The Vegan Winter 2003

THE ATKINS DIET DEBUNKED VEGAN WEDDING HOW HANA PREPARED FOR HER PERFECT DAY

ARE YOUR MEALS COSTING THE EARTH? ANIMAL PRODUCTS AND THE ENVIRONMENT

PHEASANTS AND PEASANTS SHOOTING IN THE CROSSHAIRS

FLUORIDATION THE DEBATE ISSN 0307−4811 04 Laser Proof

9 770307 481000

in this issue This year’s World Vegan Day and UK Vegan Week had more than 1,000 people requesting our WVD packs. Plant Restaurant ran their own World Food Banquet to celebrate the start of UK Vegan Week and in Bristol and Essex there were big bashes for World Vegan Day. Because our deadline for publishing the Winter magazine falls just after World Vegan Day, it has not been possible to report the events in the magazine – however, in order not to disappoint you all, we have printed a STOP PRESS sheet that is being inserted into each copy of the magazine.

For more information and ideas for next year, see www.worldveganday.org.

This year’s World Vegan Day – 1 November 2003 – is special in that it marks the beginning of the Society’s Diamond Jubilee (60th) year as well as the start of the run up to the festive season. So let the festivities begin!

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From now until 1 November 2004 we shall be celebrating our 60th anniversary:We recently published our new and authoritative book on vegan nutrition, Plant Based Nutrition and Health You should have received your Autumn/Winter 2003 catalogue sporting our new T-shirt ‘Against Animal Tasting’ and, of course, lots of new cook books. Give a Society gift voucher as a present and ensure your money is spent wisely.

Our revamped website at www.vegansociety.com has just been unveiled. The new site with its consistent feel and easy to navigate breadcrumb trail will make it a breeze finding information.

Our new booklet ‘Why Vegan?’ is about to be printed.

It makes the compelling case for veganism and 100,000 of them are to be distributed far and wide.

Laurence Main is dedicating his walk down the length of Britain to our Diamond Jubilee. Fancy joining him on a leg of his walk (see p.27).

We are sponsoring a world-class vegan cookery competition for chefs at Hotelympia in February.

We are working on a schools CD-Rom that is due out during our Jubilee Year. Aimed at those doing their GCSEs – imparting information to an age group that can make the future caring and compassionate.

And that’s just for starters!

I wish you all a happy and prosperous new year.

The Vegan Society

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Donald Watson House

Local rate 0845 45 88244

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NEWS SHOPAROUND & OFFERS

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SHOPAROUND EXTRA

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PHEASANTS AND PEASANTS FLUORIDATION - THE DEBATE

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KIDS’ PAGE - VEGILANTICS

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ARE YOUR MEALS COSTING THE EARTH? MAKING A DIFFERENCE

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GROW VEGAN SUMMER GATHERING UK VEGAN WEEK AWARDS 2003 NATIONAL VEGAN FESTIVAL

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CAVANAGH’S RECIPES A VEGAN WEDDING JUBILEE WALK THE ATKINS DIET DEBUNKED

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REVIEWS POSTBAG MEGAN THE VEGAN LOCAL GROUPS NEWS EVENTS & LOCAL CONTACTS NEWS LOCAL CONTACTS CLASSIFIEDS PRIZE CROSSWORD

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Fax. 01424 717064

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e-mail: info@vegansociety.com

Editor Rick Savage

© The Vegan Society

Design www.doughnutdesign.co.uk

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.

Printed by Hastings Printing Company On G-print chlorine-free paper Cover www.gettyimages.com

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News n VEGAN SOCIETY MEMBER ELECTED Adrian Ramsay – Society member and vegan for 7 years - was elected to Norwich City Council on 1st May 2003. He is one of three Green Party councillors in Norwich. Adrian said: "Being elected gives me opportunities to promote veganism to the general public. Green Party councillors have been successful in getting the Council to stock vegan food in its own services and in proposing this we highlighted the environmental, health and global justice benefits of veganism as well as the central animal rights arguments."

n ‘SOMETHING SCARY IN THE DAIRY’ Greenpeace have launched a new campaign highlighting the widespread use of GM animal feed in the dairy industry. Visit www.greenpeace.org.uk

n ‘VEGAN ENERGETIC GORGEOUS ACTIVE NUT!’ Pam Kinnunen proved her fitness and health on a vegan diet by running the Flora Light Challenge For Women Fun Run in Hyde Park.

Wearing a tongue-in-cheek, Vegan Society sponsored T-shirt reading ‘Vegan Energetic Gorgeous Active Nut!’ she ran the 5km in no time at all – driven on by thought of all the delicious food waiting for her at the National Vegan Festival. Well done Pam! For Pam’s full report of the race see www.worldveganday.org

n NEW E.COLI BUG A new bacterium found in cattle, E.coli 026, is thought to be as dangerous as the notorious E.coli 0157 and is passed to humans via meat contaminated with infected cattle faeces. The bug’s symptoms include stomach pains, vomiting, diarrhoea and fever. It can be fatal, particularly amongst children and the elderly.

Mark Stevens from the Institute for Animal Health in Compton, Berkshire warns “..The likelihood is that these bugs are going to enter the human food chain more often in the future.” What will it take before people just stop eating animal products?

n COWS WITH GUNS For a bit of light relief from spreading the vegan message, go to www.shagrat.net/Html/cows.htm and watch ‘cows with guns’ outwit humanity.

It’s the funniest thing we’ve seen all year!

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The Vegan l Winter 2003

n URGENT APPEAL TO SAVE SANCTUARY Sheila and Ray Barber have around 50 animals – rescued from markets and slaughterhouses - at the animal sanctuary they have run for the past 40 years. Financial difficulties threaten closure. Send donations to: Court Lodge Farm, Burwash, Sussex TN19 7BD

n AND NOW FOR SOME VERY GOOD NEWS The latest publication from EPICOxford notes moderate alcohol intake to be associated with the longest life expectancy - contrary to the suggestion in the EPIC article in the last issue of The Vegan.

Meanwhile, a study by Professor Alan Crozier, published in the journal Nature, suggested that adding milk to chocolate could cancel out any health benefits that were to be gained from chocolate’s anti-oxidant properties. http://news.bbc.co.uk

n VEGAN BUDDY BUS “The Vegan Buddy Bus" has just been launched by Realfood, a new grassroots vegan campaign group. The trailer will be touring events across the country, educating people about veganism.

Realfood need help to fund the project – see www.realfood.org.uk or write to Realfood, PO Box 339, Wolverhampton WV10 7BZ for details.

n EU ADOPTS NEW FOOD LABELLING RULES The European Union has adopted an amendment to the food-labelling directive that will require allergens - such as milk and egg-based ingredients - to be clearly labeled. As the directive stands, it is not obligatory to list the components of an ingredient making up less than 25% of the final product eg ‘flavourings’. There are still some exceptions, so it’s still best to look out for The Vegan Society trademark or check your Animal Free Shopper.

n NEW VEGAN SOCIETY LEAFLETS! n CUTE CUDDLY AND VEGAN!

Just in case you didn’t spot them in our new winter catalogue...

Vegan Society member, Sue Clark, has designed this fantastic T-shirt for little Raffy to show the world that vegan children are cute, cuddly and cruelty-free.

‘DON’T PULL THE WOOL OVER YOUR EYES’ spells out why vegans avoid using wool.

Give us a ring if you’d like these or any of our other leaflets to distribute in your area.

Our full range of leaflets can be found in our catalogue or online at www.vegansociety.com/shop

n BSE IN SHEEP? A survey of 30,000 sheep brains has thrown up the worrying possibility that BSE has passed from cattle into sheep. 28 of the samples produced unexplained results, and scientists are now trying to rule out the worst-case scenario. This could take months but the Food Standards Agency has issued no public health warning and is not advising people against eating mutton or lamb. Sound familiar? For more information see James Meikle’s Guardian article at www.guardian.co.uk

Our leather leaflet has been revamped.

‘GIVE LEATHER THE BOOT’ counters the more prevalent myths surrounding the leather industry.

n 25 YEARS OF GREENCITY, GLASGOW Congratulations and best wishes to Greencity Wholefoods, Glasgow’s wellknown vegetarian workers’ cooperative wholesaler, which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. Call 0141 554 7633 or visit www.greencity.co.uk

n 8 OUT OF 10 VEGANS PREFER...

83% of vegans surveyed by the Vegan Research Panel said that they feel healthier since changing to a vegan diet, That’s the good news. The bad news is that 89% of correspondents felt poorly catered for in restaurants and cafes. Where do the other 11% live?! For the full results of this survey see www.imaner.net/panel

n NOTHING FISHY ABOUT THIS DISSERTATION! Yvonne Bishop was awarded The Patrick Holford Prize at this year’s Institute for Optimum Nutrition graduation for her dissertation on ‘Essential Fatty Acid Status in Vegan Women & the Implications in Pregnancy’. This looked at the exclusion of fish from the diet and whether vegan mothers and their babies were at risk. Yvonne found that an optimally healthy pregnancy is achievable on a vegan diet and that many risk factors associated with pregnancy are reduced. Yvonne, a qualified Nutrition Consultant, can be emailed at

n VEGAN MANCHESTER GOING FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH

n EU COSMETICS ANIMAL TESTING BAN UNDER THREAT The 7th amendment to the EU Cosmetics Directive, which bans the sale and production of animal tested cosmetics and toiletries, is being challenged by the French government and a consortium of cosmetics ingredients manufacturers. France is the largest cosmetics animal tester in Europe and home to boycottlisted companies like L'Oreal.

Wendy Higgins, BUAV Campaigns Director, says: “This proves once and for all that the beauty business is more concerned with turning a profit than with turning their back on unethical and cruel practices." www.buav.org

n MEAT-FREE RENDEZVOUS In the last issue of The Vegan, our recipes were by Rendezvous in Aberystwyth (31 Pier Street, www.rendezvous.co.uk ). The restaurant has now made headline news across the country. In September, a customer asked staff to reheat some meat-based baby food. When they politely pointed out their kitchens were meat-free, the customer made such a fuss she had to be asked to leave. The result? Fantastic publicity for a restaurant that prides itself on its meat-free status!

Vegans in Manchester should be very well fed! The newly converted Unicorn grocery cooperative at 89 Albany Road, Chorlton is now bigger and better than ever. Their 100% vegan deli-counter is temptation itself.

See www.unicorn-grocery.co.uk for details.

A similar transformation has been completed at The Eighth Day, www.eighth-day.co.uk, near the BBC Manchester offices in Oxford Street. Customers are treated to a new café and restaurant as well as a new deli counter and shop. In the city centre, at 16 - 20 Turner Street in the Northern Quarter, the Earth Café www.earthcafe.co.uk is still delighting everyone with its 100% vegan menu. All are great examples for other caterers to follow.

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Shoparound l a i c e p S s a m rist Debbie Holman

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n ORIGINAL SOURCE Four new bath and shower products have come just in time for Christmas. Two shower gels - Spearmint & Lavender and Rose & Geranium – and two bath foams - Mandarin & Sandalwood and Basil & Lemongrass. All contain natural oils leaving the skin fragrant and moisturised - washing has never been such fun! www.originalsource.co.uk

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There are 50 sets of Original Source Bath products up for grabs. Write to: Vegan Offer, Original Source, PO Box 494, Preston. PR1 5XF Offer closes 31 January 2004.

n HEALTH + PLUS ECHINACEA Health + Plus have a new Echinacea tincture – perfect to tone up your immune system before winter takes hold. 50ml is priced at £4.95.

Health + Plus, T. 01323 737374, www.healthplus.co.uk

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SPECIAL OFFER

Buy one, get another one free ¶ on orders of Echinacea before 31 January. Write in, quoting ref. VS1103 to Vegan Offer, Health + Plus Ltd, Dolphin House, 30 Lushington Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex. BN21 4LL Orders by phone, Fax. 01323 737375, email services@healthplus.co.uk

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n CELESTIAL DESIGNS Their Massage Blends range is designed for the stresses and strains of everyday living. Each blend contains essential oils in a base of vitamin and mineral-rich oils. The Invigorating Blend tackles winter sluggishness, the Sports Blend prepares the body for strenuous activity, the PMS Essential Blend helps women to regain their hormonal balance each month and the Sensual Blend... need we say more?

Celestial Designs, Tan-y-Gyrt Hall, Nantglyn, Denbighshire. LL16 5PD T. 01745 550411, www.aroma-shop.co.uk

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SPECIAL OFFER

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A 5ml Lavender-France essential oil free with every order. Quote The Vegan or use the code on page 41

The Vegan l Winter 2003

Spoff Highland Muesli combines Scottish oats, cereals, fruit, nuts and seeds with the unusual addition of herbs and flowers. We tried the Apricot & Elderflower, Cranberry & Sweet Cicely, Hazelnut & Lemon Verbena, Gluten-free Date, Walnut & Sunflower Seed and the Organic Coconut & Hemp Seed. All were chewy but not gritty with the gentle taste of herbs and flowers. 500g of Standard Muesli costs £2.00, and the organic and gluten-free varieties cost £2.50

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Special prices: 1 bag (500g) any ¶ variety, or 5 Snackpacks (any variety) SPECIAL OFFER £1.75, (carriage charged at cost). ¶ ¶ Order with name, address, telephone ® and payment details to: Spoff (Scotland) Ltd, 22 Fyrish Way, Alness, Ross-shire. IV17 0PJ T. 01349 880870, Fax. 01808 521464, email enquiries@spoff.co.uk. Offer closes 31st January 2004

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n GREENPEOPLE FACIAL CARE PAMPER PACK Six luxury items packed in attractive 10ml containers - perfect for pampering yourself on weekends away.

Add this to your Christmas list.

The pack comprises Gentle Cleanse, Gentle Tone, Day Solution, Day Solution SPF15, Vitamin Fix and Fruitful Nights. All were rich, long-lasting and gently scented, made entirely from organic ingredients. The pack costs £19.99. Green People, Brighton Road, Handcross, West Sussex. RH17 6BZ T. 01444 401444, www.greenpeople.co.uk

n SHEER BLISS NATURAL SOAP Sheer Bliss soap is hand-made and hand-cut, available in bars of 100g or 1kg logs that you can cut yourself. We tried the Lavender Confetti, rich with shea butter and attractively marbled with purple and blue. The smell was heavenly and the lather thick and creamy. Also available are Orange & Spice and Wood Rose & Carrageen.

