free" is what ensures a cage free environment. The stacks of cages are replaced by an enormous warehouse with "free ranging" chickens.

Great suggestions Dave, I'm going to check that out directly.