The Vegan Spring 2009

TOP CHEFS COMPETE IN OUR VEGAN CATERING CHALLENGE: SEE THEIR DELICIOUS GOURMET RECIPES INSIDE ISSN 0307−4811 01

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Large numbers of people watched the new series of Survivors on BBC1 recently.

A production of this kind gets people worried about the prospect of a deadly virus.

This new found concern helps us to get the message across that the risk of large scale pandemics can be reduced if we simply stop farming animals for meat, eggs and milk. Farmed animals outnumber humans four to one and so the over-use of antibiotics in non-human animals is likely to lead to antibiotic resistant superbugs much more quickly than the over-use of antibiotics in humans. According to a report by the Soil Association, in the Netherlands 21% of chicken, 20% of pork and 3% of beef is infected with MRSA. This is a massive potential threat to human and non-human animal health and yet it is largely ignored. While this subject is on people’s minds why not take the opportunity to speak out about the link between ‘livestock’ farming and superbugs?

On a more positive note, our Vegan Catering Challenge (VCC) succeeded in raising the profile of vegan food to mainstream audiences. Six chefs competed for first, second and third prize at the prestigious Tante Marie cookery school, leading to media coverage in The University Caterer magazine and on the website of Restaurant magazine. Please read all about it on pages 22-27. Recipes from the VCC will appear in the next few editions of The Vegan.

With all good wishes for the new year ahead.

Rosamund Raha Editor

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Donald Watson House

Editor Rosamund Raha Design www.doughnutdesign.co.uk Student page Design Dave Shortland Front cover photo © flavourphotos.com Printed on Recycled paper

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PEARL PRODUCTION

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MALLOW AS AN EGG SUBSTITUTE

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MEGAN THE VEGAN

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OUT AND ABOUT NEWS AND INFORMATION

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GOURMET VEGAN FOOD: OUR VEGAN CATERING CHALLENGE VEGANS ANONYMOUS: OUR STUDENT PAGE VEGANS ROCK!

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We also have three new Vegan Society Trustees, Alex Claridge (student and very active campaigner), Dr Matthew Cole (very brainy academic) and Dr Philip Bickley (GP). I am sure you will join us in welcoming them on board.

Local rate 0845 45 88244

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We sadly say goodbye to three staff Clare, Paul and Colm who are moving on to other projects. They have all made a valuable contribution to the work of the Vegan Society and we will miss them. We wish them well in their new adventures.

The Vegan Society

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WINTER 2008 HIGHLIGHTS HIGHLIGHTS/FROM THE CEO LOCAL NEWS INTERNATIONAL NEWS HAVE YOU GOT ANYTHING VEGAN? CAMPAIGN TO CONSERVE THE GARDENS OF ENGLAND SHOPAROUND

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NUTRITION GUIDELINES/POSTBAG YOUTH PAGE MEAT-EATERS ON BICYCLES VERSUS VEGANS IN SUVS REVIEWS GROW VEGAN EVENTS LOCAL CONTACTS LIST STAFF AND COUNCIL LISTINGS CLASSIFIEDS

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CROSSWORDS

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Fax. 0121 523 1749

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e-mail: info@vegansociety.com

© The Vegan Society Registered Charity no. 279228 Company Registration no. 1468880 The views expressed in The Vegan do not necessarily reflect those of the Editor or of the Vegan Society Council.

Nothing printed should be construed to be Vegan Society policy unless so stated. The Society accepts no liability for any matter in the magazine. The acceptance of advertisements (including inserts) does not imply endorsement.

The inclusion of product information should not be construed as constituting official Vegan Society approval for the product, its intended use, or its manufacturer/distributor. Contributions intended for publication are welcomed, but unsolicited materials will not be returned unless accompanied by a SAE. Contributions will usually be edited.

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VEGAN SOCIETY WINTER 2008 HIGHLIGHTS HOSPITALS AND CARE HOMES We’ve been busy contacting care homes and hospitals to offer support and information about catering for vegans; generally the response has been very positive and we have sent out hundreds of our Vegan Catering Guide for Hospitals and Care Homes. We are starting to work on getting guidelines in place in these establishments. If you have experienced vegan food in a hospital or care home please contact us (if you haven’t already) as we are currently looking for more testimonials: info@vegansociety.com We have been in touch with food providers to the NHS and one in particular is keen to liaise with us regarding their vegan dishes. We are currently preparing an advisory report for them.

SCHOOL CONTRACT CATERERS The Development Chef at Holroyd Howe contract caterer is working with schools and enthusiastically promoting Vegan Catering for All to their chefs and catering managers. They are distributing copies of our booklets to all their schools.

We understand that the schools are incorporating our ideas into their menus, for example creating vegan options by replacing cheese with pulses in existing vegetarian options.

DOUBLE PAGE FEATURE IN THE BIRMINGHAM MAIL Pregnant Vegan Society Finance Officer Fiona Sylva was featured in the Birmingham Mail on 2 December; they gave her a full colour double page spread entitled ‘Mum-to-be defies vegan stereotype.’ Fiona took the opportunity to talk about how she is planning to bring her child up vegan.

HOUR LONG RADIO FEATURE Following widely publicised pro-fur-wearing comments from Nigella Lawson on BBC 1 The One Show, BBC Radio Northamptonshire did an hour-long feature examining the ethics of fur, including separate interviews with representatives from The Vegan Society, Animal Aid and PETA. Our Media Officer, Amanda Baker spoke almost uninterrupted for several minutes about our abolitionist position and extending compassion to all animals.

CAT MAGAZINE A discussion between Vegan Society Chief Executive Nigel Winter and Simon Fairlie will appear in the spring Clean Slate magazine (The Centre for Alternative Technology magazine).

UNIVERSITY CATERER MAGAZINE A feature about our Vegan Catering Challenge will appear in University Caterer magazine.

VEGAN SOCIETY TRUSTEES HAVE BEEN BUSY… Patricia Tricker gave a talk on the work of the Society at the Skillshare day in Nottingham, an event organized by fellow Vegan Society Trustee Alex Claridge.

Matthew Cole had an article published in the last issue of Growing Green International, a joint interview (with Karen Morgan) in the Brazilian vegetarian magazine Revista dos Vegetarianos and a write up of Matthew and Karen’s Dresden World Veg Congress paper in the German animal rights magazine Tierbefreiung.

Our Health and Nutrition spokesperson Stephen Walsh had an interesting exchange with a butcher on BBC Leeds just before Christmas - the butcher came off worse!

VEGAN PLEDGE E-BULLETIN The Vegan Pledge media statement was circulated on 12 December 2008 and appeared on many websites including: www.food4media.com.

We have had a steady stream of pledge and mentor requests since then.

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We had a lot of positive feedback about our end of year e-bulletin which summarised our main achievements over the year. It is amazing to see how much we’ve done!

CHALLENGE YOUR LOCAL RESTAURANTS! The Vegan Catering for All project is provoking renewed interest from caterers in this difficult economic climate. Cash-strapped chefs urgently need to reach new customers - like vegans!

We need YOU to make the most of this opportunity to bring vegan food into the mainstream! You are perfectly placed to encourage your local restaurants to develop their vegan catering skills.

Why not get together one or two friends, and some copies of The Vegan Society booklet Vegan Catering for All, and challenge a restaurant to produce good new vegan options?

GROWING OUR FUTURE FOOD CONFERENCE Our Chief Executive Nigel Winter attended the Growing Our Future Food conference which was also attended by about 150

people including Sir Don Curry, Baroness Shephard, Lord Iveagh and Susanna May, Deputy Director, Food and Farming Group at Defra. There were also farmers, academics, The NFU, Natural England and The RSPB. Most of the speakers had a good awareness of the environmental impact of meat and dairy but sadly most people seemed to think that GM technology and other scientific advancements would solve many of the problems. This was a great networking opportunity for Nigel.

GLASGOW STILL LIGHTING THE WAY The chef at Glasgow University has reported that 10% of the food they sell in their canteen is vegan and all of their soups are vegan.

EVENTS SPONSORED BY THE VEGAN SOCIETY IN 2008 The Bristol Vegan Fayre The London Vegan Festival The Manchester Vegan Fair The East Midlands Vegan Fair The West Midlands Vegan Fair

FROM THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE Nigel Winter

Many restaurants are struggling in the current economic climate. If they are looking for extra customers this could be a good time to explain to them how they can attract new customers by offering good quality vegan options. Why not call in at a quiet time and give them a copy of our Vegan Catering for All booklet? Some vegan dishes may even enable them to reduce their ingredient costs which I am sure will be very welcome. Our Information Department will be pleased to offer advice and information to caterers on adapting recipes, sourcing ingredients and promoting meals to hungry new customers.

I was very pleased with the response I received when I gave a talk to 45 catering students at University College Birmingham.

I explained how easy it is to adapt familiar dishes to meet vegan requirements and the number of intelligent questions showed that they were really thinking about the issues. Once chefs realise how creative they can be with vegan ingredients I am sure more of them will follow in the footsteps of acclaimed raw food vegan chef Chad Sarno. To help them achieve this we have been working with the Cordon Vert Cookery School to develop a new course for professional chefs. We will keep you updated on when the new course will start. I am looking forward to quality vegan food in every high street!

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It was good to see so many of you at the AGM in York. Angie Wright gets the (metaphorical) prize for having travelled the furthest – all the way from Sussex. (Sorry George – Trustees don’t count!) Members who went afterwards to El Piano, York’s vegan restaurant, had a very enjoyable evening.

We welcome the arrival of three very able and active new Council members. I am particularly pleased that Alex will be assisting with student and university groups and other aspects of the National Contacts’ Coordinator role.

Lesley Dove, who runs the Vegetarian and Vegan Families Group, is planning a special weekend afternoon event in central London for vegan and vegetarian parents. There will be speakers and a food demonstration and of course all food will be vegan. If you’d like details as soon as they are available please contact Lesley (see under Groups on p.44).

We have four new Local Contacts since the last issue of the magazine (Annette in Diss, Allan in Bath, Liz in Stoke on Trent and Anne in Powys). Strictly speaking Annette is not new since she used to be a Local Contact in Essex and despite now living in Norfolk she’s taken over running the North-East Essex group. There are also two totally new groups: SouthEast Scotland Vegans, run by David in Edinburgh, and the Campaign for Eco-Veg*nism, yet another venture by the indefatigable Kevin White.

Unfortunately we’ve lost a couple of Youth Contacts owing to their no longer being particularly youthful so, wherever you live, if you’re a full member aged between 16 and 25 and would like more details about the role please get in touch.

The same applies if you’d like to be a Local Contact or a Group Contact. To be a Local Contact you have to have been

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a full member for at least six months. To be a Group Contact, whether of an existing group or one that you’re just starting, you just have to be a full member. Groups can be exclusively vegan or vegan and vegetarian as long as it’s obvious from the name that vegans are welcome. Please get in touch for further details and an application form, with absolutely no obligation if you decide it’s not for you.

A new venture this year by the incomparable Tim Barford is the first, but doubtless not the last, Brighton Vegan Fair, on Saturday 21 March (see Events on p.41). When I lived in Brighton in the 60s there wasn’t a single vegetarian eatery of any kind and now it vies with Nottingham for the title of vegan capital of the UK. (If you know of other contenders please let us know.) On top of this Tim is once again organizing the Bristol Vegan Fair over the whole of the last weekend in May (30 and 31).

This year’s North-East Vegan Gathering, a non-profitmaking event run by members of VegNE, mainly our intrepid Local Contacts Mark and Gordon, will be bigger and better than ever and is to be held at Morpeth, Northumberland, from 3 –10 April. Details and a booking form are at www.vegne.co.uk/vegan-gathering/ or you can ring 0191 236 8519.

Finally a reminder that when getting in touch with a Local or Group contact please do so by e-mail if possible since phone calls do not always arrive at a time convenient for a chat.

Patricia Tricker National Contacts’ Coordinator Cottage 3, Arrathorne, Bedale, N. Yorkshire, DL8 1NA vegan@phonecoop.coop

Imagine a peaceful band of fishmongers marching in support of their own interests being set upon by vegans and not just threatened but beaten black and blue and put in hospital for the Christmas holiday.

The authorities would surely be running around like headless cauliflowers shrieking about terrorism and conspiracy, publishing lurid pictures of the victims and dishing out long prison sentences to the culprits. Yet when Marek Vorsilka and other Czech vegans organised a peaceful protest against the killing of millions of carp on the streets of Prague in pursuit of festive tradition the police were reluctant to pursue let alone prosecute the thugs who beat him senseless and left other protesters suffering from concussion and shock. The good news is that no one suffered permanent brain damage, though Marek’s good looks may be rather more rugged than before despite the best efforts of his surgeons. Shocked by pictures of the injuries inflicted on this gentle, dedicated young activist, vegans around the world sent cards and messages while friends in the UK got together to offer him Life Membership of the Vegan Society here. Welcome to the vegan canteen Marek!

The popularity of the Vegan Pledge both in the UK (where the latest Vegan Campaigns initiative attracted fifty pledgers from a wide variety of cultures and backgrounds) and around the world has exceeded all expectations. When I agreed to be “mentor” to any overseas pledgers, I certainly never expected so many. In places where even the word “vegetarian” is barely understood, where all foodstuffs are scarce and convenience foods such as soya milk are unknown, everything has to be worked out from first principles according to what ingredients are available – no easy task in a small town in South Russia in winter.

Fortunately the number of vegan recipes at www.ivu.org has recently increased from 2,000 to 3,000, searchable by country and by ingredients.

As elsewhere, however, the most important function of the mentor seems to be to reduce the sense of isolation.

Multicultural activities in the UK continue to expand, so the assistance of new Trustee Alex Claridge and the increasingly enthusiastic participation of staff is most welcome. As with other areas, information needs be passed on to the next generation and committed

to accessible databases, not just to avoid duplication of effort and leave more time for outreach but so that experience is not lost for ever if someone moves on. It is always nice to see Trustees, staff and local contacts working together at events such as the Leicester festival, and I was delighted when Information Officer Verity HuntShepherd joined me at the National Hindu Students Forum annual conference. Next month Stephen Walsh and I will be joined by Mahersh and Nishma of Shambhu’s catering (see page 6) for the first of a series of talks and cookery demonstrations for the Adventist community. I don’t do religion myself, but am always pleased to see communities upholding the virtues of compassion and care that seem to be common to most religions, though not always as faithfully observed as one might hope. Muslim vegans will be pleased at the increasing number of fatwas (statements on Islamic law) that not only is veg*nism permissible but products obtained through ill treatment of animals are not. In the Middle East, the appalling live export trade from Australia is being challenged on this very basis, while in Birmingham a “green iftar” (the meal following the daily fast in Ramadan) drew dozens of participants, all but one bringing veg*an food. We continue to build on the wide range of contacts made through the Catering for Diversity initiative and will be visiting the Department of Health again in the near future.