Sheer Bliss Natural Soap, PO Box 541, Folkestone. CT20 2WF T. 01303 211085, www.sheer-bliss.co.uk

All Shoparound products have been authenticated as

n NEW REDWOOD CHRISTMAS FAYRE

n MEADOWSWEET OLIVE OIL AND GREEN TEA RANGE This new luxurious range of skin creams and soap is made from moisturising olive oil and anti-oxidant green tea. We tried their Moisturising Cream Gel, Intensive Moisturiser, Nourishing Body Cream and Conditioning Soap. The products are thick and rich with a wonderful aroma that lingers on the skin.

The creams are £13.49 and the soap is £1.85. Meadowsweet, Unit 1, Uplands Courtyard, Stowupland Road, Stowmarket, Suffolk. IP14 5AN T. 01449 676940, www.meadowsweet.co.uk, email sales@meadowsweet.co.uk

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Buy one of each of the creams and get the soap free. Quote The Vegan or use the code on page 41.

Redwood have excelled themselves this year giving us two new products to make Christmas even more scrumptious! Their Mature Dairy-free Cheese with Cranberries is a feast for the eye as well as the taste, perfect with any savoury festive foods. The Smoked Salmon Style Pate, made from wheat, sunflower oil and soya, is an unusual and delicious topping for crackers or filling for jacket potatoes. Redwood Wholefood Co., T. 01536 400557, www.redwoodfoods.co.uk

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Buy a cognac cake for £9 from Pantri Nolwenn and receive free postage (worth £2.64). Offer valid for UK mainland addresses only.

Offer closes 31 December 2003

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Redwoods are giving away ten mini festive-feast hampers this Christmas. Send your name and address (and telephone number to arrange delivery) on a postcard to: The Vegan Society/Christmas Hamper Offer, The Redwood Company, 60 Burkitt Road, Earlstrees Industrial Estate, Corby, Northants NN17 4DT. Closing date12th December.

The finest organic ingredients have gone in to this luscious wheat-free cake containing apricots, sultanas, prunes, currants, apples, cherries, peaches and pears. The finest French cognac is used and each cake gets a generous 20ml, producing a warm glow in the body that is guaranteed to keep the spirit of Christmas alive! Pantri Nolwenn, 35 Barham Road, Trecwn, Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire.

SA62 5XX T. 01348 840 840 SPECIAL OFFER

Doves Farm wheat-free crackers are the perfect accompaniment to vegan cheese this Christmas. Crisp, light, nutty and very tasty they make great sweet or savoury bases and contain whole grains for a healthy lifestyle. Doves Farm, T. 01488 684880, www.dovesfarm.co.uk

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n PANTRI NOLWENN’S FRUIT CAKE COGNAC

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n DOVES FARM ORGANIC RYE CRACKERS

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The first 25 readers to write in will win a box of 5 Tasty Bars. Vegan Reader Offer, Doves Farm Foods Ltd, Salisbury Road, Hungerford.

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n VEGANSTORE’S NEW CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT WAFERS Vegan ‘Kit Kats’ have arrived at Veganstore and our tasters claim that they are even more delicious than the conventional thing. Coming in bite-sized pieces just made for sharing and giving, these make perfect Christmas stocking fillers. Sold in handy 400g (£2.99) and 200g (£1.99) bags.

Veganstore, T. 01273 302979, www.veganstore.co.uk

n FREERANGERS Freerangers have the answer to traditional leather products with a new guitar strap (£45), Aragon belt (£40) and a vegan sporran (£60). The guitar strap is soft and stylish with a substantial strap to support playing. The belt is thick and flexible. The sporran is perfect for those wishing to wear animal-free Highland dress. Freerangers, 9b Marquis Court, Low Prudhoe, Northumberland. NE42 6PJ T. 01661 831781, www.freerangers.co.uk , email info@freerangers.co.uk

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SPECIAL OFFER

The first 10 orders of any of these three products will receive free postage.

Please quote The Vegan.

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Experts agree that it is vital to regularly eat foods rich in Omega 3 and Omega 6 essential fatty acids such as the oils found in Udo’s Choice.

Udo’s Choice was developed by Dr. Udo Eramus, one of the world’s leading experts on dietary fat. It is a carefully balanced blend of unrefined organic seed oils along with other nutrients vital for good health.

And since Udo’s Choice is made only from plant sources, it is ideal for vegetarians and vegans who don’t eat fish. Because of its fresh nutty taste it enhances the flavour of most savoury dishes. It can even be used in homemade vegan ice cream.

Shoparound Extra Debbie Holman

n ESSENTIALLY YOURS BABY RANGE

n NEW PRODUCTS FROM LIFEPLAN Lifeplan have added three new products free from sugar, salt, live yeasts and artificial colours and preservatives. The high strength – 1,000mcg - Vitamin B12 tablet dissolves under the tongue. The Biotin and Thiamin tablets should be taken with food.

Lifeplan Products Ltd, T. 01455 556281, www.lifeplan.co.uk

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Now even canines can enjoy that Star treatment with this new soap designed for dogs. Made from pure oils that leaves their costs tangle-free.

Impregnated with citronella to keep the bugs at bay. Red Star Handcrafted Soaps,1 Haddon Crescent, New Invention, Willenhall, West Midlands. WV12 5AT T. 01922 712691, www.redstarhandcraftedsoaps.co.uk, email swampy@gn.apc.org

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Tawas Body Crystal comes in a beautiful bamboo box. The crystal left no sticky residue and worked all day without interfering with sensitive skin. Crafted in the Philippines where it provides work for local people, no harmful chemicals are used in production. Retail price is £6.50 + 88p p&p. Tawas, 60 Limbrick Lane, Goring-by-Sea, Worthing, West Sussex.

BN12 6AB T. 0800 074 9645, www.crystal-deodrant.com

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n SEXY REXY FROM RED STAR HAND CRAFTED SOAP

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n TAWAS NATURAL CRYSTAL DEODRANT

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SPECIAL OFFER

The first 10 applicants drawn on 15 December will receive a free pot of B12.

Write to Vegan B12 Offer, Lifeplan Products Ltd, Lutterworth, Leicestershire. LE17 4ND

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Perfect for baby but also good for delicate adult skins, made with pure essential oils, free from chemicals, mineral oils and synthetic perfumes. The range comprises Relaxing Mandarin and Vanilla Bubble Bath, Gentle Mandarin and Lavender Hair and Body Wash, Nourishing Vanilla and Mandarin Baby Lotion, Soothing Rose and Litchen Nappy Cream and Calming Lavender and Mandarin Massage Oil. The set comes in an attractive gift bag for £42.95 or individually from £7.99 to £9.99. T. 01372 465414, www.freeskincare.co.uk

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10% discount for readers of The Vegan. The first 10 enquiries will get a free bar of Sexy Rexy, and buy two ‘Sexy Rexy’s – get another one free.

Please quote The Vegan magazine.

Offers end 31 December

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10% discount to readers of The Vegan. Place your order via freephone 0800 0749745, quoting The Vegan. Offer ends 31 January 2004

n AROMAFOODS

Hungarian chefs, Peter and Zsuzsa Horvath, set up Aromafoods in October 2002, developing a range of vegan snacks suitable for everyone. The range is free from artificial additives, all are suitable for nut allergy sufferers and many are gluten and wheat-free. We tried their falafels, spinach falafels, Mexican beanburgers and spinach and onion bhajis, which were deliciously moist and appetising. T. 0117 983 4076, email aromafoods@blueyonder.co.uk

n SKINCARE CAFÉ

n AUBERGINE INTRODUCTIONS A recently launched introduction agency exclusively for veggies and vegans.

Vegan founder, Claire Mansfield, has dedicated many years to animal causes.

Being happily partnered myself, I could not take advantage of the romantic links, although the Just Good Friends section was thought-provoking. Aubergine also organise social events at which likeminded souls can communicate. www.aubergineintroductions.com

This range of quality products is made using organic ingredients derived from plants and vegetables.

There are four in the range - a cleanser, moisturiser, facemask and facial oil, all are suitable for sensitive skins - with more coming in the New Year.

T. 0870 44 327 44, www.skincafe.com

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The ¶ SPECIAL OFFER first ¶ ¶ 50 readers will receive a goodie bag with the full range of products.

Write to: Vegan Offer, Skincare Café Limited, Dudley House Suites 2-4, High Street, Bracknell, Berkshire.

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PHEASANTS AND PEASANTS George Rodger

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uring the winter months, many (wealthy) people (non-vegans!) enjoy gamebirds such as pheasant, partridge or grouse for dinner as a pleasant change from boring old chicken or turkey.

Traditionally, freshly-shot gamebirds must be hung for a while before being cooked and eaten. This is to allow the natural processes of decomposition to soften the stringy flesh. In other words, rotting! Some say they should be hung until they fall off the hook!

Pheasants The pheasant is probably the most attractive-looking bird found wild in Britain at least the male of the species, with his colourful and iridescent plumage; the female is brown and inconspicuous by comparison.

In fact, the pheasant is not actually native to Britain, or even Europe - its original home was in China, but it was introduced to Europe, and to Britain, many centuries ago.

The pheasant does well in the British climate, and can now be regarded as a normal part of the British fauna.

However, it can no longer be regarded as a truly wild species.

Much of the British countryside is managed with pheasant shooting in mind. Pheasants do best in a landscape which is a patchwork of woodland and various crops, and for centuries shooting estates have been developing this type of landscape. Tenant farmers are often required by landowners to grow specified crops which provide either food or cover for gamebirds.

Needless to say, the farmers are not compensated for what the pheasants eat!

Pheasant shooting is a multi-million pound industry in the British countryside, and huge numbers are shot for fun by those wealthy enough to afford it, to the extent that the birds existing in the wild would soon be wiped out. So, to top up the numbers, young birds are bred in large hatcheries,

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The Vegan l Winter 2003

Pictures courtesy of Animal Aid

along similar lines to the production of broiler chickens.

They arrive on the estates as newly hatched chicks and are reared in pens by gamekeepers, who feed them every day and protect them from predators. Not surprisingly, the young pheasants become quite tame, and greet their keeper like an old friend when he arrives with food. Eventually, they are released into the wild. Estimates of the numbers released every year vary from 22 million to 35 million in the UK. The newly released pheasants are at first reluctant to leave the comparative safety of the pens, but gradually adapt to a free existence. But what a shock awaits them on the First of October!

This is the start of the shooting season. Pheasants are very good at hiding in undergrowth when threatened, and it is considered "unsporting" to shoot them on the ground, so it is necessary for "beaters", usually local farm workers, unemployed people and other "peasants", to force them out of cover, and into the air. Sometimes the young birds are still so tame that they run towards the beaters, expecting to be fed!

When pheasants take to the wing, they rise very steeply, and very fast, making them harder to shoot - one of the reasons pheasant shooting is so highly regarded, it is "more of a challenge"!

There is enormous slaughter in a pheasant drive, but not every bird is killed. Some escape wounded, to die a lingering death later. Some escape unscathed, but face further shoots. Some survive the entire shooting season, going on to join the wild breeding population next year.

Left alone, the pheasant population would find its place in the local ecosystem, and numbers would settle down, controlled by natural predators. However, the introduction of reared birds, and the killing of predators by gamekeepers, leads to unnaturally high numbers in summer and well through the shooting season. This has "knock-on" effects on other wildlife, and the entire environment. Many species suffer from competition for food by pheasants.

Some suffer directly - it is believed that many reptiles are eaten by pheasants. In Holland, an entire colony of rare sand lizards was lost because of intensive pheasant production in the area.

Pheasant shooting is a lowland activity, in typical mixed farmland. Partridges are also shot in the same sort of countryside. While they can be reared in captivity, like pheasants, there is little mass-production of partridges, and most partridges in the British countryside are living wild and free.

Red Grouse Another bird that is highly regarded by shooters is the red grouse, a bird of the high moors, found only in Britain. It flies fast and close to the ground, making it hard to shoot and "more of a challenge". Many upland estates in Scotland and Yorkshire are managed for grouse shooting. A grouse moor, which many people think of as unspoiled nature, is actually a highly managed system.

Unlike pheasants, grouse cannot be bred in captivity for artificial stocking, so management is confined to manipulating the environment. Grouse feed entirely on heather, and the insects associated with it, and they do best in a patchwork of heather of different ages.

Old, shrubby heather is burnt periodically to be replaced naturally by young heather growth the following year. Burning also kills any insects, small mammals or small birds in the long heather, and any naturally-seeded young trees.

Differently managed, a grouse moor could become a naturally regenerating forest, with a wide diversity of wildlife, capable of producing timber and other forest products, or for recreational use without guns.

The most popular, lazy, way to shoot grouse is from "butts". These are simple, semipermanent shelters on the moor, built and maintained by gamekeepers and "ghillies" (gamekeepers’ assistants). The shooters are taken there in 4x4 vehicles, so they don’t even have to do any walking, and just sit in the butts (on their butts!) until the birds appear, driven towards them by beaters. They don’t even have to reload their shotguns, as they have ghillies with them to perform that tedious chore. The shot birds are collected by the dogs and the ghillies, who also have to kill any wounded birds, by crushing the head or wringing the neck. The beaters are usually local schoolchildren, students etc ("peasants" again!) who are still on vacation at the start of the grouse-shooting season. Once the schools and colleges restart, any later-season shooters may have to make do with

"walking up". This is a more energetic, and therefore less popular, style of shooting. The shooters, with a few keepers and ghillies, walk in line abreast, with dogs, to drive the birds into the air, where they are shot at. In effect, they are acting as their own "beaters" - the poor dears even have to do their own reloading! The dogs retrieve the birds, which are carried in bags by the keepers and ghillies, who also have to kill any injured birds.

Traditionally, grouse shooting starts on the twelfth of August, the so-called "Glorious Twelfth". (If the twelfth is a Sunday, shooting does not start until Monday the thirteenth.) The House of Commons always used to rise before the Inglorious Twelfth, to allow Honourable Members to get to the grouse moors; fewer MPs now belong to the shooting classes, but the traditional recess still survives.

Shooters and shooting In recent decades, shooters have had an extra frisson of uncertainty, that "sabbers" may disrupt the whole day. No doubt this extra thrill adds to the excitement!

