Howard F. Lyman | |
|---|---|
 Lyman speaking at the Intersectional Justice Conference, March 2016 | |
| Born | Howard Fenn Lyman[1] (1938-09-17)September 17, 1938 (age 87)[2] |
| Education | Montana State University (B.S. in general agriculture, 1961) |
| Occupation(s) | Activist, farmer, writer, lecturer |
| Spouse | Willow Jeanne Lyman |
| Awards | Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award (1997); Vegetarian Hall of Fame, (2002) |
| Website | madcowboy.com |
Howard F. Lyman (born September 17, 1938[3], inGreat Falls, Montana) is an American farmer andanimal rights activist known for promotingvegan nutrition andorganic farming. In 1997 he was awarded the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award for his leadership in the animal rights movement.[4]
Lyman was raised as a fourth generation rancher on a farm that produced dairy and meat commodities. He attendedMontana State University and graduated with a B.S. degree in general agriculture in 1961. Upon graduation, he spent two years in theUnited States Army before returning to work on the farm.
From 1963 to 1983 he was actively engaged in animal and grain production. The areas in which he was involved were dairy, pork, registered Hereford, chicken, range cattle, feedlot beef production, veal, grain, silage, and hay production.
In 1979 Lyman was diagnosed with atumor in his spine. Faced with the prospect ofparalysis, he vowed to return to non-chemical means of farming if he beat thecancer. He survived an operation to remove the tumor and set out to transform his land into an organic farm. He also ran for political office, but lost his first election. He then became alobbyist, and moved toWashington, D.C.
Circa 1990, again facing health concerns, he became avegetarian and found his health improved. In 1989 Lyman had begun to investigateMad Cow disease, which was just becoming an issue in theUK. He eventually became avegan.
In April 1996 Lyman came to national attention during an appearance onThe Oprah Winfrey Show. Lyman's remarks on the show led to Winfrey renouncinghamburgers. TheNational Cattlemen's Beef Association sued Lyman and Winfrey. Both were found not liable in 1998.[5] While the CDC and USDA maintained that Mad Cow Disease could not occur in the US, the government of Japan did not agree.[6]
He has co-authored the bookMad Cowboy (1998) and co-authoredNo More Bull (2005) and became president ofEarthSave. Leaving that post, he became president of "Voice for a Viable Future".[7]
Lyman wrote the foreword to Erik Marcus's bookVegan: The New Ethics of Eating (1998), and the 1st vegan pizza cookbook: Mark Sutton'sHeart Healthy Pizza[8]
Lyman also features inFranny Armstrong's 2005 documentaryMcLibel, inMarianne Thieme's 2007 documentaryMeat The Truth, and inKip Andersen andKeegan Kuhn's 2014 documentaryCowspiracy.
He has produced four DVDs (A Mad Cowboy Lecture,Earth Talk: 2001,Mad Cowboy: The Documentary, andA Mad Cowboy Lecture: 2007).
Lyman was awarded the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award inSherborn, Massachusetts in 1997 for his leadership in the animal rights movement.[4] His story was featured in Tribe of Heart's 2009 documentaryPeaceable Kingdom: The Journey Home. He was also featured on the 2011 documentaryVegucated.
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