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Are Bivalves (Clams, Oysters, Scallops, Mussels) Vegan?

Aug 11, 2016
2 min read

Recently, I convinced my dad to try going mostly vegetarian! Woo Hoo! However, he was concerned at first because his favorite food is fried clams. After doing some research, I discovered that some people consider clams among other bivalves to be vegan, despite technically being an animal.

Basically, we aren't sure if bivalves feel pain or not. We know other animals (cows, pigs, chicken, fish, etc.) feel pain so vegans feel confident in saying that it is unethical to kill and eat them. However, if they don't feel anything, what's the harm? Some may argue that they aren't ours to take in the first place. And others feel it's not worth the risk in case they feel pain to put them through that potential torture.

Not to mention that bivalves are just not that healthy. For example, in regard to mussels, Dr. Michael T. Murray, ND, writes, "The reason mollusks are particularly risky is that they live by filtering 15 to 20 gallons of water per day. If the water they inhabit is polluted, they end up concentrating any pathogen, such as the coliform bacteria....from untreated sewage." Ew! Any health benefit or nutrient you can find in bivalves can be found in vegan, plant based foods (if you are interested in a dissection of that, leave a comment and let me know!). It does depend on the bivalve and how its prepared, but fried clams, for example, are not a healthy part of a plant based diet.

However, if, like my dad, you can't stay away from the good ol' bivalves, you should know that there is such a thing as an ostro-vegan/ostro-vegetarian, which is a vegan or vegetarian who consumes bivalves. Definitely an option for you to have the occasional indulgence (and because, just because you can't do everything doesn't mean you should do nothing!).