Shooting, whether of pheasants, partridges or grouse, provides permanent employment for gamekeepers and ghillies, and seasonal casual work for beaters (not many are accidentally shot!). Often, other work in the area is scarce, or totally lacking. However, workers on shooting estates are not particularly well paid - most of the big money goes into the pockets of large landowners, and helps them to maintain their stately homes. There are many other forms of land use which would not only avoid mass killing, but would also provide more employment for local peasantry.

Shooting is harmful to the birds. It is harmful to the environment. In my view it is even harmful to the people who do the shooting.

To gain pleasure from killing, and violent killing with guns at that, surely diminishes their humanity!

[Ed: To mark the start of the shooting season on 1st October, Animal Aid has produced a special pack of playing cards using sharp wit to reveal the sordidness of pheasant rearing and shooting. Packs were sent to Princes William and Harry. Animal Aid are selling the packs for £4 each, purchase online at www.animalaid.org.uk/shop/gifts.htm T. 01732 364546. If you would like more details about the Hunt Saboteurs Association T. 0845 450 0727 or visit www.huntsabs.org.uk.]

The Vegan l Winter 2003

9

THE CASE FOR

FLU O R I

Professor Michael A Lennon, Chair of the British Fluoridation Society

B

y the mid-1930s it was established that fluoride naturally present in drinking water at a concentration of around one part of fluoride per million parts of water was associated with lower levels of tooth decay. As a result the United States Public Health Service and others established a series of longitudinal clinical studies to establish whether artificially adjusting the fluoride concentration of drinking water (water fluoridation) had the same effects. The first of these was established in Grand Rapids in Michigan in 1945 and others followed. The results were consistent – artificially adjusting the fluoride concentration of drinking water also reduced the levels of tooth decay and this reduction was clinically important.

Fluoridation and dental health Currently in the UK, around 10% of the population benefit from a fluoridated water supply – mainly in the West Midlands and the North East of England.

Children living in these areas have amongst the best dental health in the country.

However, children living in socially deprived, non-fluoridated areas of the UK continue to suffer unacceptably high levels of tooth decay. Manchester Dental Hospital, for example, runs 3 general anaesthetic sessions for children every week, and at each an average of 6 decayed teeth per child are extracted.

Last year at the Hospital a total of 1,500 general anaesthetics were given to children for tooth extraction. And the problem is not just confined to Manchester. In socially deprived, nonfluoridated communities throughout the UK as many as one in three children under 5 years of age will have a general anaesthetic for the removal of decayed teeth. Water fluoridation in areas such as these would dramatically reduce the need for general anaesthetics for tooth extraction within 4 years of implementation, and as a result would significantly improve the health and wellbeing of some of our most vulnerable youngsters.

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The Vegan l Winter 2003

Current and proposed legislation

Fluoride in water

The 1985 Water (Fluoridation) Act - allows health authorities to consider fluoridation after widespread local publicity and consultation. If the Health Authority decides in favour it makes a formal approach to the Water Undertaker who may then fluoridate the supply. Since 1985, the water industry has argued that the word “may” gives them a discretion they do not welcome. Following pressure from the Water Industry, the British Medical Association, the British Dental Association and MPs, the Government has tabled an amendment to the Water Bill currently progressing through Parliament. The effect would be to place decisions about water fluoridation clearly with communities in consultation with their health advisers and leave the water companies simply as an agent. The House of Lords supported the Government proposal with a huge majority (153 to 31) and the Bill is now proceeding through the House of Commons.

Fluoride occurs naturally in all drinking water (indeed, in Hartlepool or parts of East Anglia the natural level reaches the optimal for dental health of around 1 ppm). It is also commonly found in many foods and drinks (e.g. tea). Fluoride added to water supplies is, in our view, broadly equivalent to fortification of cereals with vitamins and iron, the addition of vitamins A and D to margarines, and the addition of calcium and other nutrients to most types of flour. Furthermore, as argued by John Harris, Professor of Bioethics at the University of Manchester, there is no fundamental right to fluoride-free drinking water. Individuals may have personal preferences, but when considering a public utility service these must be balanced against the potential health benefits to the community as a whole and, in particular, to children living in poverty.

perfect teeth Support for fluoridation The World Health Organisation, the British Medical Association, the British Dental Association and most other major medical and dental organisations worldwide endorse the safety and benefits of fluoridation. Reviews of the evidence – including most recently by the University of York NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination - have shown that water fluoridation is effective in reducing tooth decay and have failed to find evidence of harm. Whilst the evidence underpinning fluoridation could certainly be strengthened (and the Medical Research Council has recently made recommendations on how this can be done which the Government is actively pursuing) there is currently no evidence to justify withholding this benefit from communities who support it.

Two compounds of fluoride are permitted by the Water Industry Act for fluoridation in the UK: hexafluorosilicic acid (H2SiF6), and sodium hexafluorosilicate (Na2SiF6).

Both are included on the Drinking Water Inspectorate’s list of approved substances. They are imported specifically for water fluoridation, achieve the desired concentration of fluoride reliably and safely, and meet Department of Environment purity specifications.

Clearly these compounds are not tested on humans “neat” – but as the finished product (i.e. water fluoridated at 1mg/l).

Safe and beneficial Water fluoridation has been practised since 1945 and provides clear benefits for over 350 million people in the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil and elsewhere.

We believe that increasing the coverage in the UK from the current 10% to around 30% targeted to communities with high levels of dental caries of the population would bring substantial clinical benefits. Those benefits would clearly manifest in young children within 4 years.

THE CASE AGAINST

DATION

Jane Jones, National Pure Water Association

"

C

hildren in our area have the worst dental health and water fluoridation will reduce tooth decay by 50%. All we want to do is top up the fluoride which occurs naturally in water." So runs the mantra in towns and cities across the UK. Is it true? No, and no, and no again.

Fluorine and fluoride "Fluoride" is a generic term for fluorine when combined with another element. For example: fluorine + calcium = calcium fluoride; fluorine + aluminium = aluminium fluoride; fluorine + lead = lead fluoride, and so on. There are literally hundreds of fluorides and all of them are toxic to humans. The fluoride that occurs naturally, at low levels, in UK waters is calcium fluoride. This is relatively insoluble and passes relatively harmlessly through the body - provided it is at low levels. In some areas, as in parts of India, calcium fluoride occurs at high levels in water and soil and causes severe skeletal effects. The Indian Government is heavily involved in providing de-fluoridation schemes in order to provide safe drinking water to affected populations.

The fact is that one can obtain arsenic (a known human carcinogen) of "high purity" which is "quality assured" illustrates the nonsense parroted to the public by promoters of water fluoridation.

Fluorides and oral health The World Health Organisation is well aware of the harmfulness of fluorides. In the conclusion to the WHO monograph, Fluorides and Oral Health (1994), they warn: "Dental and public health administrators should be aware of the total fluoride exposure in the population before introducing any additional fluoride treatment for caries prevention." Such testing is never carried out, although we are exposed to fluorides from a wide range of sources, including toothpaste, mouth rinses, drops, tablets, gels, tea, medicines and anaesthetics, pesticide and herbicide residues and even from the polluted air that we breathe.

Tens of thousands of scientific papers have been published in peer reviewed scientific journals attesting to the adverse health effects of fluorides. The most obvious, visible effect is dental fluorosis.

Fluoride in water

Reviews and Dissemination at the University of York, has written of his concern that the results of the York Review on water fluoridation were (and are) being widely misrepresented by proponents of fluoridation, naming the British Dental Association, the British Medical Association, the British Fluoridation Society and the National Alliance for Equity in Dental Health.

"The review found water fluoridation to be significantly associated with high levels of dental fluorosis which was not characterised as 'just a cosmetic issue'. The review did not show water fluoridation to be safe..."

The York Report on the effects drinking water fluoridation (2000) found that the incidence of dental fluorosis was 48% and dental fluorosis "of concern" was 12.5% in fluoridated areas. This is scientific evidence of significant over-exposure to toxic levels of fluorides.

From a Newcastle NHS Trust study in 2000, we know that the incidence of dental fluorosis more than doubled in the fluoridated area with a 6-fold increase in "aesthetically important" dental fluorosis.

Flourosis The two chemicals permitted for use in artificial fluoridation schemes are disodium fluorosilicate and hexafluorosilicic acid.

Both are derived from the pollution scrubbers of the phosphate fertiliser industry and have never been toxicologically tested, nor licensed as fit for human consumption. They are not water treatment chemicals. They are added to drinking water with the intent of effecting biological change in humans and are thus unlicensed medicines. These fluorosilicates contain arsenic, lead, beryllium, cadmium, vanadium, mercury, silica and radionuclides.

They are not "fluoride"; they are fluorosilicates.

Both of the fluoridation chemicals failed Formal Vote in Europe, but were subsequently "nodded through" and given European Numbers, followed by British Standard ENs in order to permit the continuation of existing fluoridation schemes in this country and in the Republic of Ireland.

Dental public health officers say that the "fluoride" used in water fluoridation is "of high purity" and is "quality assured."

Dental fluorosis is a permanent condition for which there is no cure. It is a form of hypoplasia of the enamel that results from high exposures (from a variety of sources) to fluorides during tooth development.

The effects range from barely visible white patches, to rust coloured staining or dark brown striations or "mottling" with pitting of the teeth.

Toxicologists recognise dental fluorosis as "the first visible sign of fluoride poisoning."

In a Written Answer to a question by Lord Balwin, Baroness Hayman responded for the Government: "We accept that dental fluorosis is a manifestation of systemic toxicity..."

- Hansard, 20 Apr 1999 : WA 158.

Mass medication

fluorosis - teeth of 8yr old in New Zealand Proponents of fluoridation and Government advisers dismiss dental fluorosis as unimportant - "merely a cosmetic issue". However, Professor Trevor Sheldon, MSc, DSc, FmedSci, founding director of the NHS Centre for

The new Water Bill contains a clause that, if passed, will compel water companies to fluoridate at the request of strategic health authorities, following "public consultations", for which there are, as yet, no details. The Government knows that water fluoridation will double the incidence of children being poisoned, even in non-fluoridated areas.

The right to refuse medication is a Human Right that is not negotiable, neither via consultation nor by any other means.

Clause 61 violates human rights legislation.

The Vegan l Winter 2003

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Welcome to the Christmas 2003 Kids’ Page Bronwyn (life vegan ) is 7. Aisha her sister is 11 and has been vegan as long as Bronwyn and vegetarian since before she was born!

Bronwyn: Since we last wrote, we have been on a short holiday, a long holiday and a weekend away.

Aisha: Our short holiday was in Paris. We stayed at a really nice hotel named Hotel Williams du Pré and saw such sites as L’Arc de Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame and Sacré Coeur.

Bronwyn: We had a boat trip on a bateau mouche.

Aisha: We practically lived on fruit and bread while in Paris.

Bronwyn: One evening we went to Au Grain de Folie, near Sacré Coeur.

Aisha: A small restaurant but absolutely wonderful food.

Bronwyn: For our long holiday, we went on a mountaineering trip to Switzerland staying at three different hotels. It was my first time flying. We flew with Swiss Air, but couldn’t book vegan meals.

Aisha: The first hotel in Davos had our fax saying we were vegan but hadn’t passed the information to the restaurant.

The restaurant staff were very helpful, giving us tomato soup without the cream one night and making us potato soup the next. There were fruit and vegetables for our other three courses and, for breakfast, a good choice of rolls, fruit and seeds. On the second day, we walked for four hours to the top of Jakobshorn (2590m); on the third, we walked eight hours through mountains and valleys from Davos to Arosa.

Bronwyn: At Arosa, they didn’t know we were vegan. I found a dead fly in my salad the first night, and the second, a live caterpillar crawling on the last raspberry in my fruit salad. Mummy asked the receptionist to call the third hotel to explain what we did and didn’t eat listening while they did it.

Aisha: On the fifth day we travelled to Lenzerheide. We were going to walk but took the train because it was snowing

and foggy at the top of Hörnli (2513m).

At Lenzerheide, for a fifth night, we were offered fruit for pudding - Mummy asked if they could do something different for the next two nights.

Bronwyn: Next day we hired mountain bikes. I rode on a trailer bike with Mummy around the mountains. After cycling, we went to Café Aurora where we asked them to find us vegan cakes – mine had jam in the middle. Then we went swimming.

Aisha: That night after choosing from the salad bar we had melon, mushrooms with stuffing, gnocchi in tomato sauce, and for pudding they made us crème caramel with soya milk.

Bronwyn: On our last day we walked to Parpaner Rothorn. It was very hot walking up, taking five hours, but at the top it was 4˚C and we made a snowman.

Switzerland was definitely our best holiday ever but were disappointed to only see deer on postcards and menus.

Aisha: When we left, Mummy told the receptionist it was the best hotel of the three. The receptionist said we should bring a recipe book next time and tell them which four courses we wanted each night and they would prepare them.

Bronwyn: We camped in Salisbury for our weekend away, seeing David Essex in concert. It was Aisha’s present for her 11th birthday.

Aisha: After the concert we went to the Asia Restaurant. On the menu Mummy pointed out the vegetarian menu that said vegetarian food was cooked in sunflower oil without colouring. After choosing our meals, Mummy told the waiter what we did and didn’t eat. He asked if it was an allergy or because of religion. Mummy explained it was for ethical reasons - that we became vegetarian after discovering factory farming and vegan after discovering the cruelty of the dairy industry. The waiter said “That’s really cool!”

Bronwyn: Apart from holidays, we ate free food samples at the Vegan Festival; went to Newchurch Guinea Pig Farm for a demonstration and to Cambridge for the Stop Primate Experiments At Cambridge (SPEAC) national march in October.

Aisha: In the children’s room at the Vegan Festival I got to make Japanese pictures by dipping paper into food colouring.

Bronwyn: I got story books from the Viva! stall and our friend Greta got a bag of Trudy Scrumptious chocolate truffles which really lived up to their name. From Veganstore, we got a jar of stripey chocolate spread and lots of shaving lotion for grandad.

Aisha: We are looking forward to Christmas but decided, instead of buying presents, to be environmentally friendly this year by doing something fun.

Mummy hasn’t yet told us what our mystery Christmas event will be but we’ll still be making trifle and Christmas cake like last year. I don’t like brussel sprouts and it’s usually at Christmas that Mummy does something unusual with something I don’t like, so that I learn to like it.

Bronwyn: We hope to have fun this Christmas. Enjoy your Christmas meal.

Aisha: And thanks for all your letters.

Please send your stories, poems, pictures & photos to: Bronwyn & Aisha’s Vegilantics c/o The Vegan Society, Donald Watson House, 7 Battle Road, St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, TN37 7AA or Email media@vegansociety.com with “Vegilantics” in the subject line.

