User:Kirstiehenry123/sandbox

Article Evaluation
Evaluating "Great Ape Personhood", I found the article to be unbiased and neutral. This article is about the view that Apes should be identified as higher beings and given rights higher than other animals based on their intellectuality. So maybe there is a little bit of bias because technically there are no views listed to go against this idea. For why they weren't given their rights in the first place. I would say those are the "under presented ideas" that are missing in this article. Why were there people opposing these rights in the first place? What made people want to change to set these standards?

This article has numerous citings that all seem to be present and accurate. As well as plenty of links throughout the article to help reference. But even with the amount of reference and citations there seems to be only minimal information. Under the Talk page for this article there are tons of back and forth on opinion based topics. It seems this article is a tough one to have only facts on as a lot of people have different views on if this movement is based off facts or opinion. This article is rated as a class C and is involved in a Wiki project.

Article Selection
"Vegetarianism and Wine", about different finings that are used to filter wine. The finings are primarily animal based products such as gelatin & blood. It's lacking citations throughout the entire article- 6 paragraphs with only 2 total citations. The article states only brief info on non-vegan alternatives that can be used to filter wine, I feel like that could be a useful chunk of the article. As well as including the finings that are most commonly used, what they are derived from, how the fining process works. I think adding history of using animal based products to filter wine would be helpful. Also including list of popular wines that are not vegetarian as well as veg-friendly wines. With a quick google I found articles form new sources as well articles on a nutrition website w/ articles written by a registered nutritionist.

"Finings" I just strolled across when I was trying to find more info on the finings in wines. I was curious if animal-based finings were found in any other products. and they are! some beers use gelatin and isinglass. This article was a little more filled out than the first article more specified on Wine. But was still lacking a lot of citations. There was about 8 paragraphs w/ only 3 citations. This article, like the first one, is missing any history regarding finings and the production process. It says what they are used for, but not where they are derived from. I would be curious to look into an negative impacts from using these products in our drinks- like using blood to filter out particles....? ew. (I'll leave the bias out of my article, promise) I found articles from reliable sources such as a website ran by Australian Wine Research Institute where I found a lot of info on the types of fining agents used for wine. And I found more great info but this time on the two main types of fining agents that are used in beer. I also learned on that page that using fining agents in beer really isn't necessary and it rarely happens.

"John A McDougall" I found when continuing on the "animal-based product"s topic. He is an activist for a plant-based diet and is famous for his many success stories (from what I previously have learned about him, anyways). But none of the info I have heard was in this article. I'd be curious to see why. I tried googling to see what facts I could find on Dr. John McDougall but all I could find really was articles on his own website.. which really isn't considered reliable right? There's also info on the website for Forks Over Knives which is a popular documentary, but again, that info is contributed by John McDougall. Would success stories shared by other physicians about John McDougall on their own website or Forums be considered reliable? When reviewing the article I found a small patch of opinions on his nutritional programs where the author quotes someone as saying the diet was "bland" and "boring". But if the author is quoting that argument- shouldn't they also find relevance on the other side of the argument to portray in the article?

Vegetarianism and Wine
The production of wine is a delicate process that includes a range of factors to obtain the desired outcome. One step in the production of wine, most of the time, includes a process called fining (or "clarifying"). The fining process requires a fining agent to be suspended into the vat where it will later be filtered out of the wine. Fining agents are typically either animal, carbon or clay-based products and are used to gather proteins or sediment within the wine to adjust impurities such as color, haziness, taste and/ or smell. Animal-based fining agents can include Gelatin, Isinglass, Egg whites, and Casein. Different agents will be used based on what the desired outcome of the wine is.

The chosen clarifying agent is added to the top of the vat. As it sinks down, the particles adhere to the agent, and coagulate at the bottom of the vat. The fining agent and the gathered proteins then are removed either by filtering or through a settling process. Although the animal proteins are filtered out after the wine has been clarified, the use of animal products goes against a vegan and vegetarian diet.