In November, David Roman’s Spanish translation of the Plant Based Nutrition booklet was published (see www.unionvegetariana.org/hojas/NBV.pdf) and I took the opportunity to visit Jean-Claude Juston (who ran the veggie cafe at the London School of Economics during the McLibel campaign) at his guesthouse and award winning veggie restaurant in the Sierra Nevada (see www.ivu.org/atelier for information, including discounts for Vegan Society members). Closer to home than the International Vegan Festival in Brazil in July (www.svb.org.br/12veganfestival/english), a threeday event in Croatia in May will provide opportunities to meet activists who often cannot afford to go to events in more expensive parts of Europe. As always, all catering will be vegan and there will be possibilities for participants to extend their stay. See www.euroveg.org for details or get in touch with me if you’d like to travel with other Vegan Society members.

With good wishes for a peaceful and cruelty free 2009.

Vanessa Clarke, International Coordinator 17 Kingston Street, Cambridge CB1 2NU

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” ? . . .

N A G E V

G N I H T Y N A T O G U O Y “HAVE

Colm McBriarty

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ometimes it’s hard to be a vegan, especially when you’re eating out.

In the 21st century UK though, we have it a lot better than the vegans who went before us. Times have changed and it’s good to remind ourselves that it’s never been easier to find vegan food when travelling.

This year we have been working to increase the quality and availability of vegan food in the UK, so here’s a quick tour of some of the places where you can find fresh vegan food.

Some places can even send the food travelling to you.

Everyone listed is registered to use the Vegan Society trademark, so enjoy!

H FOOD CATERERS AND FRES Veggies Catering Campaign – Venerable pioneers of vegan catering, now celebrating their Silver Anniversary. Winners of the Vegan Society Best Vegan Catering award for the last two years, they’re so big-hearted they’re letting somebody else win it this year! Check out www.veggies.org.uk for more than just food.

Tel: 0845 458 9595 Email: info@veggies.org.uk Veg-Out – Sussexbased Cordon Vert chefs Diane and Pat provide bespoke veg*n food for a huge variety of events.

There are no set menus, just lots of ideas and a flexible service.

Web: www.veg-out-sussex.com Tel: 01323 449341/871619 Email: info@veg-out-sussex.com

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Green Garden Café – Vegan heroes Cathy and Richard run this not-forprofit social enterprise. Locally-sourced and organic produce when available.

So much more than great vegan food, they operate in Coventry (where delivery is free), Warwickshire and the surrounding areas.

Web: www.greengardencafe.co.uk Tel: 07504 505994 or 02476 715040 Email: cathy@greengardencafe.co.uk

Withy Kitchen – Vegetarian and vegan food, made in Somerset and delivered nationwide, from Helen and Keith Field.

Keith is a Cordon Vert chef and prepares fresh vegan ready meals which are then frozen and dispatched in recyclable packaging. Order online or by telephone.

Web: www.withykitchen.com Tel: 07774 826688 Email: enquiries@withykitchen.com

Aromafoods – Totally vegan and ethical company owned and operated by Peter & Zsuzsanna Horvath. Conscious of reducing their food miles, they limit their operation to the Bristol and Bath area.

Now in their eighth year, they supply fresh vegan delights to over 20 local businesses but get in touch with them to discuss catering for local events too.

Web: www.aromafoods.org.uk Tel: 0800 0744 876 Email: info@aromafoods.org.uk

Leeora Vegetarian Food – Having previously owned a healthfood shop and a vegan restaurant, Leeora’s skills in fresh food are beyond doubt.

You can order from her huge range of entirely vegan food and have it delivered frozen, ready to heat.

All meals free from gluten, wheat and yeast.

Web: www.leeoras.co.uk Tel: 01206 330334 Email: order@leeoras.co.uk

All Good Catering Company – Lucy serves only vegan food from her Newcastle upon Tyne base and it’s nice to know that most of her customers aren’t even vegan! A new company, but with years of catering experience behind her, she serves locally sourced and organic food where possible. More details on local bookings and events at www.allgoodcateringco.co.uk.

Tel: 07931 943459 Email: hello@allgoodcateringco.co.uk

Shambhu’s Kitchen – the latest caterer to register for our trademark, Mahersh and Nishma provide totally vegan catering for a wide range of events. Mostly a London-based operation but they can cater further afield. Get in touch for more information but don’t ask for Shambhu – he’s their dog!

Web: www.shambhus.co.uk Tel: 020 8931 0030 Email: mail@shambhus.co.uk

FES RESTAURANTS AND CA 222 Veggie Vegan Restaurant – One of an amazing 33 vegan restaurants in London, chef Ben Asamani has something really special here. They offer a lunchtime buffet, an evening a la carte menu, plus a takeaway and catering service too. Don’t visit London without eating here!

Web: www.222veggievegan.com Tel: 020 738 12322 Email: info@222veggievegan.com Eat and Two Veg – Exclusively vegetarian and vegan food in a ‘diner-style’ environment.

This is a great place to bring your non-vegan friends, as even they will be pretty impressed with what’s on offer. They now have two restaurants in London – in Marylebone and Muswell Hill – so you can breakfast in one and lunch in the other!

Web: www.eatandtwoveg.com Marylebone: Tel: 020 7258 8595 Email: info@eatandtwoveg.com Muswell Hill:Tel: 020 8883 4503 Email: chrissy@eatandtwoveg.com Green and Bousfield Organic Vegetarian Café – They have been open less than a year but Kim and Kris have put Ilkley firmly on the veggie map. They are situated right on the Yorkshire Moors, so bring your copy of ‘Wuthering Heights’ and enjoy the amazing views as well as the food.

Web: www.greenandbousfield.co.uk Tel: 01943 600245 Email: info@greenandbousfield.co.uk

TION B&BS AND ACCOMMODA The Barn – Sandra and Richard were proud winners of the Vegan Society Best Vegan Accommodation award in 2008. Now 100% vegan with impeccable green credentials, they are only five miles from Southampton in the New Forest. Prices from £30 per night and just look at the sample menu for their evening meals on www.veggiebarn.net.

Mouth-watering…

Tel: 02380 292531 Email: info@veggiebarn.net

Fox Hall – The vegan capital of the Lake District, Fox Hall is more than a B&B. With huge Breakfast and Evening Meal menus, and two-night vegan cookery courses on offer, there’s no need to survive on crisps and chips in the local pub! Check their current availability, and read about their four guest rooms, on www.fox.hall.btinternet.co.uk.

Tel: 01539 561241 Email: Fox.Hall@btinternet.com

The Lodge – Now you have your chance to visit the Caribbean!

Slightly farther away than our other B&Bs but take a look at their website – especially the menu, the setting and the great effort made by Mark and Mary to be carbon neutral and sustainable.

Breakfast and the three course evening meal are included in the price. A really special 100% vegan treat.

Web: www.thelodgegrenada.com Tel: (+1) 473 440 2330 Email: thelodge@spiceisle.com

Miamo World Foundation For Wellbeing – This is a nonprofit foundation in Sicily offering holistic health, workshops and both residential and non-residential retreat programs. Founder Myra Panascia is incredibly friendly and ensures the menu is 100% vegan and organic.

“Miamo” is Italian for “I love myself” but you’ll love the food too.

Web: www.miamofoundation.com Tel: (+39) 095 281010 Email: info@miamofoundation.com

UNIVERSITIES The University of Glasgow – The first university to receive our trademark, the great news is that you don’t have to be a student or a staff member to enjoy the amazing range of vegan food at the university’s seven eating establishments.

Guests, tourists and the visiting public can enjoy art galleries, museums and top quality vegan food. You can even have your wedding here! www.gla.ac.uk/services/hospitality/ea tingoncampus/ and www.gla.ac.uk/visitors will tell you all you need to know.

Pembroke College, Cambridge – Unfortunately the college’s eateries are not open to the general public but we want to include them here as an example of what ALL universities and colleges should aim for. A large variety of great quality vegan food, an ethical catering program and they have registered for our trademark too. www.pem.cam.ac.uk/students/catering

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Campaign to conserve the gardens of England Prionychus melanarius - a darkling beetle. Also residing here are otters, foxes, Daubenton’s and Lesser Horseshoe Bats, the Great Spotted Woodpecker and the Blackcap, to name but a few.

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raditional orchards, those managed without chemical input, are a much loved part of our British heritage, offering a great range of fruit, and being places of tranquillity that hold clues to our past culinary tastes and culture.

They have recently been added to the list of habitats recognised as national priorities for conservation action in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan. These unique habitats where rare plants, lichens, invertebrates and small mammals flourish are becoming increasingly rare due to neglect, intensification of agriculture and pressure from land development, putting the already endangered species they support under even greater threat. Since 1950, overall orchard area in England has declined by 63%. Kent, for example, described by Dickens’ character Jingle in The Pickwick Papers in the following manner: “Everybody knows Kent – apples, cherries, hops and women”; has suffered an 80% decline of its orchards since the 1960s. With the loss of this habitat, we also face losing fruit varieties, traditions, customs and knowledge, in addition to the genetic diversity represented by at least 1800 species that are associated with traditional orchards, including the rare Noble Chafer beetle, Gnorimus nobilis.

Existing information about the amount of traditional orchard habitat remaining in England is out-dated. After a successful two-year pilot scheme mapping traditional orchards in England’s main fruit growing belt, the People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES), with funding from Natural England and the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, is embarking on a three-year project to

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map the current extent, distribution and condition of traditional orchards in the whole of England. This project also seeks to raise awareness of the habitat’s importance and aims to encourage orchard owners to manage their land sympathetically to the wildlife within.

PTES owns and manages a traditional orchard, Rough Hill, situated on the banks of the River Avon in Worcestershire.

The site was much neglected when it was acquired by the wildlife charity nearly six years ago. The scrub had been left uncontrolled until it was shading out the unimproved pasture, and many of the trees were dead or dying with no new planting to replace them. Nevertheless, as a result of the dead wood, Rough Hill has become a very important site for invertebrates in the county, and is home to the Red Data Book beetles: Ampedus rufipennis - a click beetle, Osphya bipunctata - a melandryid beetle, and

Management of the orchard has therefore required a great deal of sensitivity, and so the Trust has struck a balance between retaining some of the shrub and dead wood for the birds and insects whilst ensuring the restoration of the unimproved pasture to encourage the growth of wild flowers and greatly improve its value to nature conservation. Young fruit trees of local varieties such as Bramley, Worcester Pearmain and Ellis Bitter have been planted by volunteers and staff by taking cuttings from the original trees to bring this once abandoned orchard back to its former idyllic glory. Young living straight twigs, called scions (usually 1-3 years old for apples), are collected from the donor tree, preferably when they are dormant in late winter. Meanwhile a rootstock has been grown in the ground, generally from root cuttings. Very often if grown into trees the rootstocks do not grow suitable fruit, so the twigs from the desired variety are grafted on to the stock. Hence at Rough Hill the varieties already growing there have been grown on the new tree stocks.

The charity’s interest in the orchard began when, as Lead Partners for the Noble Chafer beetle Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP), their surveys discovered the presence of this very rare species in the area. Several years ago, an entomologist working on behalf of the Trust discovered Noble Chafer larvae in a site less than one mile from Rough Hill.

PTES now hopes that with the correct management, in future years this beautiful, iridescent green beetle will be seen flying around Rough Hill.

Here are some recipes to get your juices going (source: The Brogdale Apple and Pear Recipe Book):

Whilst not everyone is lucky enough to be able to plant and manage their own orchard there are other actions you can take to help PTES with their national campaign to save our traditional orchards, such as buying local or British varieties of fruit to support our orchards instead of the cheaper imported varieties. Or, if you have a little time to spare, the Trust are looking for orchard survey volunteers in Cumbria, Devon, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, Kent and Somerset (for more details please visit www.ptes.org/orchards). For a real sense of achievement you could plant your own fruit trees to encourage wildlife into your garden or even get your neighbours involved in setting up a community orchard. A community orchard is not only a refuge for wildlife but also for people. It could provide a peaceful getaway, a great resource for local fruit varieties, and be an interesting way to involve and engage the whole community both young and old, not to mention helping to combat climate change.

675g cooked potatoes 1 tsp salt 3 medium-sized apples (peeled, cored & sliced) 125g flour 35g melted dairy-free margarine 35g dairy-free margarine 1 tsp sugar

Potato Apple Cake

Set oven at 180ËšC / 350F / Gas mark 4 Mash potatoes whilst still hot with a little dairyfree margarine. Place on a board and sprinkle with salt. Add the melted dairy-free margarine and knead in enough flour to make a soft, pliable dough. (Do not to add too much flour.)

Roll out and divide into two cakes. Place the sliced apples on one round and place the other cake on top, pinching the edges together. Place on a greased dish and bake for about 30 minutes. When cooked, split the cake open, turn the top over and put small pieces of margarine on with some of the sugar. Put the top back on and return to the oven until the margarine and sugar are melted.

Recommended Variety: Newton Wonder

Carrot, Apple & Cashew Nut Soup 450g carrots (chopped) 1 large onion (chopped) 1 small potato (chopped) 1 large cooking apple (peeled, cored & chopped) 50g dairy-free margarine 1.1Litres vegetable stock 50g broken cashew nuts Salt & Pepper Melt dairy-free margarine in a large saucepan and sautĂŠ the vegetables for 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Add the remaining ingredients, bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Allow to cool before blending. Reheat to serving temperature and season to taste.

Recommended variety: White Transparent/ Lodi

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Verity Hunt-Sheppard

n ORGANIC RAW FOOD RANGE LIFEFOOD Lifefood produce a whole range of natural organic food products including raw dehydrated crackers, snacks, cookies, seeds and of course raw chocolate! Lifefood’s luxury raw chocolate is made purely from raw cacao ingredients. Choose from their raw chocolate orange, raw chocolate hemp, nuts and cherries or their raw chocolate 80% cacao bar.