The Vegan l Winter 2003

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ARE YOUR MEALS COSTING THE EARTH? Catriona Toms looks at the destructive effect of animal products on our environment © Greenpeace/Lu Tongjing

Environmental issues can often seem to be beyond our control, something for governments or pressure groups to sort out, but most of the problems have been caused by our lifestyles, and so the first step towards solving them is to change those lifestyles.

A

s individuals, we can reduce our car use, limit the amount of water we waste, become more energy-efficient, choose to boycott companies that we deem to be environmental villains and we can reduce, re-use and recycle. We should also remember that, as vegans, we have already taken a significant step towards lessening our environmental impact.

Meat-intensive diets contribute to worldwide environmental degradation - to global warming, deforestation, desertification, water pollution and the malnourishment of millions of people.

And the problems don’t end there...

THE WASTELAND

“The roots of the biodiversity crisis are not "out there" in the forest or on the savannah, but embedded in the way we live.” World Resources Institute1

The raising of livestock takes up more than two-thirds of agricultural land.2 Grain is grown to feed animals that will in turn be eaten by humans. This is entirely inefficient.

Animals convert only a proportion of the plant energy they consume into energy in the form of meat, milk or eggs; the rest is used by the animal to perform day to day functions such as keeping warm and moving around.3 This means that land used to grow feed crops or to graze animals is being squandered, while 25,000 people die every day through hunger-related causes.4

A report commissioned by the FAO, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and the World Bank concluded that industrial livestock production contributes to species loss through “its demand for concentrate feed, which changes land use and intensifies cropping.

The production of feed grains, in particular, adds additional stress on biodiversity through habitat loss and damages in ecosystem functioning.”9

WATER

“At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the Earth, with its diverse and abundant life forms, including over six billion humans, is facing a serious water crisis.”10 UN Water Assessment Programme © Greenpeace/Dang Ngo

As soil becomes more and more degraded through overuse, most of the land for replacement and expansion comes from the world’s forests. The FAO estimates that the net loss of forests in the 1990s as a whole was 94 million hectares.6 This represents an area larger than Venezuela. Some studies suggest that the expansion of agricultural land accounts for

The Vegan l Winter 2003

This wholesale destruction of forest environments directly contributes to loss of biodiversity. Tropical rainforests, although covering only 10% of the world’s surface, are thought to contain about 90% of all species – many of which have never been studied.8

Plant-based diets require less land and so contribute less to developing world hunger, land degradation and loss of biodiversity.

This land misuse is not only inefficient and unsustainable, but also causes serious environmental damage.

Overgrazing is blamed for 35% of soil degradation, a problem that has become so grave that the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) calls it “a serious threat to food security...the livelihood systems (and ultimately the survival) of some human communities are at risk and...a massive loss of biological diversity is likely to occur.”5 Globally nearly 2 billion hectares of land are affected by degradation to various degrees.

The other two main causes of the problem – deforestation and arable farming - are also directly related to livestock production.

14

more than 60 percent of the damage.7 In fact, so much of the land that was once carpeted with tropical rainforests is now used to graze beef cattle that the process has become known as the ‘hamburgerisation’ of the forests.

A plant-based diet also requires far less water than a diet based on animal products.

Worldwide, agriculture uses up 70% of fresh water resources.11 This is mainly because large areas of cropland are irrigated to make them agriculturally viable and to increase and improve yields. As has been shown, much of this land is entirely wasted by being used to grow feed crops for livestock rather than food for people. The water used on this land – as well as that consumed directly by livestock – represents yet another wasted resource.

There has been much disagreement over how much water is squandered in this way. Professor David Pimentel of Cornell University’s Ecology Department has calculated that it takes around 100 times more water to produce 1kg of beef than it does to produce 1kg of wheat.12 Beckett and Oltjen found the

difference to be in the region of 30 times more water for 1kg of beef.13 However, all agree that plants use much less water than animals.

At present, 1.1 billion people have no access to safe water supplies. Continuing to waste water by raising livestock is not only unsustainable - it is a moral outrage.

But wasted water is not the only problem. A dairy cow produces 57 litres of excreta every day.14 The global figure for waste from factory farms is in the region of 8 billion tonnes per year.15 When this waste leaches into groundwater and runs off to pollute lakes and waterways, it can cause serious environmental problems.

ENERGY

“Global warming has emerged as the most serious environmental threat of the 21st century...Only by taking action now can we insure that future generations will not be put at risk.”

Excerpt from a letter to the US President from 49 Nobel Prize winning scientists.

Of all the environmental problems we face, global warming should concern us most.

Caused by the accumulation of ‘greenhouse gases’ in the atmosphere, increasing global temperatures and the resultant changes in weather patterns could have disastrous consequences for life on earth.

In addition to these direct impacts, animal husbandry also contributes to global warming indirectly, one of the major problems being the felling of forests to provide land to grow food for cattle, resulting in fewer trees to absorb carbon dioxide.

WHAT’S THE SOLUTION? There are no easy answers to the environmental problems that the world now faces. Many changes will have to be made on a governmental and international level, but as consumers we can also choose to reduce our individual impact. Changing our diet is one of the most effective ways of doing this. Environmentally conscious consumers are becoming more and more aware of the benefits of buying locally produced, seasonal, organic food, but the impacts of the consumption of animal products are often overlooked – it’s time we changed that.

This article is based on our in-depth report ‘Animal Products and the Environment’ which can be viewed at www.vegansociety.com or for £1 from The Vegan Society.

Our ‘ARE YOUR MEALS COSTING THE EARTH?’ leaflet highlights the environmental problems caused by the consumption of animal products. Please help educate environmentally conscious consumers about the benefits of veganism by distributing this leaflet at local green fairs, wholefood shops, libraries and stalls. See catalogue for details.

“American feed (for livestock) takes so much energy to grow that it might as well be a petroleum byproduct.”

WorldWatch Institute17

The vast majority of climate scientists agree that this is largely a problem of our making, © Greenpeace/Cunningham, John with carbon dioxide released by the burning of fossil fuels being the main contributor.

When we think of fossil fuels, we think of REFERENCES petrol, light bulbs, oil platforms and power stations. In fact, the All websites accessed October 2003 only thing that links fossil fuels to food is the cooker, right?

1 WRI, Biodiversity and protected areas www.wri.org/wri/biodiv/b02-gbs.html Wrong.

Energy is used in a number of ways in the livestock industry.

Amongst these are: the growing, processing and transportation of feed; the building, upkeep and ventilation of farm buildings; the transportation of animals, their products and their wastes and the fuelling of farm machinery.

A study conducted by the US Department of Agriculture concluded that their results “pointedly reveal the high level of dependency of the US beef cattle industry on fossil fuels.”16 This review of energy inputs versus energy outputs in food calories found that while corn and barley produce about five times as much food energy as the energy used in production, beef production uses about three times as much energy as the food energy produced. Other animal products show similar trends.

So a plant-based diet uses substantially less energy than a diet based on animal products, but that’s not the only reason the vegan diet contributes less towards global warming.

Methane is second only to carbon dioxide as a contributor to ‘man-made’ greenhouse gas emissions. It is produced by bacteria in the stomachs of ruminants such as sheep, cattle, and goats and is farted and belched out. Dairy cows have been calculated to produce roughly 30kg more methane per year than free-range beef cattle (84kg and 54kg respectively), largely because of differences in diet and levels of exercise.

2 C. de Haan, H. Steinfeld & H. Blackburn, ‘Livestock and the Environment: Finding a Balance’ FAO, USAID, World Bank, 1998 3 See, for example, Prof. V. Smil, ‘Rationalizing Animal Food Production,’ in Feeding the World: A Challenge for the 21st Century, MIT Press, London, 2000 and P. W. Gerbens-Leenes et al. ‘A method to determine land requirements relating to food consumption patterns,’ Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 2002; 90:47-58 4 FAO, The State of Food Insecurity in the World 2002 5 FAO, The State of Food and Agriculture 1996 6 FAO, Global Forest Resources Assessment 2000 7 R. Goodland & D. Pimentel, ‘Sustainability and Integrity in the Agriculture Sector,’ Ecological Integrity: Integrating Environment, Conservation and Health, D. Pimentel, L. Westra, R. F. Noss (eds), Island Press, 2000 8 UNEP, GEO: Global Environment Outlook 3 www.unep.org/GEO/geo3/english/220.htm 9 C. de Haan, H. Steinfeld & H. Blackburn, 1998, op cit.

10 Water for People, Water for Life, Executive Summary, The UN Water Development Report, World Water Assessment Programme, 2003 11 FAO, Review of agricultural water use per country, www.fao.org/ag/agl/aglw/aquastat/water_use/index.stm 12 R. Goodland & D. Pimentel, 2000, op cit.

13 J.L. Beckett & J.W. Oltjen, ‘Estimation of the Water Requirement for Beef Production in the United States,’ J. Anim. Sci. 1993, 71:818-826 14 J R Archer & R J Nicholson, ‘Liquid Wastes from Farm Animal Enterprises,’ Farm Animals and the Environment, C Phillips and D Piggins, (eds) CAB International,1992 15 C. de Haan Livestock production and sustainable use of the global natural resource base Invited paper to the Congress of the American Veterinary Medical Association 16 R.K. Heitschmidt, et al. ‘Ecosystems, Sustainability, and Animal Agriculture,’ Journal of Animal Science 1996; 74:1395-1405 17 WorldWatch Institute ‘The Price of Beef’ 1994

The Vegan l Winter 2003

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THE ANIMAL FREE SHOPPER ÂŁ4.99 Our most popular book is also the most comprehensive guide to vegan products ever.

Don't go shopping without it.

vegansociety.com/shop

MAKING A DIFFERENCE Tony Weston

I

trust you’ve all had time to read your copy of the Society’s Annual Report and Accounts 2002-03. If you have, you were no doubt delighted to find out how much has been achieved within limited resources – the increased media presence, the increased activity, the increased membership, the increased number of trademark holders and local contacts. Just imagine how much more could be achieved with a little more money, a few more staff and even more active local contacts and volunteers.

Renewal The vegan movement is reaffirming its vision for a compassionate future and renewing its conviction that we can make a difference. Every day people are discovering how easy it is to change their lifestyle towards a cruelty-free one and send the crystal clear message to companies around the world that profits built on animal exploitation won’t be tolerated.

Fortunate We are really lucky that so many of our members give up their valuable spare time to help clear the path for new people exploring veganism and so make the road to a kinder world less bumpy.

Why not?

Choosing a vegan option is appealing to an ever larger number of people – and it’s not necessarily an exclusively vegan preference. Where a vegan product tastes as good, is as good value for money and is as easily available, then the question becomes not “why” but “why not” be kinder to animals, people and the environment.

Changing Attitudes We’re making a difference by attending trade exhibitions, influencing decision makers and getting involved with likeminded organisations. Even when companies like Sainsbury, Tesco, the Co-op and Hovis aren’t convinced about using our trademark, they have voluntarily started to provide clearer labelling helpful to vegans, warning us of hitherto hidden ingredients.

Moving Forward You can help move things forward. The train companies’ excuse for not stocking Pritchitt’s soya milk pots was that ‘we never get asked for it’. So always ask. Speak to a person in charge and try not to accept “sorry we don’t” for an answer.

Strive for a “we will, if and when” reply. If you are not satisfied with the response ask for the contact details of a supervisor or those of a customer services department.

You deserve the same level of service as other customers.

Action Trading standards and trade descriptions laws loosely protect us against misrepresentation. When a product is misleadingly sold as vegan or vegetarian and it’s not, contact your local council’s trading standards office – they may well be able to help. There is currently no legal definition of the word vegan – the nearest you can get is the Vegan Society trademark – but part of the law is interpreted as “publicly perceived to be”, so if a vegan curry can be found to contain traces of meat, milk or eggs it can be argued that “due diligence” has not been observed.

Tools of the trade The Vegan Society has invested most of its available resources into providing the tools necessary to prove that a vegan diet is easy, healthy and an attainable solution to many of the world’s problems. n The Animal Free Shopper gets bigger and better with every edition - let us know if there is anything or anyone that should be included in the next edition - or removed. As well as a printed version, a new online version is planned. n Plant Based Nutrition and Health provides factual evidence based on human studies that a vegan diet can be healthier and, with the right choices, can add 10 years of healthy life. We can supply copies at an attractive discount to doctors, health workers, dietitians, scientific correspondents and qualified nutritional therapists. n Why Vegan? is a our new free booklet that makes the positive case for a vegan solution and gently encourages readers to do as much as they can to make a difference. n www.vegansociety.com enables us to make all the facts and figures available to the maximum number of people at minimum cost, 24 hours a day. n www.worldveganday.org has, in just 12 months, grown to be a major international networking tool for vegans to meet, discuss, exchange recipes and information and encourage each other. For members there is an email discussion forum vegansoc-talk; if you would like to join send an email to join.vs.talk@anyware.co.uk including your full name, membership number and postcode. n Vegducational CD-ROM – is being produced in consultation with teachers to ensure it’s a practical tool, is compatible with the national curriculum and will enhance the lessons of students taking their GCSEs. School kids need to be given access to the facts so they are fully equipped to make up their own minds and spot the failings of the status quo. If you’d like to support this project, donations over £50 will receive a thank you on the CD and a certificate of sponsorship.

The Vegan l Winter 2003

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Grow Vegan Vegan-Organic Trust

V

olunteers from Vegan-Organic Trust will now be writing this column for you. Among other themes we are going to feature advice and information on practical veg growing, indoor growing and topics such as vegan permaculture.

We really want to serve readers’ needs on this page, so write to the editor, say what you think should be included and we’ll do our best.

All vegans face a dilemma: we don’t want to consume animal derived food but the fact is that animal manures and slaughterhouse byproducts are used extensively to grow our groceries – especially if we buy ‘organic.’ The answer of course is to embark on ‘growing our own’ using animal-free methods. We can also help to spread the message that animal free gardening and indeed agriculture is not only perfectly possible, but also environmentally essential. All life ultimately depends on plants, and the plants do not have to be wastefully passed through an animal in order to provide a material that can feed the soil.

Compost conundrum Gardening should be about enjoying yourself but seems beset by problems! Finding readymade seed and potting composts that are both chemical free and animal-free has been tricky for vegans. Most ready-made organic seed/potting composts contain animal residues such as blood, fish and bone.

