“A vegan zoo has all kinds of advantages over the animal-based kind”, explains General Manager, Josh Patterson. “The smell is much less pungent, it throws up fewer ethical issues and still offers the same type of great experience you can get from a real zoo. You really won’t notice the difference!”
The reactions from visitors on opening day has been overwhelmingly positive. Lydia Szabo from Melbourne is enthralled with the banana enclosure, “Instead of monkeys, there are bananas spread around the floor,” she recounts, “and for me, as a vegan, it is fascinating to see natural banana behaviour. The best part is that no animals have to suffer to create this experience.”
These cute bananas are not all there is to see. The zoo boasts the Pacific region’s first specialised tofu enclosure, an open-air seitan area, a falafel tank filled with sesame oil and a vegetable house measuring 2,000 m² where visitors are invited to watch the plants being watered twice a day.
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| Two seitan steaks get cosy under a rosemary branch in their open-air enclosure |
Overall, the General Manager is happy with how the first day went. “If we continue in this vein then we will soon be able to open branches in other cities. I’ve been toying with the idea of a vegan petting zoo for a long time. Children would be able to cuddle and stroke coconuts, parsley and peaches as much as they like, as well as other attractions.”
up, dan, ssi; picture below: Shutterstock
Read the German version HERE.