Lifefood products are not baked, cooked or pasteurized. Instead products are sprouted, marinated, blended and dehydrated at low temperatures. All products are completely free from gluten, starches, sugar and other refined sweeteners too.

For more details visit www.lifefood.eu

n ORGANIC SOYA MILK WITH ADDED FLAXSEED OIL

n UNISEX SKIN CARE CREAM HALO Halo Light Moisturising Cream is a daily facial moisturiser enriched with Vitamin E, sweet almond oil, Aloe Vera and Shea butter. This light, unfragranced cream is paraben free, suitable for all skin types and can be used by both men and women. Halo moisturiser is perfect to wear on its own and its non-greasy formula makes it an excellent base for make-up.

Halo Light Moisturising Cream is priced at £6.99.

For more details visit www.haloskincare.co.uk or telephone 07950 794552

PROVAMEL It would take 1.6 litres of ordinary soya milk to provide the healthy 2.4 grams of omega 3 in a daily teaspoon of flaxseed oil, but only half that quantity of the new Provamel Omega 3 soya milk. Sweetened with organic tapioca syrup, it also delivers 540 calories of energy per litre compared with 320 for unsweetened soya milk.

So if you’re fond of sweetened soya milk and not keen on neat flaxseed oil, this product could provide a useful boost to the omega 3 balance in your diet. All soya products by Provamel and its parent company Alpro are GM free.

Priced at £1.49 per litre, Provamel Omega 3 soya milk should be available in good health food shops shortly.

For details of Provamel products, see www.provamel.co.uk or telephone 0800 111 4224.

n RED STAR SOAP COMPETITION AND SPECIAL OFFER Red Star’s selection of foam and bar soaps includes ingredients such as coconut, sweet almond, and avocado oil to soften and condition the skin. Their amazing foaming soaps foam directly from the pump dispenser and a little goes a long way. Foaming soaps are available in Lavender, Lemon and Lime, Peppermint, Tea Tree, Marjoram and Fennel or are Fragrance Free. For hard bar lovers there are Red Star’s “Smooth as a Baby’s Bum” hard soaps, available in Lavender and Fragrance Free.

Those generous folks at Red Star are giving away 10 sets of their 250ml foaming liquid soap each with a 1litre refill in a fragrance of your choice.

Red Star are also offering any 250ml foamer and any 1litre refill at a buy one get the second half price rate while stocks last.

Competition and Special Offer

To enter the competition, post or e-mail your contact details (including your e-mail address or phone number) marked Red Star/Vegan Society competition to…

Red Star Natural Liquid Soaps Limited , Portal House , 52 Hyde Lane, Kinver, South Staffordshire DY7 6AF. E-mail: redstar@gn.apc.org Entries by 31 March.

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Verity Hunt-Sheppard

n MEDITERRANEAN FOODS

n ORGANIC BABY BATH CARE BABY BOO ORGANIC Treat your little ones to some organic loveliness with Baby Boo Organic. Their range of five baby bath care products are designed for the most sensitive of skins.

Choose from their gorgeously scented organic Strawberry Body Wash, refreshing Citrus Body Wash, calming Lavender Foaming Cleanser, Lavender Shampoo and gentle Lavender Lotion. All products in the Baby Boo Organic range are free from Synthetic Fragrances, Sodium Lauryl Sulphate (SLS), Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) and Parabens too.

Baby Boo Organic products are available from £4.84.

For more details www.babyboo-organics.co.uk or telephone 0870 850 1311.

ROSIE’S Rosie’s produce a delicious range of gourmet Mediterranean vegan food products including pestos, pasta and pizza sauces and Bruschetta toppings. Choose from their Black Olive Tapenade, Sun Dried Tomato Pesto, Hot Red Chilli Relish, Wild Rocket Sauce, Roasted Pepper Bruschetta Topping, Fresh Tomato Bruschetta Topping, Artichoke Paste, Olive Sauce and Italian Mushroom Sauce to name but a few. Rosie’s products do not contain any artificial colours, preservatives, additives or any genetically modified ingredients and all of their ingredients are traceable.

Rosie’s are now available at selected Tesco stores from £1.99.

For more details visit www.rosiesproducts.co.uk or telephone 020 8202 7557

n CALLING ALL CAKE LOVERS BLUE LOTUS As if their cakes weren’t scrummy enough those fabulous folks at Blue Lotus have extended their range to include a new ‘Cake of the Month’. Flavours include Banoffee, Lemon Drizzle and Dark Cherry ‘Gateau’; they also bake Gluten Free variations and have sugar free and spelt cakes. Layer cakes are available in a range of sizes from 4” to 9” and there are cupcakes too. For special occasions Blue Lotus can add regal ice, candles, an inscription or design and gift wrapping.

Goods can be delivered to your door anywhere in the UK. Layer cakes are available from £8.99.

For more details visit www.bluelotusproducts.co.uk or telephone 0116 2998122.

n VEGAN HAIR REMOVAL SIMPLY SMOOTH “Sugaring” has been used for centuries for safely and effectively removing unwanted hair from the root. Simply Smooth’s all sugar wax contains no chemicals, preservatives or colourings and will leave your skin gorgeously soft and smooth. It’s suitable for all skin types and can be applied on all parts of the body. Simply Smooth is available as a kit containing a 250g Jar of Simply Smooth sugar wax, ten cotton strips, three spatulas and a set of instructions. Strips can be reused and the packaging is recyclable too.

Simply Smooth’s sugaring kit is priced at £7.99.

For more details visit www.aquanatural.co.uk or telephone 01933 441818.

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All Shoparound products have been authenticated as

Not all products in a range are necessarily vegan.

n GOOD NEWS FOR TEETH AND GUMS

n CHOCOLATE MADE WITH RAW CACAO

PERI-GUM Over 50% of adults suffer from symptoms of gum disease which is still the leading cause of tooth loss amongst adults. Peri-Gum’s botanical mouthwash concentrate has been formulated to support healthy gums. The plant ingredients have been specially chosen for their anti-bacterial, analgesic, antiseptic and antiinflammatory action.

Each 29ml bottle of PERI-GUM provides 900 drops. Just put five drops into a tablespoon of water and rinse thoroughly twice a day.

In the case of really sore gums, dip a soft brush into the solution to massage gently into the area.

Peri-Gum is priced at £12.67.

Peri Gum is available from Trinity LifeCare, for more details visit www.dentaplex.co.uk or telephone 0792 172 4410

Mulu Chocolate Mulu’s silky smooth chocolate is made with such sumptuous ingredients as raw cacao liquor, butter & nibs, agave nectar, vanilla and a little soya lecithin.

Agave nectar has a low GI index and will not create a spike in blood sugar levels like sugar does. Choose from their Dark Block with Raw Cacao nibs or their Silk Block which is their vegan milk chocolate equivalent. Mulu’s cacao is sourced from traditional, small scale productions in Ecuador. Many of the farmers already have fair trade certification and certification to guarantee the responsible use of the rainforest.

Mulu Chocolate is priced at £2.99.

For more details visit www.muluchocolate.co.uk

n HANDMADE VEGAN SHOES, SPORRANS AND BELTS FREERANGERS It’s ten years since Freerangers launched their first catalogue and to celebrate they’ve launched a 10th birthday edition catalogue incorporating fabulous patterns and styles. Since those early days Freerangers have gained many satisfied customers, with so many requests for sporrans they now offer an amazing ten different styles including the Celtic, Arran, Skye, Lewis and Dress Sporran.

You can order a made to measure clan belt too. Freerangers specialise in bespoke vegan accessories and footwear and offer 103 style and colour combinations all lovingly handmade in the Freerangers workshop.

Freerangers shoes are available from £42 and sporrans from £59.

For more details visit www.freerangers.co.uk or www.vegansporrans.co.uk or telephone 01207 565 957.

n EXTRA MILD HAIR AND SKIN CARE PURELY SKINCARE Purely Skincare’s organic range of products are certified as “extra mild” and are suitable for sensitive skins. Purely Skincare products are free from SLES, sulphates, petrochemicals, parabens, colours and fragrances. Choose from their shower and bath gel, shampoo, conditioner, face wash and moisturiser. Each product is available in three luscious variants; Grapefruit & Lemongrass, Palmarosa & Lavender and Elemi & Clary Sage.

All products are priced at £5.99 each.

For more details visit www.purelyskincare.co.uk or telephone 01204 531 281.

n HEMP BASED FACE AND BODY CARE INNOCENT OILS Innocent Oils’ scrummy range of face and body care products are based on Hemp Seed Oil, Mango Seed Butter, Camelina Oil, Jojoba Oil, Cocoa Butter, Horsetail Extract, Lavender and Shea Butter. Choose from their Angel Face Drops, Angel Face Scrub, Hemp Mint Lip Balm, Shave Oil, and Lavender and Geranium Body Balm to name but a few. They’ve also launched a Giving Green range which donates 15% of the proceeds to the Big Green Idea Charity.

Innocent Oils face and body products are available from £2.25.

For more details visit www.innocentoils.com or telephone 01473 622816.

Winter2009 2003 The Vegan Vegan ll Spring The

1313

Roger Merenyi

I

recently bought a new watch for my wife from a local jeweller’s and chose a DKNY model with a silver bracelet, thus avoiding a leather strap. When I arrived home, however, I noticed that the dark face gave off a purple sheen and, having telephoned the UK distributors, I learned that it was mother of pearl. Fortunately I was able to return to the jeweller’s and exchange the item for another, equally attractive, Guess watch. On the way home it occurred to me that, although I was aware that the production of pearls and mother of pearl involved exploitation at some level, it would be a good idea to find out more, as my knowledge of the topic was rather hazy.

Mother of pearl is a readily recognisable smooth, iridescent substance forming the inner layer of the shell of certain types of molluscs and covering the outer layer of pearls.

Also known as nacre, it is composed of calcium carbonate, which is secreted by certain seawater and freshwater molluscs, mainly oysters and freshwater mussels. Mother of pearl is often ‘harvested’ as a by-product of the seafood industry: abalone sea snails, for example, are killed for both their mother of pearl and their meat. The outer layers of shells are removed to get to the nacreous mother of pearl inside.

As pearls form naturally in only one in every few thousand oysters and as the creation of a pearl can take up to three years, the pearl industry ‘cultures’ them by implanting a foreign body into an oyster. The formation of the pearls is accelerated by surgically opening the shell, placing irritants into the creatures, and then suspending them in underwater cages for several months, periodically raising them to wash the shells with hoses. Freshwater pearls are cultured by inserting another mussel’s mantle tissue; for saltwater pearls, oysters have beads and another oyster’s mantle tissue inserted and there can be little doubt that the creatures suffer from the ordeal.

In her book Speciesism, Joan Dunayer writes that ‘Like all vertebrates, nearly all bilaterally symmetrical invertebrates possess a brain, defined as a primary nerve centre in the head.

Among others, these invertebrates include flatworms, earthworms, insects, molluscs, arachnids, and crustaceans’.

The artificial culturing process has been described by the Vegetarian & Vegan Foundation as like having a splinter inserted into the skin. When the pearls are eventually ‘harvested’, the creature is either re-exposed to another foreign body to produce another pearl or, if it is no longer of use, it is discarded.

As Lee Hall, Legal Director of Friends of Animals, says, ‘Given that pearls are well known to be the result of irritation to the oyster, there is a good vegan argument against using them.

The manipulation of these beings is part of aquaculture, the manipulation of marine communities, which is a custom humans could and should do without’. And yet, if you walk into any jeweller’s, you are likely to find a multitude of products containing pearl or mother of pearl, including beads, rings, bracelets, necklaces and, of course, watches. Mother of pearl can also be found in other places such as parts of musical instruments, ornaments and furniture. The main pearl producers, Japan, Australia, China, The Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand, continue to profit from the trade and global pearl farming, according to an industry report (First report of the Emirates-based Pearl Revival Committee, November 2007) is expected to grow into a $3 billion industry by 2010.

Humans seem to have a peculiar habit of associating products involving exploitation and cruelty, such as fur, leather, wool, silk and, in this case, pearls and mother of pearl, with style and luxury. As is so often the case, there are numerous stylish and luxurious cruelty-free alternatives available, so why don’t more people use them? Why is it that, in the twenty-first century, the majority of humans still insist that animals must suffer on their behalf, when it is totally unnecessary? This must be a question which vegans ask themselves time and time again.

For those of us seeking to reduce suffering, mainstream attitudes towards our fellow creatures can be a genuine source of irritation and exasperation, in much the same way as the artificially inserted foreign body is to our unfortunate friend, the mollusc.

Photograph of pearls being removed from oysters.

Photo © Keith Pomakis, www.pomakis.com

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Dave Hamilton

T

here is a process when identifying wild food for the first time I like to call the Ford Fiesta effect – you may not have noticed how many red Ford Fiestas there are driving around but as soon as a friend of yours buys one you’ll begin to see them everywhere!

The mallow was such a plant for me; I was living in Oxford at the time and peered at a hollyhock in someone’s garden. I wondered what this tall elegant looking plant was and more importantly if I could eat it!

I soon found the hollyhock was part of the mallow family along with common mallow, marsh mallow and a plant that happened to be growing right outside my house – the garden tree mallow.

Mallows are very distinctive looking plants; they have dark green leaves comprising five to seven lobes, a little like a maple leaf but with rounded rather than pointed tops. They can grow to a metre or more in height depending on the variety. The flowers of the common mallow are around 2in/5cm across and light pink or white, but other varieties can be a whole host of colours including yellow, red and blue. It has quite a long flowering time, between April and October, the leaves usually emerge a little before in early spring. Once you get an eye for the plant it is very easy to identify but if in doubt try looking in a field guide or on an Internet image search.

Almost all of the plant is edible; the leaves of all types of mallow can be used as a salad leaf, the immature seedpods can be eaten as a snack.

The roots of the marsh mallow can

be made into sweets and the flowers of all mallows can make a decorative addition to salads. The leaves of the tree mallow are such soft leaves the Romans would use it as toilet paper hence its Latin name Lavatera arborea!!