The few animal-free composts tend to be good but expensive, especially as most people have to send for them by post.

B & Q multi purpose organic compost now provides a cheap solution. This is made from composted bark and plant materials.

Vegan-Organic Trust has carefully checked this product out; B & Q gives assurance that it is organic, peat free, does not contain animal inputs and is GM free. For use in raising small seeds it will benefit from a bit of sieving and the addition of a little sharp sand.

When such products are not made to an animal-free formula for ethical reasons the ingredients can sometimes be changed by the makers, so we do need to keep checking.

Grow Vegan Puzzler AUTUMN WINNER

Mr G Phyall, Slough, Berkshire.

Good home-made compost is at the heart of the vegan-organic garden, and an excellent project for winter or early spring is to build one or more compost bins. You can easily make them yourself by using old wooden pallets, which are often available from local building sites or builders merchants where they are usually thrown away or burnt.

Choose ones that provide plenty of sturdy slats. Clear a bit of ground on or close to your growing area (remember you will be humping the compost around!) then simply nail three pallets together as a square with an open front. Tap a few short lengths of timber into the ground at the corners and nail these to the frame – this will keep it all rigid. Use wire or thick string to tie a fourth pallet as a detachable front that you can open like a door. It’s a good idea to line the sides (not the base) with old polythene to stop the contents drying out. It’s best to have two bins on the go, one that is being filled up and the other maturing. As for actually making the compost, fill up your bin with a varied mixture of garden and kitchen waste, including some rough (not woody) material such as straw. (Compost as a topic will be covered in future articles.)

Feeling fruity?

Remember those scrumptious raspberries?

Why not grow some of your own?

December is a good time to plant bare rooted raspberries, otherwise you can put them in the ground in March. Container grown canes can be planted anytime when there is no frost. An excellent variety is Autumn Bliss. The autumn raspberries are much easier to cultivate than the summer ones, they start fruiting in the first year and don’t need special training on wires or complicated pruning. With Autumn Bliss the stems are sturdy, you just cut all the stems down in February and they grow back in spring - try this variety and enjoy luscious fruit right into October.

Curl up and plan ahead Winter is the time to plan what you will be up to in the next growing season. You can curl up with the seed catalogues and dream about what you will grow next year. You can also use the quiet gardening months to read up on ideas. Mainstream organic gardening books are full of suggestions to use blood, fish and bone and similar noxious stuff but if you want a comprehensive guide then The New Organic Grower and The Four Season Harvest by Elliot Coleman are recommended, giving largely vegan growing advice. The Organic Bible by Bob Flowerdew contains animal free alternatives for nearly all of the animal byproducts and may be easier to find.

These two vegan groups also publish inexpensive literature and will send details of how to join them and obtain even more useful information: Vegan-Organic Trust (VOT) Patrick Browne, VOT, 161 Hamilton Rd, Longsight, Manchester M13 0PQ. Phone: 0161 248 9224 Email: veganorganic@riseup.net website: www.veganorganic.net Publishes information sheets, runs courses on vegan-organics, organises visits to vegan farms and is currently developing an exciting project to establish a vegan-organic Education and Demonstration centre.

Movement for Compassionate Living (MCL), 31 Walton Close, Ernesford Grange, Coventry CV3 2LJ. Phone: 02476 441446 E-mail: oldkaie@beeb.net website www.mclveganway.org.uk Information and books on cultivation, cooking etc, emphasising locally grown food and cruelty-free sustainable methods, especially the growing and use of trees.

The Vegan Society’s new information sheet on vegan-organic growing is also now available.

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VEGAN SUMMER GATHERING George Rodger

F

or ten years now, there has been an annual residential gathering of vegans in late summer.

It has usually been in the East Devon town of Exmouth, but this year, for the first time, it was near Swansea, in South Wales – largely because Malcolm Horne, the organiser of the event, has moved there, from Exmouth. Dates were 30 August to 6 September.

The headquarters of the Gathering were a couple of large rented houses on the promenade in the attractive resort village of Mumbles. Mumbles is an excellent centre for visiting the Gower Peninsula, and beyond. The houses themselves were far superior to those used in the Exmouth Gatherings. Unfortunately, they could not accommodate everyone – Malcolm tells me he had his biggestever attendance at this Gathering, with around 90 participating and over 50 needing accommodation. (As usual, it was a healthy mixture of “regulars”, who had been at one or more previous Gatherings, and newcomers.)

The result was that many of those attending had to stay elsewhere – in the homes of local vegans, or in the University of Swansea Student Village, four miles away. Also the Student Village accommodation, although acceptable for a few days, was of a far lower standard than the houses in Mumbles.

This meant that the Gathering had much less of the “community feel” which was such a feature of the Exmouth Gatherings.

This was rectified to some extent by a couple of communal “potlatch” meals in a local community hall, which were about the only times everyone was together in the same place.

Several excursions were arranged throughout the week. I opted for visits to Carmarthen, and to Rhossili Bay & Worm’s Head, at the tip of the Gower Peninsula. I found the Gower inland countryside pleasant enough, but not outstanding. However the coastal scenery is mind-blowing – an alternation of vast sandy beaches and striking cliffs and rock formations.

There were a few evening meetings – the one I found most interesting was when Andrew Martin spoke about the new Veggies Centre in Nottingham, where he works.

Despite the disadvantage of the “split site”, most of those attending had a good time, and there was general appreciation of Malcolm’s efforts in making the whole thing possible. Malcolm is already looking at ways around the difficulties. Next year’s event, again at Mumbles, will be earlier in the year than usual: 5-12 June 2004.

Details on www.veganviews.org.uk/vsg or ring 01792 792442.

FINALISTS

IN THE UK VEGAN WEEK AWARDS 2003

T

he Vegan Society’s Awards reward and encourage individuals and companies that are making a difference to people, animals and the environment, and show appreciation for those making veganism ever easier and more convenient.

A big thank you to all our readers who took the trouble to send in nominations.

¶Best Food Product

¶Best Drink - drinks proving how easy animal-free living can be.

– products proving how delicious animal-free food can be.

Supreme Choc Ice ● Redwood’s fishless scampi ● Alpro Yofu Yoghurts.

●

¶Best Fairly Traded Product – for products benefiting people. ¶Best Retailer For Animal Free Shopping Green & Black’s Mayan Gold ● Café Direct Decaff Coffee Oké Bananas

●

¶Vegan Achievement Award – for people making a difference. ●

●

● ●

- making a difference in retail.

Vegan Store (On line) ● Fresh & Wild (London)

●

Benjamin Zephaniah ● Neil Lea ● Kathleen Jannaway (posthumously)

¶Best Cruelty Free Non Food Product

– products that avoid animal suffering.

Yaoh Lip Balm ● Ecover Washing Up Liquid ● Lush Veganese Conditioner ●

¶Best Vegan Catering

– establishments providing delicious animal-free food. ● Mono – Glasgow ● Mildreds – London ● Veggies Catering – Mobile.

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Pritchitt’s Soya Maid (for a vegan cup of tea) Innocent fruit smoothies ● Co-op fair trade wine.

Co-op retailing

¶Best Vegan Environmentally Friendly Product ●

– making a difference to the planet.

Redwood’s ‘Making Waves’ range ● Condomi condoms ● Vegetarian shoes (made from recycled tyres)

¶Best Vegan Project or Campaign ●

– projects making the world a better place.

Dept Of Health 5 A Day ● Sainsbury’s ‘Free-From’ initiative ● Vegan Essex. ●

The winners are to be announced on World Vegan Day 1st November (see the enclosed Stop Press). Winners will also be listed on www.worldveganday.org.

NATIONAL VEGAN FESTIVAL

2003 Alison Coe & Robin Lane (CALF)

as we had intended – there were no vegan pizzas as had been advertised and the Organic Juice Bar got off to a very slow start! Next year we aim to have food prices to suit all pockets as well as a wider choice of food on sale.

We see the Festival as a celebration of veganism and an opportunity to support campaigns, build bridges and inform those unaware of animal cruelty!

Some quotes on the day include : "Vegan heaven", "not to be missed", "buzzing", "exhilarating", "innovative", "brilliant atmosphere". Our thanks to the Vegan Society and Veggies for their sponsorship of this year’s event. We look forward to seeing you next year !

T

he 6th National Vegan Festival which took place on 14th September at Conway Hall, London was, as in previous years, a great success with over 1,000 people attending. The usual cosmopolitan mix prevailed with stallholders and festival goers travelling from far and wide. The Festival attracted all kinds of people including vegetarians and vegans, ecowarriors, families, long standing animal rights campaigners, activists and those new to veganism wanting to find out more.

see www.veganfestival.freeserve.co.uk for photos, reports and updates.

Appeal

2004 NATIONAL VEGAN FESTIVAL When: Next Summer Where: A larger venue How: With your help!

The organisers of the National Vegan Festival would dearly like to be able to hold the 7th Vegan Festival in a larger venue but need your help. Sponsors who donate £100 or more and supporters who donate less than £100 will be listed on the Vegan Festival website. All donations will be greatfully received! Help us to stage the world`s largest vegan event!

Please make cheques / PO`s payable to CALF and send to: National Vegan Festival c/o BM 8889, London WC1N 3XX. Thank you.

During the day there were talks on various issues, which included vegan bodybuilding and nutrition, vivisection, veganism and free food fayres providing useful information, poetry readings, a children`s art workshop and a drumming workshop. All of these proved great fun for those attending. The vegan food on offer was a complete range - the always popular ‘Veggies’ burgers and snacks, curry and rice, hot dogs, raw food, delicious mousse, chocolates and a wide variety of cakes and traditional fare from the Hebrew Vegan Community. The Redwoods stall was as popular as ever and sold out completely! The Beer Shop/Pitfield Brewery ran the bar, quenching everyone’s thirst with vegan beers, ciders, the renowned eco-warrior lager, wines and soft drinks.

Apart from the usual stallholders that have attended in previous years, there were some new additions such as Animal`s Asia Foundation and Vegan Bodybuilding. Not everything went quite

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CAVANAGH’S CATERING

Sunflower Standard registered

C

avanagh’s is a small catering company based in Brentwood in Essex run by husband and wife team, Kathy and David. It was established four years ago.

In those four years they have catered for anything from small dinner parties for just six people through to weddings for 200 guests.

They travel far and wide and, in just the last three months, have covered the counties of Lincolnshire, Staffordshire and Gloucestershire. Venues have ranged from a Napoleonic sea fort in Cornwall to a marquee in a stone circle in Wiltshire with no water or cooking facilities.

Next year they will be spending the months of May to October running The Green Terrace, an exclusively veggie bed and breakfast far from the madding crowds in western Crete in a tranquil hillside location overlooking the sea.

PEA & CORIANDER SOUP 50g margarine 1 tablespoon olive oil 1x 85g onion sliced 2 cloves garlic 1 green chilli – de-seeded and sliced 500g frozen peas 1 litre vegetable stock Bunch of coriander – finely chopped, a few leaves reserved for garnish Salt & pepper

1. Melt margarine and oil in a large saucepan. Add onion, garlic and chilli and allow to soften for about 10 minutes, stirring continuously to prevent sticking.

2. Add the frozen peas and stock and bring to the boil, then reduce to simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

3. Add half the coriander and then liquidize with a blender.

4. Return the soup to the heat and continue simmering – add additional chopped coriander if desired and season with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with a few coriander leaves.

MINCEMEAT BAKEWELL TART 150g shortcrust pastry 1 largecooking apple – peeled and thinly sliced Small jar of mincemeat 85g margarine 150g ground almonds 2 tablespoons caster sugar Juice of 1 lemon Grated nutmeg 1 teaspoon baking powder

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1. Pre-heat oven to 180˚/350˚.

Remove from the heat and

2. Roll pastry and line a 20 cm flan

mix well, using hands if necessary to

ring.

3. Spread mincemeat over pastry base – and arrange apple slices over the top.

4. Melt the margarine in a medium sized saucepan and then add the remaining ingredients.

make a smooth paste.

5. Spread the almond mix over the apples, levelling the surface.

6. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown. Serve with vanilla soya ice cream.

MUSHROOM FEUILLETÉES WITH WILD MUSHROOM SAUCE 500g puff pastry Soya milk to glaze Filling

Make the Feuilletées:-

Make the filling:-

1. Roll the pastry to a large rectangle

1. Sweat the onions, garlic and dried tarragon in the oil for 5 minutes.

2. Add the mushrooms and continue cooking until the mushrooms have softened.

3. Add the tamari and the tarragon and bring the mixture to the boil, and then take off the heat.

4. Add the cashew nuts and mix well to combine – season with salt and pepper.

about 6mm thick, and cut out six 10 cm squares. Place on a baking

1 tablespoon olive oil

sheet lined with non-stick baking

225g onions – finely chopped

paper, and brush with a little soya

2 cloves garlic

milk. Score all the squares with a

340g mushrooms – finely chopped

line about 1cm from the edge all

2 teaspoons dried tarragon

the way round without cutting all

3 tablespoons fresh tarragon

the way through the pastry. Chill in

50mls tamari

the fridge for about 20 minutes.

225g cashew nuts – finely ground Salt & pepper

2. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes until puffed up and golden.

Finishing the dish:-

3. With a sharp knife cut through the Sauce

marked line but not through the pastry base and remove the inner

50g dried ceps

square – and reserve as this will be

500mls boiling water

the lid. With a teaspoon remove

Tablespoon olive oil

and discard any uncooked pastry

2 cloves garlic

in the centre. Return the pastry

1 onion – finely chopped

boxes to the oven or a further 2

250g mushrooms – finely chopped

minutes to allow the pastry to dry

350mls red wine

out, then cool them on a wire rack.

50mls tamari

Reduce oven temperature to 150˚/300˚.

1. Strain the sauce through a sieve into a clean pan and bring to the boil.

2. Fill the pastry boxes with the mushroom filling and cover with their lids, place in the oven to warm through.

3. If you require the sauce to be thicker then continue boiling it to reduce it and thicken, taste and season with salt and pepper just before serving.

Pre-heat oven to 220˚C/425˚F Make the sauce:1. Soak the ceps in the boiling water for 30 mins.

2. In a large saucepan soften the onion and garlic in the oil for about 10 minutes, add the mushrooms and continue cooking until the mushrooms soften and darken and have given off all their liquid.

