Mitsuru Kakimoto D.D. Sc., Ph.D., M.S.A.

IVU Council Member (1996-2002 ; 2004-06)
IVU Patron

I was born 1945 and am 55 years old now. I am president of the Japan Vegetarian Society, and vice-president and professor at Osaka Shin-ai College, Japan. In 1996, I was elected as a member of the IVU Council at the World Vegetarian Congress in the U.S.A. In 1999, he was reelected at the World Vegetarian Congress in Chiang Mai, Thailand. I am now designated as the 'Research Co-ordinator' on behalf of the International Council. I have been studying vegetarians from a viewpoint of medical science and dietetics, and devote myself to promoting vegetarianism in Japan. I have written theses in Jap. J. Nutr. and other journals. I am the author of "Introduction of Healthy Vegetarian," published in Japan for Japanese readers.

In 1988, I went to the U.S.A to attend the IFHE Congress. Then I visited Loma Linda University and had an opportunity to get to know many researchers including Prof. Register. That led me to become a vegetarian. I live with my wife and two sons. I play tennis and hike in the mountain for fun. Actually I go on a hike with my wife and sons. We love nature. My wife is a grade school teacher. My firstborn son is an office worker. And my second son studied in the U.S.A. for one year and is now studying here in Japan to become a veterinarian. Living in a vegetarian way is good to us and the world we live in. My dream is to work with vegetarians around the world to promote vegetarianism.

Source

Sir Paul Mcartney, Activist of Animal Rights

Sir Paul Mcartney has been an animal rights activist (as well as strict vegetarian) for over thirty years. Says Sir Paul, "We can't go on cramming creatures into battery cages, broiler sheds, turkey sheds and so on. Where's the compassion?... It's a real chicken with a face and a heart... When I see bacon, I see a pig, I see a little friend, and that's why I can't eat it. Simple as that. I love everything PETA does, especially the title. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals-I don't see how anyone could have a problem with that." Source

Simon Cowell, in Anti-Fur Campaigns

Simon Cowell of "American Idol" fame is currently in anti-fur campaigns in both the US and the UK. Cowell educates consumers to know that "each fur coat, collar, or cuff means that animals have been cruelly trapped, drowned, or beaten to death in the wild or gassed, strangled, or electrocuted on fur farms." Source