In my opinion it is the leaves of the mallow that are the most important edible part of the plant, especially for vegans. If you just lightly boil a few leaves in a little water it will result in a thick gooey green liquid with very similar properties to egg white!

The common mallow does seem to be the best mallow to use but I have found hollyhock leaves will also work to some extent. To research this article I set myself the arduous task of making a number of different puddings and desserts; I found it works well in pancakes, biscuits and particularly well in chocolate brownies.

CHOCOLATE BROWNIES This recipe has been adapted from an American recipe so the ingredients are shown by volume rather than weight.

100g, 31⁄2 oz - Dark Chocolate 160ml, 2/3 Cup - Vegan Margarine 120ml, 1⁄2 Cup - Sugar (caster sugar is best) 8 Mallow leaves 240-250ml, 2 Cups - Water 300 ml, 11⁄4 Cup – Self-raising Flour Optional seasonal ingredients A Couple of handfuls of the following – Chopped Strawberries – Wild or Cultivated Cherries (Stoned) – Wild or Cultivated Chopped Hazel/Cob nuts Chopped Walnuts Chopped Roasted Chestnuts

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1. Place 8 mallow leaves in a pan of 250 ml boiling water, boil and stir for a couple of minutes.

2. Break the chocolate into pieces, place in a heat proof bowl, melt with the margarine over the pan of boiling mallow leaves.

3. Once melted dissolve the sugar in the margarine and chocolate mix.

4. Take the mallow leaves (and melted chocolate, etc.) off the heat, remove the leaves (add them to the compost), measure out 125ml, 1⁄2 cup of the mallow water.

5. Add the chocolate mix to the flour and stir.

6. Fold in the mallow liquid.

Bake in an oven at 170ºC for around 30 minutes.

CHESTNUT BISCUITS Chestnuts were an important staple right throughout history. There are references to their use in Ancient Greece and Rome and in the UK since their introduction by the Romans. I’m quite convinced that versions of this recipe have been around for hundreds if not thousands of years, as once the raw ingredients are processed it is a very simple recipe.

300g Shelled roasted chestnuts 50g Sugar 200ml-240ml Mallow liquid Large pinch of cinnamon 1. Grind the roasted chestnuts in a coffee grinder or in a pestle and mortar until it resembles a fine flour.

2. Place the chestnut flour in a large bowl and add the sugar and cinnamon.

3. Slowly add the mallow liquid and mix to a dough.

Start with 200ml and add a little extra if the dough still looks on the crumbly side.

4. Shape the dough into biscuit shapes about the size of a jam jar lid, put on a greased baking tray.

5. Bake on Gas Mark 6 for about 15mins or until the biscuits start to brown.

6. Allow to cool and serve.

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OUT AND ABOUT WITH OUR VEGAN CAMPAIGNERS For complete listings of Vegan Society Local Contacts and Local Groups, see pages 42-44

WORLD VEGAN DAY IN SAO PAULO

VEGAN RUNNERS (JAPAN) Japan Vegan Runners Club held a Vegan Picnic in Tokyo on November 3rd, jointly with Japan Vegetarian Society, Tokyo Raw Food Love & Veggies Meetup and Tokyo Vegan Meetup.

The Vegan Runners gathered in Yoyogi Park, a big park near Shibuya, and had a nice jog in the morning air. Around noon other vegetarians and vegans the the World Vegan Awareness Month sharing joined them for the picnic and celebrated , tacos balls, rice were ht food people broug delicious vegan food. Among the amazing d mushrooms, freshly picked vegetables, stuffe raw s, humu raw raw sushi, raw cookies, really in fashion! raw chocolate drinks... it seemed raw was

Since 2006, a group of activists have been getting together on November 1st to start the ‘Jornada Vegetariana’ (Vegetarian Journey).

They go through the big Avenida Paulista (Paulista Avenue), here in Sao Paulo, delivering pamphlets about Animal Rights to pedestrians and drivers.

After that, devotees from the Hare Krishna movement distribute vegan meals for free. But this year the journey lasted until the weekend after, celebrating World Vegan Day with parties, movie exhibitions, bazaars and picnics.

WORLD VEGAN MONTH USA Northern Vegans, a social and educational group located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan in the United States, had a busy November.

To promote World Vegan month, they donated eight more vegan items to the Peter White Public Library in Marquette, MI and also had a display in the main entrance of the library for the entire month with free vegan literature for patrons the local Northern Michigan with up to take. In addition, Northern Vegans teamed “Diet For a New America” on program the University student group, VegNMU, to show on 11/27. dinner potluck 11/17 and have a vegan Thanksgiving Day The Mining Journal, and the The library donation was mentioned twice in their local paper, es their mission of continu Vegans n Norther st. vegan dinner made the local TV6 newsca g a community for providin and h outreac onal advocating a vegan lifestyle through educati living in the North. ble sustaina and , sionate those who share this vision of healthy, compas thernvegans.com/ For more information about Northern Vegans, see http://www.nor

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THE MASKED CARROT GOES WILD IN CORNWALL

LEICESTER VEGAN FAIR 2008

On World Vegan Day, The Masked Carrot paid visits to:

The fair attracted over 300 people with queues forming before the doors were opened!

Archie Browns healthfood shop and vegetarian restaurant.

They kindly displayed leaflets and posters, and made sure that most of the specials on the menu that day were vegan. And very tasty they were too.

Lettuce And Lovage vegetarian restaurant. They too kindly displayed leaflets and posters, and made some delicious vegan cakes for customers to sample including a rather scrumptious chocolate cake.

Special guest Wendy the Cow from Animal Aid opened resist giving Wendy n’t could en childr and s the fair. Adult a hug and having their photos taken with her throughout the day. risers Early birds received a free goody bag while late les samp late choco free dairy us delicio to where treated there; stop didn’t ling samp food The from Humdinger. wide Leicestershire Vegans and Vegetarians offered a ing to nstrat demo stall, their on les samp range of food is. really food vegan us delicio fair goers just how , cakes The event’s all vegan café offered savories, salads fish and vegan hot the oon aftern the in and scones while s there alway As hit. real a were peas) y chips (with mush hing everyt wash to s coffee and teas were fair-trade down with.

The regular Viva! campaign stall was also visited by The Masked Carrot who handed out Vegan Society recipe leaflets and Why Vegan? leaflets (along with his sidekick, Hot Stuff the Chilli, who was in everyday non-superhero garb, and for reasons of security Hot Stuff can’t be seen in the pictures).

Children smiled at the biggest carrot they’d ever seen walking the streets, and with World Vegan Day on his back The Masked Carrot was clearly showing why he was there, handing out Vegan Society recipe leaflets, and sample tasters kindly provided

by Archie Browns.

Viva!, The Stalls included The Vegan Society, Animal Aid, erd, Sheph Sea ed, Uncag s, Sport Cruel League Against Lotus Blue ts, T-Shir Devil some Hand Animals Count, ity Cakes, Arbonne International and Ethical Equal Trading. kids There was face painting and henna tattooing for am progr a to on additi In . adults for and plenty of talks an where demo ry cooke ” treats n “vega of talks was a a attentive audience learned all about how to make too. s good ed finish the le samp to got vegan cake and

TCHLEY WORLD VEGAN MONTH IN BLE of the ely well and we soon ran out “The leafleting went extrem s klet boo ing lud all other leaflets exc prepared vegan packs and d goo the to r still to go thanks were distributed with an hou rs.” lete leaf location and efficient

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n OPEN A CHARITY ACCOUNT AND THE VEGAN SOCIETY WILL RECEIVE £25

n BBC DROPS CRUFTS FROM THE SCHEDULE

CAF is a registered charity that helps thousands of people give to charity every year. CAF’s most popular way to give is through the CAF Charity Account.

The BBC has confirmed it will not broadcast the dog show Crufts next year because of the cruelly selectively bred dogs that are featured:

How does it work?

You put money in regularly and build up a pot of money. Provided you are a UK taxpayer CAF reclaims the Gift Aid as soon as you put money in your account. That means the charities you donate to save on time and admin and you don’t have any extra contact with the taxman.

You can make donations by post, in person, online, directly from your salary or by telephone to any registered charity in the UK. * CAF will give £25 to The Vegan Society when you open a Charity Account and £100 if you top up your account with £1000 or more in the first 12 months.

To open a Charity Account simply apply online or over the phone. To ensure we receive the £25 incentive please quote ‘Vegan Society’ when asked ‘how did you hear about us?’

T: 01732 520 055 W: www.cafonline.org/charityaccount *Each time you fund your account, CAF takes a contribution of 4% on sums up to 16,000 and 1% from 16,001 to 89,500. 1% of this goes to the NCVO.

n MAKE SURE YOU GET ENOUGH CALCIUM For those who struggle to get enough calcium from green leafy vegetables etc, an easy solution is to take an extra 500mg per day as calcium carbonate (which is simply the chemical name for chalk). J.M.Loveridge of Southampton (www.jmloveridge.com, T:01264 367610, email: sales@loveridge.co.uk) sell calcium carbonate powder in 500 gram packs (200 grams of calcium) at £2.60 per pack plus VAT. The powder can be mixed into food or added to home baked bread (a level teaspoon provides 800 mg of calcium) and is a very cheap way to get extra calcium. As there is a £9 minimum postage charge it is worth getting together and ordering in bulk. 20 packs cost £71.68 including postage and VAT, which works out at less than 1p per day. For those who prefer the convenience of a tablet, Holland and Barrett sell 500mg tablets at £3.99 for 100 or about 4p per day

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7779686.stm

n DID YOU SEND OR RECEIVE AN OXFAM GIFT CARD THIS CHRISTMAS? While we do not encourage vegans to buy Oxfam gifts that involve the use of live animals, we are often asked if it is acceptable to send Oxfam ‘unwrapped’ gift cards if they say that the money is for seed or safe drinking water? We’ve looked into this and can confirm that Oxfam say: ‘We always spend the money on your chosen gift or on something else in the same category.’ The categories that are safe are: n Water and sanitation (WS)

n Climate change and disaster risk reduction (CL) n Education (ED) n Advocacy (AD)

n Agriculture (AG) is usually OK but some of the crops may be used for animal feeds and so if you buy seeds or tools from this category you need to be aware of this occasional indirect connection.

All Oxfam gift cards carry the category code, so do check that your gift is from one of the above categories to be sure that the money will be spent appropriately.

Of course Vegfam, Hippo, Tree Aid and Water Aid are still animal free but sadly don’t have gift cards that are available on the high street.

n PROBABLY THE BEST JOBS IN THE WORLD JOB VACANCIES AT THE VEGAN SOCIETY We have an Information Officer vacancy. For more details contact Rosamund Raha: editor@vegansociety.com Tel: 0121 523 1739.

We have a Finance Officer/Office Manager vacancy (maternity cover).

For more details contact Nigel Winter: info@vegansociety.com Tel: 0121 523 1732.

n BE PREPARED - THE CLIMATE WILL CHANGE YOUR LIVES!

Rainforest Foundation 10K: from the left we have Simon Jones, Chloe Vincent, Anna Finn, Theresa Webb, Andrew Taylor, Dave Arnold, Chris Dhondee and Peter Simpson.

n VEGAN RUNNERS Peter Simpson www.veganrunners.makessense.co.uk Blog: http://veganrunnersuk.blogspot.com 01908 503919 / 07967 589663 Autumn saw the emergence of Vegan Runners groups in London led by Dave Arnold and in Bristol by Jenny Dunleavy. The regular monthly 10K in Regent’s Park, London has become a focus for many vegan runners. The day before the London Vegan Festival (6 Sep) we had four competitors: Dave Arnold 40.04 (26th), James Millington 48.50, Vanessa Hudson 53.15 & Annette Herold 56.32 and that rose to seven on 5 Oct when the team was led home by Matt Woodman in 36.26 (9th). The day after World Vegan Day we supported the Rainforest Foundation by running their 10K around Finsbury Park. Out of the 1096 runners, Vegan Runners UK was the main club present with Dave finishing in 40.00 (23rd), Peter Simpson 44.20, Andrew Taylor 45.09, Chloe Vincent 47.06, Simon Jones 52.27, Chris Dhondee 57.14, Anna Finn 57.22 & Theresa Webb 57.55. On the marathon scene, at the Robin Hood event (14 Sep) there were excellent performances from Ed Banks 2.56 (25th) and Matthew Newton 2.58 (30th). On the same day at the Mablethorpe event we were represented by Mick Morgan 3.41 and Stuart Boulton 3.48.

A week later at the New Forest event Chris IlesWright finished in 4.01. At the Lea Valley Trail Marathon (4 Oct) Anna Finn achieved 4.18, the first of many marathons planned for early 2009.

There were also four vegan runners finishing the Abingdon event on 19 Oct. In the Bristol half marathon (14 Sep) there were four vegan runners present: Barnaby Wreyford 1.40, Jenny Dunleavy 1.58, Catarina Cost 2.11 and Isabel Hoskin 2.21. Three weeks after Ed Banks’ Robin Hood marathon, he achieved a half marathon personal best of 1.18.15 (9th) at the Kenilworth event. At the The Mablethorpe Marathon Swansea 10K (28 Sep) we were represented by with Mick Morgan on left Judith Oakley 49.25, Ruth Newman 52.37 and and Stuart Boulton on right.

Angela Frost 56.29. Sidney Delara has been a model of consistency over 10K achieving 41.47 at Chichester (5 Oct) alongside Dave Arnold 39.14. They both ran the Gosport half marathon (16 Nov), Dave finished in 1.24 and Sid 1.39. On the ultra distance scene Demetrios Kehayioglou completed 133 of the 155 miles Spartathlon event in Greece, running for about 32 hours!

Readers will be well aware of the potentially devastating effects of climate change.

Going vegan and organic is acknowledged as being progress. But in a vegan-organic world where will the skills come from to grow healthy food on a large scale? The Welsh College of Horticulture runs courses in organic horticulture, based on their stockfree organic farm and in collaboration with the VeganOrganic Network.

VON can help people to acquire such skills by placement on a vegan-organic (stockfree) farm. If you wish to study at the College and need financial help VON can send you details of our Bursary Fund. One result of climate change will be fewer imports as countries struggle to feed their own populations – and these imports will invariably be fruit, vegetables, pulses and grains – a pending catastrophe for vegans. Unless the college and other training opportunities are taken up then vegans will lose out, so consider these opportunities and pass the word on about them! VON has produced an introductory video on stockfree organic farming too.

