http://www.sfu.ca/~jfremont/cfg1.htmlCanada food guide. (US is similiar)
The important point, I think, is too eat the appropriate portions from each food group to get the right amount of calories, vitamin, nutrients, proteins, etc.
Now, if one is a pure vegan, it becomes a little more complicated to attain this balance, but most vegetarians I know are very salient in the ways of proper nutrition (eg. combining legumes to get all needed proteins).
There are other issues at work here though.
- Feeding capacity on a global scale (eg. the food/energy required to produce X number beef cattle could feed many more people than the X number beef cattle)
- Toxicity accumulation increases as you go up in the food chain.
I'm not a vegan, but I wouldn't hold anything against one. A balanced diet from all 4 food groups is my goal, and I really enjoy the food part of life. Taking away meat (and maybe even dairy) is something I don't think I'd do. I don't eat for merely living, I enjoy it too!
Let's not forget regular excercise, which I think is just as important...
