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but being vegan on a day to day basis means checking what is in every little thing you eat or drink, I mean literally checking labels and searching ingredients

That's true in the sense that you have to do it when you encounter something new, but once you become familiar with products, you just know what is safe and what isn't after a while. I wouldn't say going to the grocery store is much more difficult for me than an omnivorous person because I've been vegan/vegetarian for about a decade now and I've just got a mental list of many products I know are appropriate for me to eat. Yes I do still have to check labels when I'm getting something new (and have to stay aware of when recipes get updated) but it's not as arduous as people make it out to be, IMO.

And that's just buying processed food. If you're cooking from scratch it's pretty easy to know what's going into your food and select plant-based protein sources like tofu, beans, seitan etc.

In addition to your diet/lifestyle, I'd say you can be a force for good in the world in terms of animal welfare by just trying to consume less, have a smaller carbon footprint, and do what you can to support wildlife. Something I'm passionate about myself is converting my lawn to prairie in order to foster local wildlife. You could also volunteer your time/money towards supporting habitat restoration projects or something like that.