A Vegetarian diet can be generalized into 3 different types: Lacto Vegetarianism, Ovo Vegetarianism, and Lacto-ovo Vegetarianism. A Lacto Vegetarian diet restricts the consumption of animal flesh and eggs in the diet, but allows the consumption of dairy products. Ovo Vegetarianism is similar but allows egg rather than dairy. And also restricts from the consumption of animal flesh. Lacto-ovo Vegetarianism excludes animal flesh but allows both egg and dairy products in the diet. Veganism is very similar to the Vegetarian diets but, this diet excludes the consumption of all meat, dairy and egg products.

Generally, as vegetarians and vegans seek to minimize animal exploitation wherever feasible, wine filtered with animal products such as isinglass or gelatin would not be suitable for a Vegetarian diet. And similarly, the use of any animal products or bi-products in the fining process would not be suitable for a Vegan diet.

Fining Agents
The most common animal product used for fining is Gelatin due to its potency and effectiveness. It takes only one ounce of Gelatin to clarify 1,000 gallons of wine. Gelatin is made from the boiling of animal parts. Wine specifically responds best to Type A Gelatin, which is derived from the boiling of pigs skin. Gelatin is used in both white and red wines to fix haze/ color and to adjust the flavor or bitterness of the wine. Isinglass is a form of gelatin derived from fish bladders. It is primarily used to clear white wines. Gelatin and Isinglass both need to be used sparingly to prevent residual traces remaining in the wine due to their potency. Casein is the main protein found in cows milk. It makes up 80% of the proteins and is is derived by first skimming milk of its fat, then a process of precipitation to separate remaining particles of the milk and in the end be left with the Casein protein. Casein protein is used in both red and white wines to treat and prevent oxidation. Lastly, of the most used animal-based fining agents, is Egg Albumen (egg whites), which is most commonly used in the clarification of red wines to remove excess tannins.

Bull's blood is also used in some Mediterranean countries but (as a legacy of BSE (mad cow disease)) is not allowed in the U.S. or the European Union.

As an alternative to animal products, carbon, bentonite ( a clay mineral), and PVPP are the most common to be used to clarify wine. Some vintners also let the wine's sediments settle naturally, a time-consuming process.

Labeling requirements
It is not required for products to disclose whether they are vegan/ vegetarian or not. Even products that choose to label their products with titles, are not required to show proof that they are actually free of animal biproducts, animal testing, or any form of animal exploitation. In the United States, it is not required that alcohol labels disclose even major allergens. There was a proposal submitted by the Tax and Trade Bureau in 2006 to mandate the labeling of major allergens such as milk, eggs, and fish included in the production of wine (whether it is filtered out or not).

in 2011, Dr. Emilia Vassilopoulou published a study conducted by herself and her colleagues in an attempt to determine if allergens (milk, egg, and fish products used as fining agents) should be labeled on the packaging of the product. Their goal was to find, in a controlled environment, if people with certain allergens would have reactions after drinking wine that had been fined with said allergen. The findings showed no reactions through in-vitro methods, but did have positive skin pricks tests in patients who consumed/ were allergic to wines fined with milk, fish, and eggs. The findings were so minimal, that they continued to agree the labeling is not necessary. Although, this does prove that their still are particles of these animal proteins leftover in the wine.

In Australia, winemakers are required to list the use of potential allergens such as casein and albumin on the label but are not obliged to list the use of other non-vegan fining agents such as gelatin or isinglass. Some wine makers will boast on the wine label that their wine is unfiltered, because some wine connoisseurs prefer wine to be unfiltered.

How to Find Vegan Wine
It is surprisingly not very difficult to find Vegan or Vegetarian wine. Although most wines will not have on their label whether they are suitable for vegetarian or vegan diets. If a company does decide to label their wines as Vegan or Vegetarian, they are not currently required to show any proof that this is the case.

http://www.barnivore.com/wine has an extensive list of wines with specific information on the types of clarifying agents used during the production of their wines and which wines are suitable for vegetarian or vegan diets.

https://www.bevveg.com/ is a website put together by the law firm BevVeg.They are on a mission to improve the Vegan standard by which beverages are labeled. They have developed a certification process for companies to get "Vegan Certified". This way, they are able to guarantee the consumer the authenticity of their vegan claim. Their website includes a search engine where you can search for wines to see if they are claimed to be vegan, certified vegan, or not vegan at all.