Howard Lyman

Howard F. Lyman (born September 18, 1938, in Great Falls, Montana) is an American farmer and animal rights activist known for promoting vegan nutrition and organic farming. In 1997 he was awarded the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award for his leadership in the animal rights movement. Lyman was raised as a fourth generation rancher on a farm that produced dairy and meat commodities. He attended Montana State University and graduated with a B.S. degree in general agriculture in 1961. Upon graduation, he spent two years in the United 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 a tumor in his spine. Faced with the prospect of paralysis, he vowed to return to non-chemical means of farming if he beat the cancer. 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 a lobbyist, and moved to Washington, D.C.

Circa 1990, again facing health concerns, he became a vegetarian and found his health improved. In 1989 Lyman had begun to investigate Mad Cow disease, which was just becoming an issue in the UK. He eventually became a vegan.