Contact VON: and see the ‘Grow Vegan’ page in this magazine.

n A THOUGHT EXPERIMENT FROM PETER SINGER To expose speciesist attitudes Peter Singer suggested that when we consider whether a given animal experiment is justifiable, we ask ourselves whether we would be prepared to perform it on an orphaned human being at a mental level similar to that of the proposed nonhuman animal subject. Only if the answer is affirmative could we claim that our readiness to use the nonhuman animal was not based on a speciesist prejudice against giving the interests of other animals a similar weight to the interests of members of our own species.

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Gourmet

vegan food is a winner for everyone Paul Russell accepts his cheque from

Amanda Baker

W

e have just completed our first ever Vegan Catering Challenge. The cook-off final was held in October at the Tante Marie School of Cookery in Woking.

Six finalists battled to impress judges Chad Sarno (Executive Chef of Saf restaurant, home of fine botanical dining), Christine Tilbury (Head of the imaginative and innovative Cordon Vert Cookery School), and Andrew Maxwell (Managing Director and Principal of the world-renowned cordon bleu Tante Marie School of Cookery).

The search for competitors began with the launch of our food theme, – ‘improving the quality and availability of vegan food’ or ‘Vegan Catering for All’, – on Tuesday 1st July 2008.

We aimed to persuade ‘mainstream’ caterers to display their skills using the vegan ingredient palette. So we advertised the Challenge in key industry magazines such as Restaurant and Caterer and Hotelkeeper - and the eventual winner entered due to an advertisement in Restaurant.

By early September, we had received over 40 expressions of interest in the Challenge. Every enquirer received a pack including our Vegan Catering for All and Plant Based Nutrition booklets, plus entry forms. We invited entrants to submit costed, nutritionally analysed, three-course vegan menus, to be prepared for four people, in four hours.

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Preparing a competition-standard menu takes time. The best chefs spend weeks testing their recipes for qualities such as flavour, texture and appearance.

Then they re-test under competition conditions. So we weren’t surprised that the Challenge entries arrived very close to the deadline – in one case, by fax, with minutes to spare!

Next came preliminary judging. All the entrants were asked for full ingredients lists – with brand names – to prove that they were planning a truly vegan menu.

Sadly, a number failed at this stage – but hopefully they found our feedback helpful.

Six finalists emerged: n John Bayley, owner of Cashew Creative Vegetarian and Vegan Catering, in Lewes, East Sussex. n Richard Craig, Hospitality Services Chef, University of Glasgow. n Paul Russell, Lecturer in Hospitality and Culinary Arts Management at University College Birmingham. n Wayne Shooter, Chef at HM Prison Whatton near Nottingham. n Peter Walters, Executive Chef at Keele University, based at Keele Hall – ‘the premier conference and fine dining experience in Staffordshire’. n Terry Woolcock, Executive Chef at Hatherley Manor Hotel.

During the countdown to the final, we re-checked ingredients and equipment lists – down to the last drop of truffle oil and the three ice cream machines.

At last, the day of the final, Monday 27th October 2008, actually dawned!

All the judges, staff and finalists converged on Tante Marie. It was inspiring to finally meet everyone in person.

Photographer Chava Eichner of flavourphotos.com set up in the Tante Marie ‘broadcast’ kitchen, where celebrity chefs have cooked live on TV. She had a major challenge – to capture 18 distinct dishes, each at their best, including three ice cream desserts!

At 11am, the chefs started work in a shared six-bay kitchen. Each had their own preparation area and cookers. But they had to dance expertly past one another to access fridges, ingredients storage and sinks. The judges were carefully observing every step.

The six chefs plated up four servings each of their starters at 2.30pm, to be whisked away by the judges and the photographer.

The tempo then accelerated, with 24 main courses plated for 2.45pm. The final frenzy at 3pm created 24 dessert portions, half of which were melting rapidly. Vegan Society Chief Executive Nigel Winter came to Chava’s rescue, rushing all the ice creams over to be photographed. Û

The Vegan Catering Challenge 2008 l Paul Russell l Recipe Specification Starter - soupe au pistou with a potato ravioli Ingredients

Quantity required for 4 portions

Cold pressed rape seed oil (‘Hillfarm Cold Pressed Rape Seed Oil’)

50ml for frying 100ml for the pistou 5ml for the pasta dough 200g for the soup 100g for the ravioli 400g 400g 400g 400g 600g 2l for the soup 60ml for the pasta dough 50g 50g 2 cloves 60g

Onion

Nigel Winter (flavourphotos.com)

Green beans Carrots Courgettes Celery Tomatoes (plum) Mineral water (‘Thirsty Planet Still’) Basil Pine nuts Garlic Durum wheat flour Potatoes (suitable for mashing – e.g. maris piper) Nutmeg Vegan margarine (‘Pure Soya Margarine’) Salt and pepper

Paul Russell’s starter (© flavourphotos.com)

Potato ravioli: Make the pasta dough by kneading the flour, water and oil together until you have a smooth ‘elastic’ dough – leave to rest for 30 minutes.

Make the filling by boiling the potato (skin on) until completely cooked through. Peel the skin off and pass the cooked potato flesh through a moulin or potato ricer. Finely chop the onion and sweat off in the oil until soft. Add to the potato mix and season with salt, ground white pepper and nutmeg. Place the mixture in a pan and heat through whilst adding the margarine in small quantities – stirring constantly. The margarine will melt and incorporate itself into the mix – forming a dense ‘paste’. Leave to cool.

200g 2g 75g to season

Method

To make the ravioli, pass the dough through a pasta machine to its thinnest setting. Lay one sheet of pasta on the working surface and place a small ball of the chilled potato filling on top. Place another sheet of the rolled out pasta dough on top of the filling and smooth down the edges to form a ravioli – ensuring that you do not have any air pockets.

Trim off the excess pasta and place on a lightly floured tray ready for service.

Place all of the trimmings into the water and simmer to form a light stock.

Soupe au pistou:

To serve:

Dice all of the vegetables and gently sweat off in the oil until tender – but reserve the tomatoes for use later (the vegetables should be added in the following order: onions, carrots, celery, green beans and courgettes).

Add the ravioli to the simmering stock (but do not allow to boil).

The ravioli will take approximately 2-3 minutes to cook. When the ravioli has cooked drain and serve on top of the soup together with the pistou.

When ready to serve, add the water to the vegetables and simmer for 2 minutes or until the vegetables are cooked through and add the tomatoes.

To make the pistou, blend the basil, pine nuts, garlic and oil together to form a spoonable paste.

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The Vegan Catering Challenge 2008 l Paul Russell l Recipe Specification Main Course - Crisp fried baby artichokes in a poppy seed coating, served on a pea and roasted red pepper risotto, with a cashew aioli Ingredients

Quantity required for 4 portions

Cashew nuts

50g for the pea puree 50ml for the aioli 50ml for the pea puree 500ml for the risotto 50g for the aioli 200g 25g 4 100g 50ml

Mineral water (‘Thirsty Planet Still’)

Frozen peas Mint Red peppers Onion Cold pressed rape seed oil (‘Hillfarm Cold Pressed Rape Seed Oil’) Arborio rice (‘Sainsbury’s Arborio Risotto Rice, Organic’) Marinated baby artichokes (‘Sainsbury’s grilled whole Artichokes marinated’) Poppy seeds Corn flour Smoked paprika Lemon Garlic Salt and pepper

200g

200g 50g 100g 2g 1 2 cloves to season

The judges retired for a long hour to sample, debate and re-taste every dish.

Finally, everyone reconvened, and the judges began to reveal their decisions.

Each chef was given valuable individual feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of their creations. Finally, towards 4.30pm, the winners were declared.

Paul Russell from University College Birmingham scooped first prize and a cheque for £500.

He later said, “I am delighted to be able to showcase this fascinating cuisine. Designing a vegan menu really highlights the creativity of the chef and requires considerable planning in terms of flavours, textures and nutritional value. The competition is also a great opportunity to prove to the industry that vegan food can be just as exciting and diverse as any other cuisine.”

Paul Russell’s winning menu was Soupe au Pistou with a Potato Ravioli; Crisp Fried Baby Artichokes in a Poppy Seed Coating, Served on a Pea and Roasted Red Pepper Risotto, with a Cashew Aioli; and Dark Chocolate Truffle Cake with Cherries.

Method Pea and roasted red pepper risotto: Place the cashew nuts and water into a blender and blend to a smooth consistency. Heat the peas and the fresh mint in a pan and add the cashew nut mix. Season and blend again to a smooth puree.

Roast the peppers over an open flame in order to blacken the skin.

Once all of the skin has blackened, place the peppers into a bowl and cover with cling film. Leave to cool before removing the skin and seeds and then finely dice the flesh.

Sweat the onion in the rape seed oil until soft, add the rice and stir until all of the rice has been coated with the oil. Add the water to the pan in 100ml stages, stirring

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regularly and waiting until the water has been absorbed by the rice before adding the next amount.

When the water has been absorbed and the rice has softened but still has some ‘bite’ the dish is ready to finish.

Just before serving add the pea puree to the risotto and season to taste. The risotto should have a spoonable consistency that just holds its shape on the plate – the risotto should not be firm or sticky.

Crisp fried baby artichokes in a poppy seed coating Prepare the sesame coating mixture by mixing the corn flour, water and poppy seeds together to form a paste. When ready to serve, carefully dip the artichokes in the

batter and coat with the poppy seeds. Deep fry at 190˚C until golden brown and serve immediately.

Cashew aioli: Make the aioli by blending the cashews, garlic, paprika, lemon juice and water in a food processor.

Slowly add the oil whilst continuing to blend. Season to taste. This will result in a thick emulsified sauce.

To serve: Place a portion of the risotto onto the plate. Warm the roasted red peppers in the rape seed oil and spoon around the outside of the risotto. Deep fry the artichokes and place on top of the risotto. Serve the cashew aioli in a small condiment bowl on the side.

Paul Russell’s main course (© flavourphotos.com)

Second prize (£200) was won by Peter Walters from Keele University.

His starter, “Grilled Portabella Mushroom Topped with a Beignet of Chilli Bean Mousse on Puy Lentil Sauce with Smoked Paprika and Baby Beets”, particularly impressed the judges.

Third prize (£100) was secured by Richard Craig from Glasgow University.

His starter, “Sweet Potato and Butternut Corn Cake with Minted Pea and Red Pepper Taster, Organic HerbBaked Crunch, Pesto and Fajita Salsa”, was especially commended.

The winners were publicly announced on World Vegan Day at the West Midlands Vegan Festival in Wolverhampton. We were delighted that Paul Russell came in person to be awarded his framed certificate. Û

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Paul Russell’s dessert (Š flavourphotos.com)

All finalists and judges

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All of the finalists have helped us to secure some great coverage in newspapers and magazines, such as The University Caterer, and on the Website of Restaurant magazine: http://www.bighospitality.co.uk/cgibin/item.cgi?id=2505 The competition was made possible by the enthusiastic support and hard work of the judges. Chad Sarno also invited all the finalists to visit his kitchens, and John Bayley has already taken up this valuable opportunity.

The Vegan Catering Challenge 2008 l Paul Russell l Recipe Specification Dessert – dark chocolate truffle cake with cherries Ingredients

Quantity required for 4 portions

Vegan dark chocolate

200g for the filling 50g for the ‘case’

Soya milk cream (‘Alpro Soya Alternative to Cream’) Tinned cherries in juice (‘Sainsbury’s Black Cherries Pitted In Juice’)

The competing chefs proved that great vegan food is a truly gourmet experience. All the dishes tasted delicious to me! The Vegan Society send their thanks to everyone who contributed in any way.

We are delighted at the success of this part of our ‘Vegan Catering for All’ project. We continue to spread the message that good vegan food is a great solution for caterers. Watch out for recipes in future editions of The Vegan.

300ml

kirsch (‘Cowen Kirsch De Cuisine’)

850g 100ml for the shot 50ml for the truffle cake filling

Golden syrup (‘Crazy Jack Organic Syrup’)

100ml

Dried sour cherries (‘Sainsbury’s Sour Cherries’)

150g

Demerara sugar (‘Sainsbury’s

100g for the tuille

Demerara Sugar, Raw Cane’)

50g for the truffle cake filling 25g for the stewed cherries

Salt (‘Maldon Sea Salt’)

5g

Plain flour (‘McDougall’s’)

100g

‘Pure’ soya margarine

100g

Method

Dark chocolate truffle cake: For the outer case, break the chocolate into small pieces and melt in a bain marie. Apply 3 coats of the melted chocolate to a flexible silicone mould, chilling before each new coating.

drain and finely chop. Heat 100g of sugar, syrup, margarine and salt until the margarine has melted and the sugar dissolved.

Add the flour and cherries and combine thoroughly. Chill until required.

with the remaining sugar until the cherries have darkened in colour and the sugar has dissolved and reduced to a deep red syrup. Chill for service.

Cherry ‘shot’:

For the filling, break the chocolate into small pieces and melt in a bain marie. Warm the cream, sugar and kirsch, but do not boil, and slowly add to the chocolate whilst stirring. Pour the mixture into the moulds and leave to set in the refrigerator for 11⁄2 - 2 hours.

To bake, spread a thin layer of the mixture onto a silpat nonstick matt (using a template if desired). Bake at 180C˚ for 7 minutes, remove from the oven and shape over a curved surface before the tuile sets (this will enable the tuile to stand ‘upright’ on the plate).

Cherry tuile:

Stewed cherries:

Soak the cherries in the warm water in order to soften them,

Decant the juice from the cherries and reserve. Heat the cherries

Combine the juice from the cherries with the kirsch and chill ready for service.

To serve: Portion the cherry shots into 4 shot glasses and place on the plate. Place the cake onto the plate with the stewed cherries as a garnish.

Place the tuile on the plate and serve.

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29

Shari Black Velvet

T

oday’s rock scene is thriving. Not just with great music – but a whole lot of vegans too. It’s exciting to see musicians who care about more than just themselves and who use their influence to spread the word to their audience.

Fred Mascherino, for example, has been vegan for many years.

