‘Pupil menus should offer vegan option’
SCHOOL dinner menus are almost unthinkable without custard – but tastes are changing. Schools in Wales should now be offering vegan food, the body promoting a vegan diet says.
Headteachers say there is no evidence of demand, but the Vegan Society says it is hearing from people who want options without meat or animal products.
The charity will petition parliaments in Wales, England and Scotland later this summer asking for a vegan menu to be provided on all public-sector canteen menus, including schools.
Half a million people in the UK follow a vegan, plant-based diet which excludes all meat and animal products, including honey, dairy, eggs, meat and fish. Although the Vegan Society says there is no specific data for Wales, growing numbers of people are switching to a vegan diet.
Spokeswoman Dominika Piasecka said: “Our advocacy team often hear from vegans in challenging situations in schools, hospitals and prisons, and we want to ensure they can access useful information about their rights.
“A strong vegan offering promotes inclusivity, sustainability and good nutrition, and can certainly help with obesity as studies show vegans tend to have a lower BMI than non-vegans.
“It’s important to remember a vegan food option isn’t just for vegans – it often constitutes a safe dietary choice for everyone. We encourage people to get in touch with their local council, asking them to influence procurement across the public sector.”
The Vegan Society’s Catering for Everyone campaign is calling for good vegan food on public-sector menus every day. Awareness of a vegan diet has been boosted by campaigns like Veganuary, where people go vegan for the first month of the year.
This year, 860 people in Cardiff signed up for Veganuary, putting it into 11th place for cities taking part in the UK. Across the UK 168,500 took part.
Chris Norman, headteacher of Cardiff’s Willows High School, said his school would offer vegan options if there was demand – but no-one has asked for it.
“It’s not something that we have ever been asked for, but we would be able to put on some options if it ever was,” he said.
Rob Williams, director of policy at the National Association of Head Teachers Cymru, said: “We’ve not had any issues about this raised by members and so there is no evidence currently that we are aware of this in Wales. That is not to say that individual cases might have arisen within specific schools, it just hasn’t come to our attention.
“Some schools will already have experience of working with pupils and parents in terms of providing an adjusted menu for allergy issues.
“The difficulty has often been the limited financial margins that would allow for offering a wide range of food and drink if there was limited take-up.”
A Welsh government spokesman said: “All local authorities have a statutory duty to ensure pupils in maintained schools in Wales are offered a balanced and nutritious diet.”
He said the Healthy Eating in Maintained Schools statutory guidance for local authorities and governing bodies advises including plant protein as well as animal protein on menus to ensure that pupils are eating protein from a variety of sources.