7 minute read
We love veggies
Francine Jordan, media and PR officer at The Vegan Society talks about how to get your kids to give veganism a go this Veganuary.
For many parents and caregivers, the idea of seeing their children eat, and enjoy, platefuls of fruits and veggies sounds like a pipedream, but don’t despair. Expanding your repertoire with delicious, nutritious and colourful vegan recipes that bring novelty and excitement might just do the trick! Making very simple and cost-effective swaps to vegan alternatives could be what it takes to get your little ones to say “yum” instead of “yuck”.
While the environmental, health and animal welfare benefits of vegan diets are becoming increasingly clear, the idea of raising vegan children can still sometimes be met with raised eyebrows or questions from friends and family. So it is important to remember that the British Dietetic Association (www.bda.uk.com) recognises that vegan nutrition can support healthy living at every age and life-stage, including pregnancy, early years and beyond.
The good news is, the messaging around the numerous reasons for going vegan seems to be getting through. The number of vegans in the UK continues to rise, while an impressive 629,000 people globally took part in Veganuary last year, breaking all previous records.[1] The pro-vegan campaign, set up in 2014, encourages people to follow a vegan diet for the month of January.
Of course, getting people to sign up is only half the battle. It’s imperative that those who do take the plunge find it accessible and costeffective, and enjoy vegan food so much that they stick with it long-term. And, so far, the results are promising. In fact, of those who took part last year, 36% planned to stay vegan indefinitely, while 74% of those not staying vegan planned to at least halve their intake of animal products.[2] This ties in with similar findings from a YouGov survey earlier this year. The results showed that one-third (34%) of UK adults are either interested in trying, or are planning to try, a vegan diet, while 35% say their perceptions of vegan diets have changed for the better in the past two years.[3]
For those families intrigued by or interested in veganism but don’t know how to start, Veganuary is the perfect way to try a vegan diet and see how easy it is to make the switch.
Be a role model
Whether you’re vegan or not, nutritional planning is essential for giving your child a great start. By balancing the main food groups and making good use of fortified foods and supplementation, you can provide a diet containing all the nutrients needed for growth and development without using animal products. Children aged five and over eat diets that are balanced in a similar way to adults, but younger children require less bulky and more nutrient-dense options. The chia seeds in our banana oat pancakes provide a plant source of omega-3 fat, while peanut butter supplies energy and protein to growing children. Our gorgeous green pesto pasta and cauliflower mac & cheese are pasta dishes that are great for hiding veggies for kids who may be a little fussier. See these recipes on pages 110-111.
Beans, chickpeas, lentils, plain fortified soya yoghurt and tofu are just a few examples of good sources of protein that provide iron and zinc too. Starting the day with delicious scrambled tofu with a side of baked beans is a great option. The peppers in this dish are rich in vitamin C, which helps the body absorb the iron from the tofu and beans. Calcium doesn’t need to be a concern, as unsweetened, fortified soya milk can be used as a main milk drink from age one. It contains as much calcium as cows’ milk and a similar amount of protein. All too often, mums and dads assume that their children wouldn’t like the change, but they may just surprise you. In fact, a BBC Good Food survey last year, asking children about their attitudes to food and cooking, revealed 8% of children in the UK are currently following a vegan diet and 15% of those who don’t, would like to. [4]
As many parents will know, encouraging a child to like new foods takes time and, with babies in particular, it can take as many as 15 attempts before they stick with it. As such, making meal times fun and engaging, and encouraging positive experiences with various fruits, veggies, nuts and grains, can really help.
Here are some of our top tips:
Eat together as often as possible Be a role model – show your child that you enjoy eating a variety of fruit and vegetables If your child refuses to eat something, take it away at the end of the meal and offer it again another time.
There are lots of ways to make eating fruit and vegetables fun. Here are some ideas:
In the supermarket, ask your child to choose something that they’d like to try Involve them in the preparation as much as possible Tell them a bit about the fruit and vegetables Encourage them to make characters, designs and shapes out of fruit and vegetable pieces Get baking! Dried fruit can be added to biscuits, flapjacks and scones (see ‘adding value’ for more ideas).
If you’re feeling really ambitious, why not try and grow your own at home – starting with something easy like kitchen herbs is always a good idea! Remember: it’s also important to explain to children why your family follows a vegan lifestyle!
Children are naturally curious creatures – if they’re asking questions about veganism and/or animals then give them an honest (but gentle) answer. If your child is too young to take it all in just yet, try adapting your language to their level of sensitivity and understanding. Always focus on positive messages like how much you, as a family, love animals. Steer away from half-truths or deliberate misinformation if possible.
In time, your child will make the connection between living beings and the meat they see on supermarket shelves. With the right knowledge and support, your child can be a healthy and confident vegan regardless of life’s challenges.
Education Network
Of course, as more children are being raised vegan, more nurseries and schools are getting behind it too – meaning you’re never stuck for support from nursery staff or teachers. Earlier this year, The Vegan Society launched The Vegan Education Network (EN) – a veganinclusive education service. The EN is made up of vegan volunteers including teachers, school food producers and child psychologists and offers resources to empower and support vegan parents, children and young people in mainstream education.
Reduce food costs
On top of this and, perhaps most encouraging of all given rising energy, fuel and food bills, a vegan diet is one of the most cost-effective around. This will be music to the ears of parents feeling the pinch.
For a long time, The Vegan Society has been working to dispel the myth that vegan diets are expensive. Its most recent survey on the topic, as part of the charity’s Live Vegan For Less campaign, found a third of shoppers are cutting down on meat, or ditching it completely, in response to the cost-of-living crisis. [5] Even more (53%) said they would be interested in trying a vegan diet if it was proven to be more cost-effective than a mainstream diet – an 8% increase compared with previous findings. This follows previous research from Kantar, commissioned by Veganuary, which found that vegan meals are on average 40% cheaper than meat or fish equivalents. [6]
Whether you’re already vegan yourself, vegan-curious or just keen to get your kids excited about their greens, why not give veganism a go this January? Your little ones, and your wallet, will thank you.
For more information, recipe ideas and nutrition tips for raising vegan children, visit The Vegan Society’s website
(vegansociety.com).
Sources
1 https://veganuary.com/veganuary-2022takes-world-by-storm/ 2 https://veganuary.com/83-of-veganuary2022-participants-plan-permanent-dietchange/ 3 https://yougov.co.uk/topics/society/ articles-reports/2022/01/20/meetbritains-vegans-and-vegetarians 4 https://laca.co.uk/news/bbc-surveydiscovers-childrens-eating-trends 5 https://www.vegansociety.com/news/ news/third-shoppers-report-reducingor-ditching-meat 6 https://veganuary.com/vegan-mealscost-40-percent-less-than-meatfish/#:~:text=Findings%20from%20 a%20new%20Kantar,third%20less%20 time%20to%20prepare.