Fred is probably most known for being a member of Taking Back Sunday – although he left the band to front his own project, The Color Fred. Caring about the environment Mascherino’s CD ‘Bend To Break’ was released with biodegradable packaging, made from cardboard and cornstarch. He has also put out a vegan shoe with footwear company Macbeth and, doing as much as he can for the environment, he drives a car that runs on vegetable oil from a local restaurant.

Mascherino says he became vegan after reading a book.

“That’s what brought me into it 11 years ago. I read a book called ‘Diet For A New America’, which talked about the meat industry in America, which I’m sure is different to here. It’s by John Robbins; his father owned Baskin Robbins, which is a big ice-cream place over there. He was supposed to inherit the whole dairy farm and ice-cream company but he became vegan and turned it down. He said ‘I’m going to be writing books about something you don’t want to hear’, and that was who inspired me.”

Although Mascherino doesn’t like to preach about being vegan he’ll talk about veganism when asked and has inspired others with his laid-back attitude. On his last UK tour, he told Black Velvet rock magazine, “Alan from Four Year Strong said today ‘I was at McDonalds and I decided to get the veggie burger and it was really good,’ and I’d never said anything to him, he’s not vegetarian, but he just thought to do it because I had gotten one yesterday and told him I thought it was pretty good. That’s important. That’s how I started doing the things that I care about; because I saw other people doing it and thought ‘wow, I want to get in on that, I want to do something good’.”

Another vegan musician, who is slightly more opinionated, is Davey Havok of AFI. AFI are a four-piece featuring two vegetarians and two vegans. Frontman Havok has in the last 12 months begun a clothing company known as Zu Boutique with a vegan friend “out of our deep love of music, movies, vegans, heathens and anything else our self-indulgent hearts desire.”

Some of the T-shirts feature animal rights designs such as ‘Murder’, a T-shirt with a running hotdog with the word ‘MURDER’ above it. Then there’s ‘Got Pus?’ the T-shirt which shows an ice-cream with ‘PUS’ written on the cone and ‘SUFFERING’ above it – an anti-dairy message for the world.

The designs can be found at www.zuboutique.com. In a PETA2 video, Davey says, “As human beings we are not meant to consume animals, we are not meant to consume animal products. I have begun making shirts like this one, to remind you, to remind everyone, that it is in fact murder.”

Hellogoodbye’s Forrest Kline, Story Of The Year’s Adam Russell, Halifax’s Chris Brandt, Goldfinger’s John Feldmann, The Matches’ Shawn Harris… the list could go on – they are all vegan and all a part of the rock world. Although the bands aren’t as big as Bon Jovi or the Rolling Stones their hearts most definitely are. All have inspired fans to take the vegan plunge and spoken up on being vegan. They play rock music – and in short, they most definitely rock.

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Contributions to Postbag are welcomed, but accepted on the understanding that they may be edited in the interests of brevity or clarity

Dear Editor, I was puzzled by the inclusion in the article on the monarch butterfly in the Autumn issue of The Vegan of encouragement to grow its foodplant, milkweed, in our gardens with no mention that monarchs do not occur in the UK. However a better-informed colleague proved me wrong and Butterfly Conservation confirmed that they are occasional visitors, a few being blown off course during migration and seen in the SW of England. Milkweed does not grow in this country so the few that arrive here do not breed and as neither the butterfly nor its foodplant are native to the UK it would not be a good idea to encourage them. We know what happened with Canadian pondweed and Japanese knotweed!

Best wishes, Patricia Tricker, Yorkshire

THE VEGETARIAN CHARITY

Needy young vegetarians up to and including the age of 25 years can receive grants from the Charity which also provides funds to promote vegetarianism among the young.

Donations and legacies are most welcome to ensure that we can continue to satisfy the need for help.

Further information can be obtained from our website www.vegetariancharity.org.uk where application forms can be downloaded.

Or contact: Grants Secretary, PO Box 473, Crewe, CW3 0WU Registered Charity No 294767

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The Vegan l Spring 2009

VEGAN NUTRITION GUIDELINES To ensure that vegans maintain good health it is important to: n Eat plenty of brightly coloured fruit and vegetables including dark green leafy vegetables. n Eat plenty of wholefoods (brown bread, brown rice etc). n Include in your diet each day at least three micrograms of vitamin B12 from fortified foods or 10 micrograms from a supplement. n Expose your face and arms to the sun for 15 minutes per day whenever you can (if your shadow is much longer than you the sun is not strong enough). If your sun exposure is limited (for example in a British winter), or if you are dark skinned, make sure that you get 10 to 20 micrograms of vitamin D2 each day from fortified food or a supplement. n Ensure a source of iodine such as kelp or take a supplement.

It is important to take neither too much nor too little, since both overdose and underdose can be harmful. A good iodine intake is 15 to 30 grams of kelp (kombu) per year or a daily supplement containing 100 to 150 micrograms of iodine. n Try to get at least 500 mg per day of calcium from calcium rich foods or supplements. n Consume a tablespoonful of ground flaxseed or a teaspoonful of (uncooked) flaxseed oil each day if possible or consume other omega 3 rich oils. For example you could use two tablespoons of rapeseed oil (which does not have a strong taste) in place of other vegetable oils such as sunflower or corn oil.

Don’t forget

to tell your teachers and group leaders about the free services we offer! There are loads of resources available on our webpage at www.vegansociety.com/teach_and_learn.

We can arrange for someone to visit to talk about being vegan or give cookery demonstrations. Rob Jackson

Competitione !

th 10 signed copies of ing new natural parent ok, guide and recipe bo ng Evie’s Kitchen: Raisi an Ecstatic Child by tion.

Shazzie of Rawcrea First come, first ur served! Send us yo e’ by 27 March. vi ‘E details marked

FINTON AND OTIS ARE TWO 10 YEAR OLD LIFE VEGANS Finton says “I feel that it is cruel to take away an animal’s life and leave their children orphans. I can't see myself eating an animal and it makes me sad to see other people eating them.” He likes to do fencing, hockey, ice skating and swimming, and wants to be a marine biologist when he grows up and work with dolphins and whales.

Finton front; Otis back; Roque below

Otis says “I think being a vegan is a very good thing, because for one thing if you are not a vegan you could be eating your favourite animal. If you like goats you could find yourself eating one and that goes for the same with lambs, geese and cows.” He adopted a tiger in India called Roque, who was rescued from a Spanish pet shop, “keeping animals in cages is not a good thing, especially tigers and lions and other big cats”.

They are the only vegans at their school but have friends who want to be vegan but their parents won’t let them. Finton said “we’re very unhappy that our school winter fair is going to have a real reindeer, which upsets me and my brother very much because the reindeer might get upset by all the loud noises”.

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33

Meat-eaters on

bicycles versus vegans in

SUVs: how to bring a good argument into disrepute Stephen Walsh

The claim that a vegan in a Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) or four-wheel drive car causes less global warming than a meat-eater on a bicycle has been doing the rounds for a couple of years. Nice sound-bite, but is it true?

B

ased on DEFRA’s figures for the global warming impact of producing different types of food in the UK1, producing the ingredients of a typical omnivorous diet (to the point of being ready for distribution to a wholesaler) results in about 1,200 kg CO2 equivalent per year compared with about 350 kg for a simple vegan diet - an advantage of about 850 kg to the vegan.

The average distance travelled by private cars in the UK is about 6,500 km per person per year2 and a typical SUV emits 0.27 kg per km3. Based on average distance, this adds up to 1,750 kg per person per year - a clear win for the meat-eater on a bicycle.

If instead of an SUV we take the Toyota Prius, a common petrol-electric hybrid car, emissions drop to 0.104 kg per km or 680 kg per person per year. Other things being equal, therefore, a vegan in a Prius hybrid (a far cry from an SUV) clocks up slightly less emissions than a meat-eater on a bicycle.

Overall US emissions per capita are double those for the UK, so comparable US figures are higher both for food and for travel. US figures4 indicate that producing a typical US diet causes 1,500 kg more emissions than producing a vegan diet. As the average distance travelled by car is about double the UK value at 13,000 km per person, typical SUV emissions also double to 3,500 kg.

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The Vegan Vegan ll Spring Spring 2009 2009 The

In fact, Eshel and Martin estimate 4,760 kg per year for the US SUV example, which is even less efficient than the average UK SUV. Both the UK and the US comparisons show that the increase in global warming emissions from using an SUV rather than a bicycle is two to three times the reduction in emissions from following a vegan diet rather than a typical omnivorous diet.

If the comparison is made per kilometre travelled, the difference is even more dramatically in favour of the meat-eating cyclist. Burning roughly an extra 25 calories (kcal) per kilometre, the cyclist on an average UK diet would generate just one tenth of the emissions of the SUV and even a vegan in a Prius would generate more than three times the emissions per kilometre of the meat-eater on a bicycle.

Only by taking a hypothetical meateater consuming large amounts of beef and lamb rather than a typical meat-eater can the comparison be tilted in favour of the vegan, but we could just as easily tilt it the other way by taking a hypothetical vegan consuming lots of hothouse-grown Dutch or British tomatoes which account for essentially the same emissions per kilogram as beef (and per calorie far more)1.

So long as we avoid eating large quantities of hothouse vegetables or foods transported by air, a vegan diet can have substantial environmental benefits, but if we want to be taken seriously we should not overstate the case. Although worldwide the global warming impact of livestock exceeds that of transport5, this is because most developing countries have poorly developed transport systems. The statement is far from true in Europe and the US. where typical transport use, and indeed typical home energy consumption, each has a far greater impact in terms of global warming than typical consumption of animalderived foods.

So the “vegan in an SUV” sound-bite is best binned before it leads people who might be genuinely interested in the real and significant environmental advantages of a vegan diet to regard us as hypocrites or fools with little real concern for or awareness of our overall environmental impact. Being vegan can make a real difference for the environment – somewhat greater than changing from an average car to a Prius (as noted by Eshel and Martin) – but it is only one part of the picture.

Vegans seeking to engage with environmentalists can get to grips with the overall issue through books such as Chris Goodall’s How to live a low carbon life or Gabrielle Walker and David King’s The Hot Topic.

Beyond Vegan – how to reduce our environmental impact still further and get the better of the meat eater on a bicycle Apart from the obvious solution of getting your own bicycle, there are a number of areas where we can make a difference at least as important (in environmental terms) as going vegan.

Population Generally speaking, more people mean more land taken to meet human needs, more pollution and less space for nondomesticated animals, so the number of children we have is arguably the biggest decision we make in relation to the environment. That said, there are also plenty of ways to reduce the impact we and our families have on the environment from day to day.

How many vegans does it take to change a light bulb? Energy conservation begins at home.

Average home energy use in the UK amounts to about 2,500 kg of carbon dioxide emissions per person per year.

Significant reductions can be achieved with no loss of comfort or functionality.

Topping up loft insulation, getting wall cavities insulated, choosing high efficiency appliances can all save money as well as reduce emissions.

Condensing boilers are considerably more efficient than older types of boiler as they lose less energy in the form of water vapour.

Energy-saving light bulbs can make a major saving, though you may find you need a 20W energy-saving bulb (claiming to be equivalent to 100W) to replace a 60W incandescent bulb.

Switching off lights and other appliances when not in use can also reduce emissions.

A short shower is a much more efficient way to stay clean than filling a bath, though energy-guzzling power showers are best avoided.

Cooking with gas causes less emissions than cooking with electricity, with the possible exception of microwave ovens.

Boiling food in the minimum amount of water is generally the most efficient cooking method, while cooking small amounts of food in a conventional oven is the least efficient as most energy goes into warming up the whole oven rather than the food.

Is your journey really necessary?

The environmental costs of travel.

Travel emissions per person also equate to about 2,500 kg per year of carbon dioxide. Estimates for the impact of flying vary greatly as they depend on the factor used for the increased impact of emissions at high altitudes. Chris Goodall uses a factor of 3, but DEFRA guidelines now suggest a factor of 1.9.

Using the lower factor, UK emissions from air travel and from car travel are each about 1,200 kg per person each year.

Car-sharing can greatly improve the efficiency of travel by car. With four people, the typical 0.18 kg CO2 per km becomes 0.045 kg per person - slightly better than travelling by train (0.06 kg/km) and beaten only by express coach (0.03 kg/km). A small diesel car can reduce emissions considerably compared with a larger petrol car and a hybrid such as the Prius can do even better, though at a much higher cost to buy. If you are replacing a particularly old and fuel-hungry car, consider whether you can afford to scrap it rather than reselling it to continue its damage driven by someone else.

Airlines like to tell us that emissions per kilometre from economy class long-distance air travel are less than those from one person travelling in a typical car (about 0.11 kg CO2 per km compared with 0.18 kg per km by car), but the unique impact of air travel is that it allows us to travel stupendous distances very rapidly and to increase emissions in a way that would not be possible by any other form of transport.

A 7,500-mile round trip from London to New York generates more than 1,400 kg of CO2 emissions per person and has become a commonplace weekend journey. There are no easy answers to making air travel more efficient, so for the foreseeable future the only answer is to fly as little as possible or preferably not at all.

Food - environmentally friendlier choices within the vegan diet Total food-related emissions per person in the UK are about 2,000 kg of carbon dioxide equivalents per year. Switching from a conventional diet to an entirely vegan diet can save about 850 kg of emissions.

Buying locally produced, minimally processed, in-season food can generate significant further reductions.

Two key types of food to avoid are airfreighted produce (salad vegetables from outside Europe and highly perishable items such as berries will generally be transported by air) and foods produced in heated greenhouses such as out-of-season tomatoes.

Tomatoes grown unseasonally in heated greenhouses in Britain and Holland cause comparable emissions per kilogram to beef. Sea-freighted produce from within Europe is much less environmentally damaging and a reasonable means of maintaining quality and variety in the diet when local fruit and vegetables are particularly scarce.

Choosing organic foods is often recommended as a way to reduce environmental emissions, but the evidence is not clear cut. Organic farming avoids the energy costs of synthetic fertilisers, but requires more land and more energy for cultivation.

Overall there is unlikely to be a major emissions reduction from choosing organic food, though there may be other good reasons for doing so.

Stock-free organic food (see page 39) avoids reliance on animal manure and hence dependence on a major source of emissions but currently has very limited availability.

About a third of food purchased in the UK is wasted, so reducing food waste by careful storage and not buying too much can make a substantial difference to the environmental cost of our food.