3. Add the soaked ceps and their soaking liquid together with the wine and tamari.

4. Increase the heat to bring the sauce to the boil, then reduce to simmer for about 30 minutes.

Serve the feuilletées with roasted potatoes that have been basted in oil flavoured with fresh rosemary and brussel sprouts shredded and sautéed in hazelnut oil. The sauce should be spooned over and around the feuilletées just before serving.

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A VEGAN WEDDING IN IRELAND Hana Hall

Sean Dwyer and Hana Hall got married in the mountains in Co Wicklow, Ireland on 6th September, and used their wedding as an opportunity to show their family and friends what veganism was all about.

I

never really thought that one day I'd be planning a wedding, let alone a vegan wedding, but when Sean proposed to me in March whilst on holiday in Goa, we decided we wouldn't wait too long and would aim for a September wedding. We didn't have much time, so we began researching right away. Our brief was to keep it small, simple and meaningful.

Dressing up

Food and drink Again we pulled in all our existing veggie/vegan contacts for the food, and asked a friend of ours, Joan Greene, if she would be willing to cater for the big day. She had won a Bridgestone food award for her vegetarian café in Killarney Park, Kerry, so no references were required. We also had contacts in wholefood wholesale, so were able to order a lot of ingredients from them.

Finding a suitable dress was my biggest fear, but that was actually one of the easiest tasks ahead. In the first few If I were to be asked what the hardest part of days of looking I found it quite hard to avoid silk. organising a vegan wedding was, I'd say it was I did at first want a slinky simple dress, but could probably locating suitable alcohol. I don't not find any that were not silk, so I began to widen my options. My explanation of drink so had no idea where to start.

“Oddbins veganism didn't work with some For months running up to the wedding I saleswomen, and so I nearly always had had been popping into a variety of off acquired a vegan to ask for the label, to check for myself licences asking them for a vegan whether silk had been used. I had wine list from London, wine/beer list. I spent most of my considered getting a dress made, as time then explaining what a vegan you have so much more input, and which even detailed wine would be, and getting a had even designed some but was bothered "No, We don't have that" lucky enough to find the perfect dress, which wine bottles had as a response. I had an Animal Free made of man-made fibres including Shopper, but that did not have a list animal derived glue polyester, in a bridal shop in the for Dublin and our supermarkets are Powerscourt Centre, Dublin. It was a lot different, so in desperation I searched in the labels.” more bridal than the look I originally the Vegan Society website. At last we wanted, as man-made fibre is heavier, but I got somewhere when I found the vegan was delighted with it, and the most important thing was that it was vegan. beer list on the homepage and was delighted to see Dublin Brewing Company. I had already Suited and booted heard lots of positive things about them from people, as they brew to German purity laws. We checked with them and Once the dress was sorted it was time to look at the groom’s they confirmed that all their kegs, including beers, stout and an attire. We had decided to be a bit informal and go for just a organic cider were vegan and could be delivered to our venue shirt and simple suit for Sean, no tie or hankie! However all the by a company called Brew Crew. Kieran at Brew Crew was a suits were wool or wool based. Linen was an option, but not too huge help to us, and solved all our problems. practical and was a bit too light for the Irish September. We saw a designer suit in a sale, which seemed to feel like thick cotton.

The only thing left to sort out was wine for the tables. And It was ultra slick and fitted and when I asked the salesman if he sourcing beer had given me hope that we could source some could check the wool content, he informed me, "Madam you wine in Dublin too and avoid huge delivery costs from the UK. couldn't get such a sharp look from a wool suit" and showed us the washing instructions, which read 100% cotton. We were Then I remembered that Oddbins off licences were always delighted and handed over our credit card straight away. helpful in the UK. I excitedly checked the phone book and with delight saw they had a branch in Churchtown, Dublin.

Shoes were no problem. I had a pair of blue hand sewn cotton Without delay we called, and they dealt with us promptly. slippers, and Sean had a pair of shoes that scrubbed up nicely, They acquired a vegan wine list from London, which even which he had bought from Vegetarian Shoes a while back. That detailed which wine bottles had animal derived glue in the is the great thing about a vegan wedding. You have already labels. Unfortunately we could not hang onto the list, but we invested so much time sourcing such things as shoes, make-up made our order and were given all the guarantees we needed. products etc for day to day life, that you don't feel much I laughed as I caught a glimpse of the front page, which temptation to buy new ones, thus saving a fortune. I did my hair explained to Oddbins staff what veganism was all about, and and make-up myself using products I have used for years. Klee why vegans should be taken seriously, and were not just being paper in Dublin provided us with recycled paper for our invites. difficult. Maybe that was why I couldn't hang on to it.

They have a huge variety of environmentally friendly, recycled office equipment.

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A perfect day Our wedding not only reflected our views on veganism, but also on community spirit and minimising waste. All our friends contributed in some way, and they all helped Joan in the kitchen who encouraged them to put love into the food and bless it. Most went home with so many ideas; we may never have to worry about friends inviting us for dinner again.

The day went so well, as it was so simple, there was so little to go wrong, so nothing did. The beer and wine flowed, guests were treated to a live Samba band and traditional Irish music.

Photographers snapped away on digital cameras, but what went down the best was the food.

I started my speech with the following. "Most of you ask me, ‘What does a vegan eat? Don't you get bored with a limited selection?’ I think all your questions have been answered tonight," as veggies, vegans and meat-eaters tucked into beautiful vegan fare, most of which was gluten free too. There was so much variety, with over 20 different savoury dishes from around the world and 4 desserts. We had sourced ideas for the menu from the internet (just type in vegan wedding) and our recipe books. I made the dark chocolate carob cake, and a friend decorated it with carob fudge and fruits. It was devoured within 12 hours, the first piece going to an over excited guest who couldn't wait for it to be portioned out, and tucked in immediately after we cut it.

“Most guests said it was the best wedding they had ever been to.”

We received so many compliments, most guests saying it was the best wedding they had ever been to, and we both really felt it was due to creating a space filled with love, compassion, and simple values where no living creature had been harmed.

We hope that feeling will continue in the hearts of all our guests and that they took something home with them, apart from a huge slice of vegan chocolate cake that is!

Instead of wedding gifts Hana and Sean asked guests to bring a donation and raised over £3,000 for charities that they will be visiting in South Africa, Vietnam and India.

Menu Vegetable samosas Nut and spinach roast with tomato gravy Beetroot, cumin, mint & soya cream salad Potato and sweetcorn salad Marrons au vin Mediterranean pasta salad Melon strawberry & mint salad Rice noodle salad with lime & nut Aloo Gobi Lentil, coconut & cashew curry Pilau rice Lentil & chestnut dahl Roast baby tomato salad Baba ganoush Hoummus Mixed salad Roast potatoes Coleslaw with vegan mayonnaise Chickpea medley Fresh bread with olive tapenade Poppadums Grilled vegetables on a squash & sweet potato base Wedding cake Apple crumble Rhubarb delight Strawberry, coconut and soya cream smoothie

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JUBILEE WALK: ON YOUR MARKS, GET SET!

Laurence Main, who is walking the length of Britain in our 2004 Jubilee Year

My walk, dedicated to the Society’s Diamond Jubilee, is to start at Imbolc (1 February). This is the special time of the goddess Bridget and I’ll set out from her special place, being the stone circle at Callanish on the Isle of Lewis. What better way to invoke the spirit of the living land?

I

shall be doing the walk in stages of about one fortnight in each month (February-October). This has the advantage of allowing time to make up for delays through bad weather and for arrangements to be made for other vegans to join me along the way and for organising publicity on television, radio and in the press. If speaking opportunities arise en route all the better. Offers of accommodation (even camping space) are welcome. As the walk progresses through the country, interest should snowball!

summit of Schiehallion, a fairy mountain with a cave giving access to the underworld, Glen Lyon with the praying hands of Mary and Tigh nam Bodach – which is as far as I’ve measured the distance from the start so far, being 417 miles, then the West Highland Way).

April 6-17 – Glasgow to Haltwhistle (via Clyde Walkway, Stow in Wedale where King Arthur’s shield is housed in the church, Eildon Hills, St Cuthbert’s Way, Pennine Way and Hadrian’s Wall).

I am backpacking, carrying tent, sleeping bag and camping mat. I need to carry as light a rucksack as possible, so this is an exercise in deciding what is essential.

Buffalo clothing (pile and pertex) is my choice for the winter months, thus avoiding the need for spare clothes. Maps will take up rucksack room, while there will be several periods when I will not pass a shop for five days. I’ll drink from springs and streams. I am carrying lots of oatcakes (Simmers of Edinburgh have promised me a free case of their Nairn’s Organic Oatcakes), while Lyme Regis Foods of Liphook (Hampshire) have already kindly donated boxes of their organic marzipan bars.

Ethical Wares have generously given me a pair of their Ranger walking boots.

A trot down the Pennine Way in May will lead to a rally organised by the Vegan Organic Trust in Manchester at the end of May. I’ll also call in at the Northern Earth Moot at Skipton on 29 May. That month’s section will end at Chester, swiftly followed by a walk through Wales in June. Carn Ingli, the sacred peak in Pembrokeshire, is the target for the summer solstice, followed by a walk past Carreg Samson burial chamber on the way to St David’s.

You are welcome to join me on a leg of the walk but you’ll need to carry your own tent, or share with someone. Hostels will be an option now and again. When I reach soft southern England, I’ll probably walk light by pitching the tent at a base camp (eg Salisbury in August) and doing the daily walk in sections with the aid of public transport from there (eg Bath to Winchester in August).

My proposed itinerary is: February 1 – Callanish, Isle of Lewis (to Stornoway), February 2-7 – Ullapool to Inverness (highest point 2,630ft) February 8-17 – Inverness to Aberdeen (via Clava Cairns, Culloden, Speyside Way, cup marked stones, Gordon Way, Bennachie and stone circles). It is hoped to arrange local publicity.

March 9-15 – Aberdeen to Pitlochry (via stone circles, highest point 2,760ft, Cateran Trail and cup marked stones).

March 16-24 – Pitlochry to Glasgow (via stone circles, cup marked stones, Fortingall yew tree, highest point 3,570ft

July will bring a traverse of South Wales to reach Gloucester. August has the delightful Cotswold Way to Bath, then a walk past Avebury, Stonehenge and Salisbury to Winchester.

September takes the South Downs Way and Saxon Shore Way to Folkestone. The final lap to London and the 2004 Vegan Society AGM on 30 October will be along the North Downs Way and the Thames Path.

I must stress that this is my own individual route and I am meeting all my own expenses. You are welcome to join me (but it has to be at your own risk, so if your require insurance cover you will need to arrange it yourself). If you respond urgently, you may still be able to join the Scottish sections of the walk. Detailed maps for each month of my intended route are available if you send me 12 x 1st class stamps to cover the cost of photocopying and postage and specify which month. I’ll try to stick to the proposed dates, circumstances permitting. Please give as much advance notice as possible of your intention to join me, or in arranging an event linked to the walk.

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TO ADVERTISE IN THIS SPACE CALL 01424 448822 OR EMAIL ADVERTS@VEGANSOCIETY.COM

THE ATKINS DIET: UNSAFE, UNSOUND AND UNNECESSARY © Stephen Walsh PhD

D

r Atkins “New Diet Revolution” has sold more copies than any other diet guide. Its recent popularity with some celebrities has given it a lot of publicity and further enhanced its influence.

However, its popularity is undeserved as it systematically distorts the evidence, exaggerates the benefits and conceals the risks in relation to the diet it recommends.

Atkins recommends high intakes of protein and fat and very low carbohydrate intake and promotes meat and dairy products. Initially, carbohydrate is restricted to 20 grams per day, though it is later increased to about 50 grams per day. In this article I shall evaluate the evidence for and against the Atkins diet and explain why it is unsafe, unsound and unnecessary.

The claims The key selling points of the Atkins diet are the claims that replacing carbohydrate with fat and protein will (1) promote weight loss by increasing the food energy lost in digestion and reducing appetite and (2) reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease.

Weight loss and reduced appetite?

In support of the first claim, the book makes much of a study in which adolescents on a low carbohydrate diet appeared to lose more weight than adolescents on a low fat diet despite consuming more calories (Sondike 2000, 2003). However, in this study the participants selected and reported their own diets, introducing considerable potential for errors in the records. It also ignored individual variations in calorie requirements. A later study (Stadler 2003) used food weighed by staff to eliminate errors in diet records and adjusted calorie intake for each individual to two thirds of the calories required for weight maintenance.

This time around, there was no difference in weight loss, fat loss or waistline change between the low fat and low carbohydrate groups: the key to weight loss was clearly calorie reduction, not fat or carbohydrate content.

There is, however, some evidence that protein intakes around 20% to 25% of calories can help people who are overweight to eat less and thus lose more weight, at least over periods of six months to a year. This has been observed on both high fat (Foster 2003; Samaha 2003) and low fat diets (Skov 1999). It therefore provides no support for high fat intakes. Any benefit of relatively high protein diets for weight loss is probably due to a mixture of psychological and physical effects. For people used to a meat and two veg diet, meat is often viewed as the heart of the meal and removing it may increase feelings of deprivation and make the diet less satisfying. On low calorie diets the percentage of calories required as protein

to meet the body’s needs rises considerably, not only because the total calories decline but because more protein is used to provide energy rather than for tissue repair. Thus, while 10% of calories as protein is normally sufficient, 20% may be beneficial when on a weight reducing diet. However, increasing protein intake to as much as 25% of calories can be easily achieved without significantly cutting back on carbohydrate and without using any animal products. Tofu, soya milk, beans, almonds, cashews and pumpkin seeds are all good choices to increase protein intake while promoting long term health.

Less risk of diabetes and heart disease?

The Atkins book also makes much of results from the Harvard study of US nurses, which found that high glycaemic load (large amounts of rapidly digested carbohydrates such as baked potatoes and products made from finely milled flour) was associated with increased risk of diabetes and heart disease in the women studied. This observation is used by Atkins as justification for damning all carbohydrates as a danger to health. However, the Harvard team (Willett 2002) also studied the effect of glycaemic load in men and the effect of cereal fibre in both men and women. In women, low cereal fibre intake appeared to be twice as dangerous as high glycaemic load in terms of diabetes risk. In men with high cereal fibre intake, the risk of diabetes actually declined with increased glycaemic load, though the highest risk of all was in men with both high glycaemic load and low cereal fibre intake.

