For World Vegan Month, The Vegan Review is sharing the stories of vegans from 30 countries around the world. Here’s one from Sweden.
Moa Murderess, 26, is a vegan YouTuber from Sweden.
She went vegan in 2015.
Why did you go vegan?
I stopped eating meat six years ago after I watched a video of newborn chickens being ground up alive. After that, I started to do research about the animal industry and realised how messed up it is and how billions of animals suffer each day.
What was the biggest challenge when you transitioned?
The biggest challenge was to learn which ingredients were not vegan. The E numbers were the hardest.
What was the reaction of your loved ones when you went plant-based? How did they adapt?
No one really supported me in the beginning. I was kind of ridiculed and was always told: “Don’t be such a baby and eat some meat.” But after a while, people close to me accepted my choices and now, a few years later, many of them even eat vegan sometimes.
Who are your influences?
I follow many vegan Instagram accounts that keep me inspired to speak up more about this. I’m also a member of a few vegan Facebook groups where we discuss different topics.
What’s your favourite thing to cook now? Have you tried to veganise a local traditional dish?
Oh, I have been veganising everything I ate before. I eat exactly the same food as I did before I went vegan. The only difference is that my food doesn’t contain dead and tortured animals.
What vegan product do you wish your country had available?
In Sweden, we literally have almost everything. The only things I miss are a few sauces and funnier flavours of ice cream.
How accessible and affordable are vegan products in your country?
If you live in the city, you can find everything. There are so many new vegan products that I don’t even have time to try them all. And of course, some vegan products are more expensive than non-vegan products. But that’s all because of demand. The more people who buy vegan, the cheaper it will be.
What’s your favourite spot for vegan food in your city?
Hmmm, it’s hard to just choose one. I like the restaurants Greasy Spoon, Hermans, Bastard Burgers and many more. We also have a supermarket in Sweden that only sells vegan products. It’s called Goodstore.
What is the one city you’d like to visit as a vegan?
I’ve heard that Berlin is really good for vegan food and has many vegan restaurants. I’ve actually been there once before, but back then I wasn’t vegan.
What’s the biggest roadblock to veganism in your country?
Farmers and meat-eaters. They do everything to try to stop veganism. And also the EU recently voted that vegan alternatives to cow’s milk should not be called milk. The packaging must also not resemble cow’s milk packaging. It will also be forbidden to write that a vegan product is milk-free and now, vegan products can’t label how climate-smart they are. And that’s fucked up.