References 1 Determining the environmental burdens and resource use in the production of agricultural and horticultural commodities, Williams, A.G., Audsley, E. and Sandars, D.L. 2006 2 How to live a low-carbon life, Chris Goodall, 2007 3 http://www.carpages.co.uk/co2/co2suv-226-to-999-1.asp 4 Diet, Energy and Global Warming, Gidon Eshel and Pamela Martin in Earth Interactions, volume 10, pp 117, March 2006 5 Livestock’s long shadow, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, 2006

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PERMACULTURE – A BEGINNER’S GUIDE SECOND EDITION WITH A FORWARD BY BRIGIT STRAWBRIDGE

By Graham Burnett Published by Spiralseed ISBN 978-09553492-1-8 £8.00 Reviewed by Amanda Baker Permaculture is a set of ethics, principles and practice for the design of sustainable communities. At its core, permaculture is about care of all living things. It has been described as, ‘Revolution, disguised as organic gardening’. Permaculturists are inspired by sustainable natural systems. They seek to use ecological principles to build resilient human habitats.

Graham Burnett is a prominent permaculturist, with years of practical experience. Unfortunately, he is one of the few people actively promoting the vegan message within the UK permaculture community. He is also involved in the Transition movement, which applies permaculture to existing towns and cities.

Almost all books on permaculture assume that smallscale ‘free range’ animal farming is desirable. As a committed vegan, Graham Burnett is therefore an ideal person to introduce permaculture principles to a vegan audience.

This second edition of his successful Beginner’s Guide adds new colour illustrations and an enthusiastic introduction by new permaculture practitioner Brigit Strawbridge (co-star of the ‘Its Not Easy Being Green’ TV series). Full of powerful, inspiring and highly practical ideas, I recommend this book to anyone who wants to help bring about the positive transformation of what Burnett calls ‘modern destructo-culture’.

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ANIMAL RIGHTS – A UNIVERSAL DECLARATION You can buy this film from The Vegan Society Webshop www.vegansociety.com/shop for £9.95.

Reviewed by Rob Jackson This is a newly released version of a video produced and written by Alex Bourke, of Vegetarian Guides fame and a former Chair of the Vegan Society. It stands up remarkably well, and looks as though it could have been made yesterday rather than several years ago. Though only twenty minutes long it packs a lot in and takes a broad look at the animal rights movement, demonstrating the similarity to other social movements and makes a case for its equal importance. Investigation into the motivations, history and promise for the future of the movement is accompanied by moving imagery and key quotes from leading historical animal advocates. This film makes a great introduction to the topics and would be excellent for showing to groups.

Our moral relationship with animals has been eroded by the increasing invisibility of the issues, something which this film attempts to rectify, and does so quite succinctly. It examines the different types of exploitation of animals such as experimentation, farming, captivity and amusement, and enquires as why and how these have come about. The film ends with a positive response, asking that the viewer take personal responsibility for the freedom of animals, beginning with a commitment to vegetarianism.

Newly added extras for this release are full excerpts of an interview with Dr Richard Ryder, who devised the term ‘speciesism’ in 1970. Well worth a watch!

VEGAN RECIPES

By Nicola Graimes Published: Southwate ISBN-10: 184476267X ISBN-13: 9781844762675 Price: £4.99 Reviewed by Verity Hunt-Sheppard

ONE CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE

By Ingrid E. Newkirk (with Jane Ratcliffe) ISBN 978-1-59869-629-5 $16.95 Reviewed By Shari Black Velvet Ingrid Newkirk, founder of PETA, has written a number of books over the years with One Can Make A Difference being the latest.

What you may be surprised to discover, though, is that this book is not an animal rights based book per se. Instead, Ingrid has widened the scope with this book spanning a wide range of topics – yet all focusing on how one person can make a difference.

Ingrid has collected the stories and words of 50 individuals, all with one thing in common – all having done something in a bid to make the world a better place. Contributors range from celebrities such as Stella McCartney and Brigitte Bardot to the lesser known but equally important Lady Bunny and Susan Cohn. You can read moving essays such as Carol Buckley’s on how she founded an elephant sanctuary, how John Gardner became blind and then developed software and a printer that could read Braille, and how Dr Temple Grand designed a slaughterhouse system to reduce the stress of animals being killed for meat. Peter Hammarstedt writes about witnessing Canadian seal hunts with Sea Shepherd before Ru Hartwell’s piece about his own eco-friendly Treeflight initiative.

The book does get across the fact that one person CAN make a difference in whatever field one wants. Although the animal rights related stories will stand out most to vegans and activists (Stella McCartney and Brigitte Bardot’s being personal favourites), the large scope of subjects covered will help put the book into the hands of many other readers too – and thus Newkirk has the opportunity of becoming noticed as more than just an animal rights activist but also as a renowned author. One imagines that with the appeal of the book to a wider audience new readers not necessarily of the animal rights persuasion may be inspired by the intermittent anti-cruelty based tales to become more compassionate and make a stand. We can hope, anyway!

An enlightening read, especially for those in need of a little inspiration.

For anyone adverse to weighty cookbooks, long ingredient lists and recipe instructions that involve kitchen utensils you’ve never heard of, then Vegan Recipes is the kind of cookbook for you.

Vegan Recipes is only 96 pages but contains more than 250 colour photos and over 50 recipes. The recipes are simple to prepare and cook and none require any overly expensive ingredients. The methodology is accompanied by clear step-by-step photographs to guide you along the way and every recipe includes a high quality photo of the finished result.

Recipes include Spicy Peanut Soup, Spiced Dolmades, Mediterranean One Crust Pie, Caramelized Red Onion and Thyme Tart, Pak Choi and Mushroom Stir Fry, Polenta and Pepper Bread, Tropical Mango and Pecan Cheesecake, Orange Blossom Jelly, Mixed Berry Tart and Pineapple and Ginger Upside Down Cake. Accompanying each recipe is a basic nutritional table giving the amount of calories, fat, protein, fibre, carbohydrate, iron and calcium per portion. Some recipes even include a cooking tip or variation.

Vegan Recipes includes a comprehensive introduction with sections on avoiding and replacing animal products, vegan nutrition, daily menu ideas, vegan pregnancy and children, eating out, entertaining and the vegan kitchen.

Vegan Recipes is an excellent little cookbook for those wanting an easy to follow cookbook that still yields tasty results. It’s also an ideal starter cookbook for new vegans and the vegan-curious.

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Sally Ford of Ludlow, Shropshire

SPRING IN THE VEGAN-ORGANIC GARDEN - THE THREE P’S Extravagant birdsong, loads of frogspawn, hosts of daffodils: spring’s here at last.

The days are getting longer and so is the list of gardening jobs – this is why the three Ps: planning, prioritising and patience are the key to getting the most out of your garden.

Planning Growing your own food using veganorganic methods is a great way of reducing your carbon footprint at the same time as enjoying delicious meals. Spring weather is unpredictable and likely to be even more so as the effects of climate change kick in (see VON website for more information on climate change). If it’s too wet or cold to be working in the garden, use the time to make sure you’re well organised and ready for action when the weather permits.

Rotation is one of the best ways of avoiding bad pest attacks and maintaining soil fertility. Draw a simple plan of your vegetable garden or allotment and work out a system which suits you (usually 4 years minimum). The important thing is to stick to your plan and not be tempted to just pop a few cabbages in last year’s brassica (cabbage family) bed because you’ve got space. Try to arrange your beds to run north/south and to plant tall crops so that they don’t shade sun-loving smaller ones.

Many green manures can be sown from March onwards and it’s a good idea to sow them in any gaps in your beds or sow them under and around large plants.

Even if they only stay in for a few months, they’ll make a weed-suppressing living mulch and some will help to fix nitrogen.

Note which are brassicas or legumes and those which will fit anywhere in your rotation.

To help you find out more about veganorganic techniques, VON publishes a range of fact sheets on topics such as green manures and growing pulses for drying.

Grow Vegan Puzzler In which rotation ‘families’ do the following belong: Onions, Mizuna Greens, Tomatoes Send your answer on a postcard to: The Vegan Society (address details on page 1) by 31 March 2009.

The winner receives a copy of Vegan Recipes

The answer to the Winter Grow Vegan Puzzler is: Perennial and the winner is Darryl Martin-Schrader

Prioritising Prioritising your work in the garden and carefully selecting what you want to grow will lead to good results. A list of exactly when certain jobs need to be done means that you won’t waste time or miss vital sowing dates. When seedlings are ready for potting up or planting out, don’t neglect them in favour of a new project.

Growing salad crops is a priority so that you can eat something fresh, raw and green every day. Even if you’ve only got a balcony or window box, you can still grow some ‘cut & come again’ salads to enrich your diet. Whilst potatoes are easy to grow, concentrate on growing an early crop which is less likely to be affected by blight if they can be dug up by the end of July. Peppers and aubergines are delicious, but neither grows well in many places, even under cover, so consider using the space for different varieties of tomato.

But remember, diversity pays dividends and for a healthy garden, avoid growing the same plant ‘family’ in the same place year after year.

Patience Don’t be tempted to sow or plant too early if the weather conditions aren’t right. Remember to harden off your courgettes, cucumbers and pumpkins fully, before planting them outside.

Even potatoes planted in late April will soon catch up as daylight and temperatures increase.

The weather will test your patience and choice of varieties to use! 2008’s wet, dull summer was disastrous for courgettes, but Partenon F1’s fared better than most. This is a unique variety which can set fruit without being pollinated and can produce early fruits, even during cool weather, ideal for growing under cloches.

Hope the three P’s work for you and that you enjoy your spring gardening.

Resources Seaweed meal, applied up to three months before planting, will improve the soil’s humus structure and add nutrients, especially vital trace elements. Instructions for use come with the product, only a little per square metre is needed, raked lightly into the soil.

This is available from many garden centres and in bulk from the Organic Gardening Catalogue www.organiccatalogue.com 0845 130 1304. NB calcified seaweed is not the same thing and is not used as it is similar to coral!

Joining Vegan-Organic Network is an excellent move for the vegan-organic gardener and for anyone interested in animal rights and the environment; the twice-yearly VON magazine is packed with helpful information. Vegans! Remember there is a world of difference between vegan-organic (stockfree) and conventional organic – support VON and help get real vegan-grown food in the shops.

Write to: VON 80 Annable Rd Lower Bredbury Stockport SK6 2DF phone 0845 223 5232 (local rate, 10am to 8pm) or email info@veganorganic.net Visit the VON website and join online at www.veganorganic.net

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events

Updated diaries and events information can be viewed at www.vegansociety.com

n MARCH 2009

n JULY 2009

The Brighton Vegan Fayre Saturday 21 March, 11am to 6pm The first ever Brighton Vegan Fayre makes its appearance at the Brighton Centre overlooking Brighton Beach. It promises to be a flamboyant, exciting and hugely entertaining mix of all things vegan, and best of all it’s in aid of Vegfam, to try to raise awareness of their Gimme 5 campaign. www.veganfayre.co.uk

International Vegan Festival in Brazil Wednesday 22 to Saturday 25 July www.svb.org.br/12veganfestival/english

n APRIL 2009 North-East Vegan Gathering Friday 3 April to Friday 10 April Located in Micklewood Park, Morpeth, Northumberland. The aim of the gathering is to bring people together for a green, peaceful, fun week and to enhance and promote veganism in the North-East. On-site accommodation in purpose-built holiday houses from £30 per person for the week. http://www.vegne.co.uk/vegan-gathering/ The Incredible Veggie Show Saturday 18 April, 10am-6pm The Royal Horticultural Halls, Lawrence Hall & Conference Centre, Greycoat Street, London, SW1P 2QD As with previous shows, Viva!’s 2009 extravaganza will provide inspiration and information for all. Everything at the show will be vegan. www.viva.org.uk/roadshows09/veggieshow.html

n MAY 2009 European Veg Union event in Croatia Friday 1 to Sunday 3 May All catering vegan. www.euroveg.eu Veggie Pride UK Saturday 16th May Birmingham City Centre Simultaneous with Veggie Pride events around the globe. www.veggiepride.org.uk Bristol Vegan Fayre Saturday 30 May to Sunday 31 May, 11am to 9pm each day The largest vegan event in the world. www.bristolveganfayre.co.uk

n JULY 2009 The Incredible Veggie Roadshow Saturday 18 July, 10.30am-4.30pm Crown & Mitre Hotel, Carlisle. Food tastings, cookery demonstrations, talks, free diet and health advice, stalls, competitions, beauty products, books, vegan food products, information and campaign news. Free entry. http://www.viva.org.uk/events.php

n AUGUST 2009 Vegan Camp Saturday 1 August to Friday 15 August The 29th Vegan Camp is to be held in Cornwall near Newquay.

Vegan Camp provides a well-deserved break for vegans or anyone willing to be vegan during their stay for 2 weeks, or for a day or two. E-mail Web: http://www.veggies.org.uk/vegancamp/ Vegan Venture Course Saturday 22 August, 9am-5pm Applications are invited from vegetarians/vegans aged 16-25 years for a vegan cookery day to be held at the Vegetarian Society near Manchester.

The course, with specially designed nutritious meals for young people by the Cordon Vert School, will be totally funded by The Vegetarian Charity in memory of the late Maxwell Lee. Application forms can be downloaded from: www.vegetariancharity.org.uk or by post from The Vegetarian Charity, PO Box 473, Crewe CW3 0WU.

n SEPTEMBER 2009 London Vegan Festival Sunday 6 September, 11am to 8pm The 12th London Vegan Festival has been provisionally set for the above date, with many stallholders, free nutrition information, an array of interesting talks and workshops, and of course delicious vegan food. There will be something for everyone: children, adults, vegans and non-vegans.

The Incredible Veggie Roadshow Saturday 26 September, 10.30am-4.30pm Town Hall, Cheltenham. A brilliant family day out, there will be food tastings, cookery demonstrations, talks, free diet and health advice, stalls, competitions, beauty products, books, vegan food products, information and campaign news.

Free entry. http://www.viva.org.uk/events.php

n OCTOBER 2009 Leicester Vegan Fair Saturday 10 October Leicester’s largest vegetarian and vegan event with a strong focus on eco living and wildlife conservation too. Stalls, talks, vegan cafe and more.