The evidence therefore points to harm from highly processed carbohydrates with the fibre stripped out but points even more strongly to benefit from high fibre whole grain products, which the Atkins diet condemns along with their refined counterparts.

Other studies from the Harvard team confirm the dangers of diets high in animal products, which are generally also high in saturated fat and low in fibre. One of these (Ascherio 1996) found that men eating the most saturated fat had 2.5 times the risk of fatal heart disease compared with men eating the least saturated fat. When the results were analysed in such a way as to compensate for the beneficial effect of fibre, the increased risk from high saturated fat was reduced from 2.5 to 1.7. This is cold comfort for followers of the Atkins diet as its recommendations not only increase saturated fat intake substantially but also restrict many fibre rich foods to avoid the accompanying carbohydrate.

There is much debate as to how the effect of diet on heart disease risk can be predicted from the effect of diet on intermediate measures such as cholesterol. Total blood cholesterol appears to be an important risk factor in middle age while the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol appears to be a better predictor in later years. Ü

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THE ATKINS DIET: UNSAFE, UNSOUND AND UNNECESSARY © Stephen Walsh PhD

Ü Saturated fat increases total cholesterol while having very little effect on the ratio of total to HDL cholesterol. Not surprisingly, Atkins emphasises the ratio of total to HDL cholesterol while those who advocate fat reduction emphasise total cholesterol.

The best strategy is to reduce both total cholesterol and the ratio of total to HDL cholesterol. Replacing animal protein with soy protein reduces both, as does replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats such as almonds, cashews, olive oil and rapeseed oil. The fibre accompanying unrefined plant foods such as oats, beans, fruits and vegetables also improves cholesterol profile, as does eliminating the dietary cholesterol that accompanies animal fats. A plant centred diet high in fibre and monounsaturated fat and low in cholesterol and saturated fat will reduce total cholesterol substantially and improve the ratio of total to HDL cholesterol at the same time.

There is scientific debate about the proportion of the increased calcium loss that is balanced by increased absorption of calcium, but the balance of evidence favours moderate rather than high protein intake to promote bone health.

Plant protein sources such as soya and other beans are preferable to meat, fish or eggs as the high potassium content of these plant foods greatly reduces calcium losses.

The Atkins diet exposes its followers to increased risk of kidney damage, bone loss and heart disease with no compensating benefit. Anyone following a diet with high consumption of animal fat and protein and restricted fibre intake is taking serious and unnecessary risks.

Plant food diets are better

Atkins’ book claims that nobody has produced evidence that high protein intake causes kidney damage, though he does accept that people with established kidney damage should not follow the Atkins diet. Another recent study from Harvard (Knight 2003) found that even in people with only slightly impaired kidneys when first tested – almost a third of the individuals studied – increased protein intake was associated with declining kidney health.

In contrast, there is solid evidence for the benefits of plant centred diets. A French trial replacing butter with rapeseed oil margarine and boosting fruit and vegetable consumption reduced deaths by more than half among people who had previously suffered a heart attack. High fibre diets are recommended by the World Health Organisation to reduce risk of excess weight, diabetes and heart disease. On average vegetarians and vegans are about 5 kg (11 lb) lighter than meat eaters – a difference large enough to eliminate the surge in obesity over the past twenty years.

Increased protein intake also increases excretion of acid and calcium in urine and high protein intake is under strong suspicion as a cause of osteoporosis.

For more information on the benefits of choosing the right plant foods see “Plant Based Nutrition and Health”, available from The Vegan Society for £7.95 plus p&p.

Protein intake and kidney damage

References Gary D Foster et al., New England Journal of Medicine, 2003; 348: 2082-2090, A randomized trial of a low-carbohydrate diet for obesity.

Eric L Knight et al., Annals of Internal Medicine, 2003; 138: 460-467, The impact of protein intake on renal function decline in women with normal renal function or mild renal function insufficiency.

Frederick F Samaha et al., New England Journal of Medicine, 2003; 348: 2074-2081, A low carbohydrate as compared with a low-fat diet in severe obesity.

Stephen B Sondike et al., Journal of Adolescent Health, 2000; 26: 91, The ketogenic diet increases weight loss but not cardiovascular risk: a randomized controlled trial.

Stephen B Sondike et al., Journal of Pediatrics, 2003; 142: 253-258, Effects of a low-carbohydrate diet on weight loss and cardiovascular risk factors in overweight adolescents.

Diane D Stadler et al., FASEB Journal, 2003; 17(4): A745, Impact of 42-day Atkins diet and energy matched low-fat diet on weight and anthropometric indices.

A R Skov et al., International Journal of Obesity, 1999; 23: 528-536, Randomised trial on protein vs carbohydrate in ad libitum fat reduced diet for the treatment of obesity.

Walter Willett et al., American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2002; 76: 274S-280S, Glycemic index, glycemic load, and risk of type 2 diabetes.

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Reviews n EATING APES

by Dale Peterson and Karl Ammann ISBN: 0520230906 Publishers: University of California Press Cover price: £16.95

Eating Apes argues convincingly and movingly that humans are eating their closest relatives – chimpanzees and gorillas – into extinction. It raises a powerful call for action before it is too late.

The role of economic development in opening up great ape habitat to hunters is placed centre-stage. Logging provides the roads and vehicles that allow slaughtered apes and other animals to be transported for sale in towns and cities. Mining, particularly of koltan for mobile phones, has drawn humans into the heart of great ape populations with devastating results.

Modern firearms allow even powerful silverback gorillas to be killed with impunity.

The book vigorously attacks deals between conservation agencies and logging companies which fail to provide the resources to stop great apes being killed or to incorporate independent monitoring. More contentiously, it claims that the magnitude of the devastation of great apes is being downplayed in favour of “feel-good” conservation. The book calls for a campaign to highlight the extent of the crisis in order to generate the financial and political backing to allow conservation to compete directly with logging for control of land and to change cultural attitudes to the great apes.

While not in any way embracing a vegan outlook, this book highlights a little known aspect of the destruction caused by humans eating animals and in this sense may promote the broader vegan cause as well as the direct and laudable objective of protecting the great apes.

n MARTIN SHAW COOKS VEGGIE Viva! Guide 5, available from Viva! £1 Martin Shaw is not only one of Britain’s bestloved actors, he’s also vegan!

So Viva! have got together with him to produce this fantastic little booklet.

From belly-busting breakfasts to tasty tarts, these are recipes to make your mouth water and your tummy rumble.

It’s bright and cheerful and at just £1 would make the perfect stocking filler. www.viva.org.uk 0117 944 1000. n RAISING VEGAN CHILDREN IN A NON-VEGAN WORLD

by Erin Pavlina ISBN: 0-9725102-0-6 Publishers: VegFamily Cover price: $19.95 [Available from the Vegan Society at only £9.95] The title says it all, answers and suggestions to all those tough questions vegan parents face. UK readers should be warned that this is aimed at an American audience though much of the advice can easily be interpreted for this side of the Atlantic.

A VEGAN GUIDE TO BRISTOL – free A fantastic free guide to Bristol containing an irreverent, unbalanced and biased look at the various shops, restaurants and other businesses that cater for the vegan diet. Send the Society a SAE with two 2nd class stamps, marked Bristol Guide, to receive your free copy.

n KITCHEN DOCTOR: VEGAN COOKING FOR HEALTH Consultant editor: Nicola Graimes ISBN: 1-84215-906-2 Publishers: Southwood Cover price: £8.99 [Available from the Vegan Society www.vegansociety.com/shop] With more than 50 irresistible recipes to choose from, new and experienced vegans alike will find plenty of exciting mealtime ideas.

Try Teriyaki Soba Noodles with Tofu and Asparagus or Creamy Leak and Mushroom Tagliatelle.

With nutrition notes provided for every recipe, this is an invaluable guide to the fabulous, tasty and highly nutritious vegan style of cooking. n INCREDIBLY DELICIOUS: RECIPES FOR A NEW PARADIGM from Gentle World ISBN: 0929274253 Cover price: £18.99 [Available from the Vegan Society www.vegansociety.com/shop] The main contributors to this cook book from Gentle World are Marcia Katz, Jennifer Gibson-Weil, Elizabeth Flinn and Heather Potomac.

‘Incredibly Delicious’ has over 500 recipes from quick and easy to gourmet, has an extensive chapter on raw food preparation, and is interspersed throughout with inspiring quotes.

All measurements are given in pounds, cups etc but there is a metric conversion table on page 9.

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

Having spent a good deal of time preparing the Red Pepper and Basil Soup recipe in The Vegan, Autumn 2003, I was dismayed to find it inedible! It was far too ‘hot’ to eat. I can only presume that this was because one chilli was too much, or that the seeds should have been removed. Having never used a recipe with chilli before, I was unaware that ‘1 chopped green chilli’ should have been looked upon with caution.

I think it would be advisable to prepare recipes for printing with a little more care in future. Something that is obvious to some may not be to others.

Meriel Cross Belper, Derbyshire

I was very interested in Sue Hodson’s letter (Postbag, Autumn 2003) concerning the Christian churches’ attitude to vegetarians. I am a Christian vegetarian, my church is nondenominational but some members come from evangelical backgrounds. I have received very negative comments from some parishioners since I’ve been there. I have been told God gave us animals to eat, so I am going against God’s will by being vegetarian. I have had bible passages quoted to back their case up. My vegetarianism was seen as dangerous antiChristian nonsense. While certain Christians have this sort of attitude, the vegetarian/vegan message will never be accepted in churches.

Mrs A Marples Sprowston, Norwich

Healthy living, chemicals on farms, prescribed drugs, need for vitamins, healthy eating: all familiar topics widely discussed in the name of good health – but is it delivering good health?

NO! There is the call for more doctors, more nurses, more hospital beds, more hospitals. That doesn’t sound like a healthier community.

‘Diet is the best medicine’ but all our food is more and more depleted of its goodness. Why? Because we turn a blind eye to the gradually increasing power of those big chemical companies whose main aim is profit, profit and more profit.

They sell chemical fertilisers to the farmers to ‘feed’ their crops – what nonsense. Genuine farmers know compost and nature are the genuine feeders of soil. But the more chemicals sold, the bigger the profits for those companies(!), the more our food is depleted of its goodness, making more unhealthy people, needing more prescribed drugs, made by those same big chemical companies, so increasing their profits AGAIN! Those companies have been so clever deceiving people and we’ve let them get away with it all these years!!! Will we ever learn? Let vegetarian, thinking, caring, Christian and other people worldwide spread the good news about true good health, for the sake of all peoples, animals, plants and the future.

Chris Sutoris (Postbag, Autumn 2003) says I am mistaken in my belief that vegans shop in supermarkets to change things from the inside. He says the real reason is to encourage such stores to stock vegan products, which in turn creates more vegans. This sounds to me like trying to change things from the inside. A case can be made for this. Putting more vegan foods in supermarkets may lead to conversions, but what it definitely does is help pay for animals to be killed in their millions every day. When immorality reaches such extremes, at least a partial boycott is called for.

I say partial, because I too sometimes weaken and visit a supermarket. But if I were a cow in a slaughterhouse, and could see from a crack in the wall a building stacked with dead cows, and knew it was run by the very people who killed them and would soon kill me, then how would I regard that man walking out with his squeaky clean carrier bag of tofu?

It is a thought-provoking question, and vegans should have the courage to face it.

James Dixon Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk

I thank all the individuals and vegan groups around the world that sent me cards and goodwill messages on the occasion of my 93rd birthday on 2 September. Some of the cards had several signatures; one had 41! I share this appreciation with my memory of those who were with me in 1944 when we formed the Vegan Society.

What an honour it is to belong to the most peaceful and safest revolution the world has ever known. I send my best wishes to you all, whenever your birthdays fall.

Donald Watson Keswick, Cumbria

Joyce Sandground d. 29/10/2003 Joyce was a regular Vegan Society volunteer and much-loved friend.

She died peacefully in her sleep on October 29th. Joyce was passionate about making the world a better place – especially through veganism.

A strong-willed and resolute campaigner, she will be sadly missed.

Joyce Slack Wingerworth, Derbyshire The Vegan l Winter Summer2003 Autumn 2003

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

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 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

How to pay Individual £21

* Less £7 low-income deduction (if applicable) Payment must be made by credit card, sterling International money order or sterling cheque drawn on a British bank.

** Add £7 per additional household member Life £350

Cheque / PO payable to The Vegan Society Credit / Debit card (phone for details) Direct Debit (phone for details) Website: www.vegansociety.com

Memo & Articles of Association £5 For office use only

Overseas: Europe +£5 / Rest of World +£7 MEM. No.: ...............................................Membership: .........................................

Donation Total:

Renewal Date: ..........................................Sponsorship: .............................................

Sent:

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LOCAL GROUPS NEWS There is no formal Vegan Society affiliation – so long as it is obvious from the name that a group is for vegans and not just vegetarians, and a Vegan Society member is willing to be named contact, it can be listed. Please let the Local Contacts’ Coordinator know of any omitted. Check first that the contact person is a full member of the Vegan Society. If not, you could offer to be the contact yourself and get publicity for the group. Groups listed for the first time have * before their name.

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The Vegan l Winter 2003

events

For a full list of events and meetings, see www.veggies.org.uk, www.veganvillage.co.uk, www.veganlondon.freeserve.co.uk , the forum at www.worldveganday.org and local groups’ websites.

Post missing events up at www.worldveganday.org

n NOVEMBER Saturday 15th Vegan Society Annual General Meeting The Guildhall, Watergate Street, Chester CH1 2LA. Doors open at noon, AGM starts at 2pm.

Vegan Society stall will be there.

Sunday 16th Vegan Society Local Contacts and Activists Training Day Vegetarian Society HQ, Altrincham, Cheshire. 11am to 5pm.

Contact Patricia Tricker for details Saturday 22nd – Saturday 29th National Anti-Fur Week Protests at fur shops and on the street throughout the UK. Coalition to Abolish the Fur Trade (CAFT-UK) T. 0845 456 9381 caft@caft.org.uk www.caft.org.uk Sunday 23rd Christmas Without Cruelty Fayre Kensington Town Hall, London, 10am to 5pm T. 01732 364546 www.animalaid.org.uk Vegan Society stall will be there.

Saturday 29th Buy Nothing Day Anti-consumerism campaign.

T. 0161 226 6668 info@buynothingday.co.uk www.enough.org.uk

n DECEMBER All Month – Christmas Without Cruelty Campaign Try to encourage the saving of life rather than the taking of life this season.