More details from www.leicesterveganfair.co.uk

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VEGAN SOCIETY LOCAL CO THE VEGAN SOCIETY LOCAL CONTACTS Local Contacts are Vegan Society members who act voluntarily as a point of contact for those interested in the Society’s work. They are not official representatives of the Society and their levels of activity and knowledge vary according to their individual circumstances.

Some Local Contacts run groups, in which case details are below their names. Groups not run by Local Contacts and non-geographic groups are listed separately and Youth Contacts are listed on p.33.

For details of group activities please check the website or get in touch with the Contact.

Veg*ans = vegetarians & vegans.

When writing to a Contact please enclose a sae.

If you’ve been a full member of the Society for at least six months and would like to be a Local Contact please get in touch with the Coordinator, Patricia Tricker (see under Yorkshire, no phone calls before 8 pm please).

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ONTACTS & GROUPS

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LISTINGS PATRONS Freya Dinshah Maneka Gandhi Rebecca Hall Dr Michael Klaper Moby Gordon Newman Cor Nouws Wendy Turner-Webster Benjamin Zephaniah

COUNCIL Philip Bickley (Nutrition and Health Spokesperson) Alex Claridge (Assistant National Contacts’ Coordinator and Assistant International Coordinator) Vanessa Clarke (International Coordinator and Information Consultant) Matthew Cole (Information Consultant) Graham Neale (Chair) George Rodger (Vice Chair and Information Consultant) Patricia Tricker (National Contacts’ Coordinator) Stephen Walsh (Nutrition and Health Spokesperson and Treasurer)

STAFF PR/Media Officer Amanda Baker Information Officer Verity Hunt-Sheppard

If you would like more information on veganism a free Information Pack is available from the Vegan Society.

Chief Executive Officer Nigel Winter Volunteers Dean Bracher John Davis Catriona Gold Philippa Lennox Lenka Pagan Dave Shortland Shari Black Velvet

If you are already a vegan or vegan sympathiser, please support the Society and help increase its influence by joining. Increased membership means more resources to educate and inform.

Business Development Officer Colm McBriarty Head of Sales & IT Dave Palmer Information Officer Clare Persey Head of Information Services Rosamund Raha Trademark Assistant Sandrine Revert Office Manager / Finance Officer Fiona Sylva

The Vegan l Spring 2009

Abhorrence of the cruel practices inherent in an agricultural system based on the abuse of animals is probably the single most common reason for the adoption of veganism, but many people are drawn to it for health, ecological, resource, spiritual and other reasons.

THE VEGAN SOCIETY was formed in England in November 1944 by a group of vegetarians who had recognised the ethical compromises implicit in lacto-vegetarianism (ie dairy dependent). Today, the Society continues to highlight the breaking of the strong maternal bond between the cow and her new-born calf within just four days; the dairy cow’s proneness to lameness and mastitis; her subjection to an intensive cycle of pregnancy and lactation; our unnatural and unhealthy taste for cows’ milk; and the de-oxygenation of river water through contamination with cattle slurry.

Education Officer Rob Jackson

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VEGANISM may be defined as a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as possible and practical, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose. In dietary terms it refers to the practice of dispensing with all animal produce — including meat, fish, poultry, eggs, animal milks, honey, and their derivatives.

CLASSIFIEDS (UK) HOLIDAYS CORNWALL

HAMPSHIRE

HOLIDAYS ABROAD

NEW FOREST - The Barn Vegan Guest House. En Suite rooms, evening meals.

Perfect for walking/cycling etc 023 8029 2531 or www.veggiebarn.net

Pyrenean mountain village in southern France. Enjoy our vegan B&B. Phone Karen or Matthew on 00 33 56166 9195 www.veganholidayfrance.com Kerala & South India Vegan and vegetarian cuisine, eco-friendly resorts & hotels, beaches, backwaters, wildlife, trekking & camping.

Brochure: 01892 722440 Fax: 01892 724913 E-mail: info@keralaconnections.co.uk www.keralaconnections.co.uk

ISLE OF WIGHT

WEST CORK-vegetarian self-catering apartments for singles, couples and families in peaceful wooded surroundings.

Organic vegetables & vegan wholefoods available. 10% discount for early booking.

Green Lodge, Trawnamadree, Ballylickey, Bantry, Co. Cork, Ireland.Tel: 00353 2766 146, Text: 00353 0861955451. Email: greenlodge@eircom.net or website http://homepage.eircom.net/~greenlodge

CUMBRIA

DEVON

PUBLICATIONS

LANCASHIRE

Vegan Views now has a new Editor: Knut Caspari, Longridge, Bankend Road, Dumfries, DG1 4TP. Tel 01387 265348.

Email sjolberg@online.net. Letters, articles etc welcome.

SUSSEX

North Devon. Exclusively Vegetarian/Vegan B&B. Large letting room with private bathroom. 01271 816193. www.limetreenursery.co.uk.

Alpujarras - Andalucia Attractive, well equipped townhouse. Sunny roof terrace.

Wonderful views, birds, walks, mountain villages. Wholefood shops, Restaurants serving veggie food. Sleeps 2-6. (10% discount for Vegan supporters) 01736 753555 Email: suehalfyard@fsmail.net Andalucia - remote mountain village 40 mins sea - walking, wildlife - from £100 per week - 2 persons - £180 4 persons.

Tel 01202 431867 www.orgiva.org/alfornon

DISCOUNT CARD

DORSET

WALES people

Donald Watson House 21 Hylton Street Hockley Birmingham B18 6HJ

animals

environment

Tel: 0845 45 88244 Fax: 0121 523 1749 info@vegansociety.com www.vegansociety.com

THE VEGAN DISCOUNT CARD

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CLASSIFIEDS VEGAN VOICE magazine promotes a nonviolent lifestyle beneficial to the planet and to all animals. For the latest on veganism and animal rights, subscribe now to Vegan Voice, Australia’s celebrated and singular quarterly magazine! www.veganic.net

ORGANISATIONS

Save A Life Adopt A Goat

PERSONAL

The ideal gift for the person who has everything. We take into care those who have suffered from neglect, abuse and abandonment. Providing a loving home for the rest of their days Buttercup Sanctuary for goats, Maidstone, Kent, ME17 4JU Tel: (01622) 746410 Registered Charity: 1099627

SHOPPING

www.Buttercups.org.uk THE VEGETARIAN CHARITY

Needy young vegetarians up to and including the age of 25 years can receive grants from the Charity which also provides funds to promote vegetarianism among the young.

Donations and legacies are most welcome to ensure that we can continue to satisfy the need for help.

Further information can be obtained from our website www.vegetariancharity.org.uk where application forms can be downloaded.

Sanctuary In Desperate Need Hillfields Animal Sanctuary, near Bromsgrove West Midlands, has 300 mouths to feed. The owner is battling against almost impossible odds and desperately needs help, both practical and financial. Please contact Lyn on 0121 445 3828.

Website www.hillfields-animal-sanctuary.com

Or contact: Grants Secretary, PO Box 473, Crewe, CW3 0WU Registered Charity No 294767

MISCELLANEOUS

ADVERTISEMENTS TO BE SUBMITTED BY 3 APRIL 2009 FOR INCLUSION IN THE SUMMER 2009 ISSUE OFTHE VEGAN CONTACT: ADVERTISING@VEGANSOCIETY.COM 0121 523 1733

Speaker available

Tim Woodley, ex-fireman now MD of Red Star Soaps available to speak for your group.

"A Brief History of Soap, Where it Comes From and How it's Made."

DISCOUNT CARD INTERNET SERVICES This card entitles the bearer to discounts at a range of outlets, restaurants and hotels.

A full list of discounts is available from The Vegan Society.

DISCOUNT CARD THE VEGAN VALID FROM

FEBRUARY 2009

UNTIL

MAY 2009 REFERENCE CODE

Ref:NBC 009

TDivine Frog Web Services www.divinefrog.co.uk

Websites from £100 Hosting and Email from £65 Eco-hosting from £75 Domain name registration from £5

Standards compliant, accessible, quality websites. Vegan owned and operated.

Don't settle for anything less.

Already have a website? Contact us about a free website health check! t: Ian on 07981 057697 e: i.nicoll@divinefrog.co.uk

The Professional Choice

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The Vegan l Spring 2009

Includes a demonstration of how to easily make your own 100% natural vegan soap with high street ingredients.

Vegan food and drinks also available.

For full details and free information call 01384 873748/07729 121362, e-mail redstar@gn.apc.org or log on to www.redstarnaturalliquidsoaps.co.uk.

CONDITIONS OF ACCEPTANCE: Advertisements are accepted subject to their satisfying the condition that the products advertised are entirely free from ingredients derived from animals; that neither products nor ingredients have been tested on animals; and that the content of such ads does not promote, or appear to promote, the use of non-vegan commodities.

Books, records, tapes, etc. mentioned in advertisements should not contain any material contrary to vegan principles. Advertisements may be accepted from catering establishments that are not run on exclusively vegan lines, provided that vegan meals are available and that the wording of such ads reflects this.

The Vegan Society trademark is the authentic international standard for vegan products.

Our logo provides an easy and trusted way to promote your cruelty-free goods and services to the growing number of vegans in the UK and worldwide.

Trademark holders benefit from instant recognition, promotion in The Vegan magazine, discounted advertising rates, and a listing on the Vegan Society website.

It’s good for you, good for the Vegan Society, and good for vegans.

For more information on the trademark, contact Colm McBriarty on (0121) 5231733 or email trademark@vegansociety.com.

You can also read about the trademark on our website at www.vegansociety.com

MEMBERSHIP / RENEWAL

I wish to become a member and support the work of the Vegan Society.

I wish to renew my membership.

Membership No. (if known)......................................................................

Name:................................................................................Address:..........................................................................................

Postcode:........................................Tel:..........................................................Email:..................................................................

Date of Birth: (for security purposes)........../.........../..........Occupation:.....................................................................................

Please tick this box if you are a dietary Vegan. This entitles you to voting rights in the Society’s elections if aged 18+.

Please treat my membership subscription as Gift Aid. I have paid UK income or capital gains tax equal to the amount the Society reclaims.

My income is less than £8000 per year and I qualify for the low income discount of 33%.*

A copy of the Society’s rules (Memo & Articles of Association) can be viewed on our website or at our office. Alternatively you may buy

I wish to enrol other members of my household for an additional £7 each.**

a copy for £5.

Please give full names of additional members and specify if dietary vegan and / or under 18. (If more than four additional members please attach separate sheet.)

Membership Individual £21 * Less £7 low-income deduction (if applicable) ** Add £7 per additional household member Under 18 years old £7 Memo & Articles of Association £5 Overseas: Europe +£5 / Rest of World +£7 Payment may be made by credit card, sterling International money order or sterling cheque drawn on a British bank.

Donation Total:

21

How to pay Cheque / PO payable to The Vegan Society Credit / Debit card (enter details below) Direct Debit (phone for details) Website: www.vegansociety.com Please debit my Visa / Mastercard Access / Visa Delta / Connect / Switch Solo card number

ccccccccccccccccccc Name on card:.........................................................................Signature:..................................................................

Today’s date........./........./.......Start date:......../........Expiry date......../........Switch Issue No.:.....................

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CROSSWORD Kate Sweeney & Vega

QUICK CROSSWORD set by Kate Sweeney Across 1 Tall palm tree bearing large hard-shelled oval nuts (7) 5 Small loaf or roll of soft bread (3) 8 Cook in an oven (5) 9 Special cooking pan (or an appliance put inside an ordinary pan) (7) 10 Off, no longer edible (3) 11 Cooling container for wine (3,6) 13 Kidney-shaped nut (6) 15 Trimmed, clipped (tree) (6) 17 Food for domestic livestock (9) 18 Child's napkin (3) 20 Salad plants (7) 22 May be made of meringues; birds' homes (5) 23 Decay (3) 24 Treat or enjoy to excess (7) Down 1 Chocolate substitute (5) 2 Leaf beet (5) 3 Flavour of 13 Across, perhaps (9) 4 Savours, samples (6) 5 Pollinator (3) 6 Large pulpy round fruit of the squash family (7) 7 Shredded by rubbing on a coarse surface (6) 12 Unprocessed (9) 13 Beverage (6) 14 Slim, thin (7) 16 Mixture of dry cereals, fruit and nuts (6) 18 Herb (5) 19 Cover with liquid before cooking (5) 21 Large vessel for storing liquids (3)

CRYPTIC CROSSWORD set by Vega

Please send in solution s to either crossword along wit h your na me and address by 31 March 2009 Prizes next issue for bo th crosswor Another Di ds: nner is Po ssible

by Mike an d Isy

Across 1 Call insect ("leafcutter"?) to spectacular ceremony (7) 5 Houmous perhaps made by princess and pea, say (3) 8 Strike a century and a half before dismissal (5) 9 Something going round at rotor spinning (7) 10 See 1 Down 11 Wide check bounces for plant (bird food?) (9) 13 Whip round return of old roller complements stick (6) 15 Sign sly mob scrambled (6) 17 Habit uncoordinated in true men (9) 18 Lettuce adjacent to hypotenuse (3) 20 Cecilia is only hiding dalliance (7) 22 Oil extra virgin I love stupidly (5) 23 Herb tree bark (3) 24 Set back around fencing sword piercing tents (7)

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Solution to the summer crosswords (Quick:left/Cryptic:right) The winner of the Cryptic crossword is: Miss B Norris The winner of the Quick Crossword is: Shannon Hemming

Down 1,10 Penny leads king (who failed to turn the tide) tail first to pie fruit (5,3) 2 Goths mix spirit (maybe Christmas Present?) (5) 3 Good-hearted Mediterranean flower, Jerusalem rock I hate perhaps (9) 4 Hint about large pot root (6) 5 Detective Oxonian type initially "E" Morse (3) 6 Inn (non-U) takes in alien seasoning plant (7) 7 Ribald carousing of wedding (6) 12 Sky to reek disgustingly at push of button (9) 13 Contents of stomach, illicit hot stuff (6) 14 American pie plants pink stalks - may make British crumble (7) 16 Ante up, struggling to realise small amount (6) 18 Companion I've followed for 6 (5) 19 Setter was regularly bearing grudges (maybe vegetable) (5) 21 Initially staple of your eastern vegan cooking sauce? (3)