Saturday 6th Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty March And Move. National march and rally in Cambridgeshire. Starts 12 noon. T. 0845 458 0630 www.shac.net Wednesday 10th 6th International Animal Rights Day Calling for the recognition of Uncaged’s Universal Declaration of Animal Rights. Groups and individuals are encouraged to hold candle-lit vigils to protest against the abuse of animals’ rights.

Uncaged T. 0114 272 2220 info@uncaged.co.uk www.uncaged.co.uk

Friday 26th Boxing Day Anti-Hunt Demos – Contact your local group via: Hunt Saboteurs Association T. 0845 450 0727 info@huntsabs.org.uk www.huntsabs.org.uk League Against Cruel Sports T. 020 7403 6155 info@league.uk.com www.league.uk.com

n JANUARY Sunday 25th Burns Night Celebrate Rabbie’s birthday by treating yourself and friends to an evening of vegan haggis with neeps and tatties.

n FEBRUARY Month of remembrance for animal activists.

Jill Phipps (1st); Vicki Moore (6th), Mike Hill (9th).

Saturday 14th Vegan Valentine’s Day Check out those plant-based aphrodisiacs and spread some vegan love around.

Monday 23rd – Friday 27th Hotelympia Le Salon Culinaire International de Londres - a chance for your favourite chefs to prove they are the best in the world. Contact The Vegan Society for details. You need to register by Nov 30th.

n MARCH Veggie Month Animal Aid is conducting a survey to assess the provision of animal-free foods in hospitals. The results will be published to mark the start of Veggie Month.

T. 01732 364546 becky@animalaid.co.uk www.animalaid.org.uk

n APRIL Saturday 24th World Day for Animals in Laboratories Local, national and international campaigns against vivisection.

National Anti-Vivisection Society T. 020 8846 9777 info@navs.org.uk www.navs.org.uk

LOCAL CONTACTS NEWS One reason why some Local Contacts say that hardly anyone gets in touch with them may be that some people have been looking for the name of the town, whereas the list is in alphabetical order by county, so if there doesn’t appear to be a Contact near you just glance down the list and you may get a nice surprise!

Groups, however, are listed alphabetically by the name of the group, which may or may not coincide with the name of the county or town, so again please have a good look.

As from this issue, new groups and contacts will have an asterisk before their name.

I wrote last time that it would be wonderful to have 50 groups by the next issue. Well, we’ve done it! Seven new groups bring the total to 52, well on target for 60 in time for the Society’s Diamond Jubilee on 1 November 2004.

Many of you will be familiar with vegansoc-talk, the e-mail discussion group for all Vegan Society members. If you haven’t yet joined but would like to be part of this lively group, send an e-mail to join.vs.talk@anyware.co.uk with your full name, VS membership number and postcode.

There is now also a forum specifically for Local Contacts.

To join, go to www.worldveganday.org, select Forums from the menu and look under Vegan Society Members.

As I write there are a few places left for the local activists day in Altrincham on Sunday 16 November [the day after the AGM in Chester]. They may be filled by the time you read this, but if you contact me immediately it might be possible to squeeze you in.

On 28 September three Council members (Vanessa Clarke, Stephen Walsh and I) attended the Tenth Irish Vegetarian Festival in Dublin [at our own expense, of course].

Looking after our stall in the main hall, I knew the moment Stephen’s talk was over because there was a stampede to buy Plant Based Nutrition and Health. In fact we could have sold all the merchandise we brought several times over. A big public ‘Thank You’ from all of us to Niall, Miriam, Ellen and Robert for looking after us so well.

We also recruited lots of new members plus one new Local Contact. We now have three groups in Ireland (see Local Groups News) and hope to arrange an event there fairly soon. If you live anywhere in Ireland please give the new groups your support; or if there is not one near you and you would be willing to help set one up please get in touch.

As my telephone number is for work as well as home, the best time to ring is after 7.15 pm, but e-mail is even better.

Patricia Tricker National Local Contacts’ Coordinator

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VEGAN SOCIETY LOCAL CONTACTS Note: Local Contacts are Vegan Society members who have offered to act, on a voluntary basis, as a point of contact for those interested in the Society's work. They are not official representatives of the Society.

Their levels of activity and knowledge may vary according to their individual circumstances.

When writing to a Contact please remember to enclose a SAE. Local Contacts' Coordinator: Patricia Tricker - see under Yorkshire (North)

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LISTINGS Founder Donald Watson Hon Patrons Serena Coles Freya Dinshah Maneka Gandhi Dr. Michael Klaper Arthur Ling Moby Cor Nouws Wendy Turner Donald Watson Benjamin Zephaniah Council Alex Bourke (Vice Chair) Chris Childe Vanessa Clarke Laurence Klein (Hon Treasurer) Laurence Main Caroline Malkinson Marc Palmer (Co-opted) Karin Ridgers George Rodger Patricia Tricker Stephen Walsh (Chair) National Local Contacts Co-ordinator Patricia M. Tricker STAFF Chief Executive Officer Rick Savage Administration/Finance Officer Janet Pender Head of Promotions/PR Tony Weston Information Officer Catriona Toms Information Assistant Debbie Holman Fundraising/Marketing Officer James Southwood Sales & Membership Officer Dave Palmer Sales & Membership Assistant Sundari Poorun Sales Assistant John Rawden Volunteers Wendy Crathern Bev Lithgow Erica Wilson Dietary Consultant Sandra Hood

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.

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.

If you would like more information on veganism a free Information Pack is available from the Vegan Society in exchange for two first class stamps.

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 cow’s milk; and the de-oxygenation of river water through contamination with cattle slurry.

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.

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CLASSIFIEDS (UK) HOLIDAY

LANCASHIRE

ACCOMMODATION

MY HOME IS YOUR HOME Bed and Breakfast. Country cottage bedroom. Plenty of scrumptious veggie/vegan food. Food lovers and cat lovers especially welcome! Cockermouth Town Centre, Cumbria 01900 824045 £35 per couple £20 per person

SCOTLAND WALES MACHYNLLETH B&B. Relax in our WTB 4Star bungalow overlooking the Dyfi valley and enjoy delicious organic veg/vegan breakfasts. Spectcular scenery - coast nearby. Secure parking. 01654 702562

DEVON

CORNWALL

ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY B&B and RETREATS Magical Victorian country house, natural carpets and paints, vegan organic meals, overlooking stunning coastal conservation area. Easy for public transport. South West Wales.

01267 241999 www.heartspring.co.uk

DEVON (Lydford) S/C for N/S visitors at VEGFAM’s HQ. SAE to ‘The Sanctuary’, nr Lydford, Okehampton EX20 4AL. Tel/Fax 01822 820203

PEMBROKESHIRE. A warm welcome & good food (exclusively Veg/Vegan) in modern bungalow. Close to Newgale beach. Coastal paths to explore.

Green Haven B&B - Tel. 01437 710756

SOMERSET

CUMBRIA

ISLE OF WIGHT

SOMERSET BADGER’S END women’s bed and breakfast. Vegan/vegetarian £20 pppn.

Non-smoking. Walking, birdwatching nr Glastonbury. For booking phone 01963 351240 email

SUSSEX

SNOWDONIA restored railway station overlooking vale of Ffestiniog. Selfcatering, sleeps up to 6. Children, pet and wheelchair friendly. Tel 01766 590233 CARDIGAN BAY, West Wales, 18th Century self catering cottage on non working farm, sleeps five. Discount to Vegan Society readers. Tel: 01239 811423. www.bwthynbarri.co.uk TRADITIONAL SELF-CATERING ACCOMMODATION and Bed & Breakfast, situated on Pembrokeshire coast path with spectacular cliffs & wildlife, including seals and choughs. Excellent vegan and vegetarian cooking. Tel 01437 721677 www.sheepdogtraining.co.uk

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The Vegan l Winter 2003

DISCOUNT CARD

YORKSHIRE

✂ NORTH YORKSHIRE Comfortable, homely, exclusively vegetarian/vegan B&B from £17 p.p./p.n. at Prospect Cottage situated in Ingleton village. Wonderful walking country. Tel: 015242 41328

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.

HOLIDAYS ABROAD

DISCOUNT CARD THE VEGAN VALID FROM

November 2003 UNTIL

February 2004

REFERENCE CODE KERALA, SOUTH INDIA a vegan’s paradise.

Tours, accommodation including selfcatering. Brochure: Tel: 01892 722440, Voice Mail/Fax: 01892 724913. E-mail: info@keralconnect.co.uk Website:www.keralconnect.co.uk WEST CORK self catering apartments for singles,couples and families in peaceful wooded surroundings. Organic vegetables,bread & vegan wholefoods available. Reasonable rates. Green Lodge, Trawnamadree, Ballylickey, Bantry, Co Cork, Ireland. Tel. 003532766146 email greenlodge@bigfoot.com web:http://homepage.eircom.net/~green lodge

Ref: JUB-144 GROWING ECO-FRIENDLY vegan-raw community with land in Southern Spain seeks new members and ethical investors.

Contact Veronica or Gaura Ecoforest, Apdo 29, Coin 2910, Malaga, Spain. info@ecoforest.org and www.ecoforest.org

✂ Box Numbers When replying to a box number address your envelope as follows:

EATING OUT

VEGAN GUEST HOUSE SW Ireland, http://homepage.eircom.net/~cussenscottage All major credit cards accepted.

00353 63 98926 email:cussenscottage@eircom.net

Box no. ___,The Vegan Society, Donald Watson House, 7 Battle Road, St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, TN37 7AA

PUBLICATIONS NEW BOOK. Highly recommended. “A Glimpse into the World of Spirit”. Eight professional people tell of their lives before and after passing into spirit. £5 please to B. L. Cox, 12 Cliff Close, Reedham, Norfolk, NR13 3TS

ALPUJARRAS - ANDALUCIA Attractive townhouse.Garage,roof terrace.

Excellent views,birds,walks.Wholefood shops and restaurants serving veggie food in town.Sleeps 2 -6.From £230 pw.

Available all year.Tel:01736 753555.

COSMETICS

PYRENEES:Vegan B+B, dble room w/shower and organic brek:40 euros per couple per night, incl breakfast.

Contact Sue or Trev, Le Guerrat, 09420 Rimont, France.

Web: http://vegan.port5.com/flashvegangite2.html

PERSONAL

GROWING ECO-FRIENDLY vegan-raw community with land in Southern Spain seeks new members and ethical investors.

Contact Veronica or Gaura Ecoforest, Apdo 29, Coin 2910, Malaga, Spain. info@ecoforest.org and www.ecoforest.org

FOOD TEMPEH KITS – it’s so easy and cheap to make this PERFECT protein food for vegans at home. Kits comprise enough starter for 10.5kg finished tempeh PLUS a colour instruction/recipe book - £15. Call Polly at PHYTOFOODS – 01547 510242 FREE SAMPLES! Animal free, dairy free, creamy shakes for children and adults.

Tel: 07957 958058 (24 hours) email: soyasample@soyashakes.com with name and address.

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CLASSIFIEDS DISCOUNT CARD

ACCOMMODATION

OPPORTUNITIES

✂

people

Donald Watson House 7 Battle Road St. Leonards on Sea East Sussex TN37 7AA

animals

environment

Tel: 0845 45 88244 Fax: 01424 717064 info@vegansociety.com www.vegansociety.com

THE VEGAN DISCOUNT CARD ✂ 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.

ARTICLES AND ADVERTISEMENTS TO BE SUBMITTED BY 15 JANUARY 2004 FOR INCLUSION IN SPRING 2004 ISSUE OF THE VEGAN

ROOM TO LET, vegan household, non smoker preferred. Must like animals as I have dogs, cats. Phone Ros for a chat if interested. Phone 01843 589027, Ramsgate area.

MISCELLANEOUS GREEN/DIY FUNERALS Eco-friendly inexpensive coffins, memorial treeplanting. Please send £1 in unused stamps with A5 size 33p SAE to Box 328

PRACTITIONERS

FINANCE LOANS FOR ANY PURPOSE. Mortgages, Re-mortgages, right-to-buy. Rates variable depending on status. Self-employed with without accounts. Buy-to-let specialists.

Non-status also considered. Visit website, apply on-line www.finance-agent.com/circlefinance or

ITEMS FOR SALE

Vegan but still sick? Health and nutritional consultations and iridology by Dr Gina Shaw. Correspondence course in natural health, health magazine and books, etc. Contact (01626) 352765 www.vibrancy.homestead.com/pageone.html

CLASSIFIED ORDER FORM Want to meet new vegan friends? Looking for romance? After a roommate? Why not advertise in The Vegan classifieds, and reach a large audience of like-minded people. It costs just £6 for 35 word max (commercial rates also available) - simply return this form to us in time for the next issue.

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The Vegan l Winter 2003

34

PRIZE CROSSWORD Kate Sweeney

ACROSS 1 4 9 10 11 12 13 17 19 21 22 23 24

_ _ _ _ _ barley (5) Remove the pips (6) Pear-shaped tropical fruit (7) Hot drink of liquor, water, sugar and spices (5) Make brown and crispy; drink in honour of (5) Deficency of red blood cells (7) Puree for spaghetti, perhaps (6,5) Porridge is made from this (7) Increased in volume (dough) (5) These may be stock (5) Take the lid off (7) Gather windfall apples by raiding orchards (6) Herb used in stuffing (5)

1 2 3 5 6 7 8 14 15 16 18

Puts into the ground; vegetable organisms (6) Pleasant odour, perfume (5) Combine feta with ale for this drink? (Anag.) (4,3) _ _ _ _ _ virgin olive oil (5) Native to a particular area (7) Not sweet (3) Thickener made from tubers (6,5) Vegan Week started in this month (7) Fruit resembling a small peach (7) Principal dish of a meal (6) _ _ _ _ _ salts (hydrated magnesium sulphate used as a laxative) (5) Type of cabbage (5) Kind of lettuce (3)

DOWN

20 21

Solution to The Vegan Prize Crossword

33 CONGRATULATIONS to the Winner Rob Leake, Highworth, Wiltshire

Send in a photocopy (or original) of the solution to this crossword, together with your name and address by the 15th January 2004 PRIZE: Win one of our fabulous new t-shirts 'Against Animal Tasting' - a real talking point when people realise it's not 'Testing' but 'Tasting'. Solution in next issue.

Name.......................................................................................

Address.................................................................................... ................................................................................................

Postcode

44

The Vegan l Winter 2003