Catering
Good care for vegans and vegetarians
With more and more vegetarians and vegans entering care, providers need to make sure they take their residents’ dietary needs seriously. Amanda Woodvine, chief executive of charity Vegetarian for Life, explains how enhancing quality of life for older vegans and vegetarians is key to achieving excellence in person-centred care
As regular readers might know, Vegetarian for Life is the UK care charity supporting older vegans and vegetarians and those who cater for them.
But as VfL’s chief executive, I am still
often asked why there needs to be a charity specifically for older vegans and vegetarians.
Serena Coles: a testament to veganism’s rich history
If I get the opportunity, I tell them the poignant story of Serena Coles – a devoted animal rights activist and an early vice president of The Vegan Society. Serena’s position in The Vegan Society allowed her to travel the world promoting the lifestyle. In the 1970s, the BBC did a series
of programmes called Open Door – where campaign groups were given an opportunity to make a half-hour show explaining their case. The Vegan Society was successful in its application, and its programme aired on BBC2 in 1976. We still have access to this TV footage, where viewers can hear Serena Coles speak passionately and articulately about having become a vegetarian during World War 2 – at a time of incredible hardship and food scarcity throughout Europe. Serena became vegan shortly afterwards – when few people knew what the term meant. The original transmission of the
programme led to over 9,000 enquiries about veganism – resulting in an incredible 1,000 new members of the Society. Tragically, Serena went on to develop dementia. She eventually entered care, where she was found a few decades after
If you do not have veggie residents now, they are certainly on their way
46 The winners of VfL’s 2023 Awards for Excellence in Veg*n Care Catering
her TV appearance by two fellow vegans. In care, she was being fed meat and dairy.
The challenge in care: Upholding dietary choices Serena’s story, which many people find deeply saddening, illustrates two points. Firstly, if this could happen to someone as articulate as Serena – whose veganism was a key part of her identity – couldn’t something similar happen to us all? Secondly, it illustrates that veganism
and vegetarianism are by no means new concepts. By 2025, a staggering one-quarter of the UK is predicted to be vegan – and people in later life are a major part of this boom. A recent British Social Attitudes Survey suggests that older adults are twice as likely as 18–24-year-olds to have embraced meat reduction. Already, one third of a million over 65s in the UK would describe themselves and vegan or vegetarian. It is perhaps unsurprising, then, that the number of residents following a vegan or vegetarian diet in UK residential care
homes is also on the up. At least one vegan or vegetarian lives in 1 in every 5 UK care homes. If you do not have veggie residents now, they are certainly on their way. Vegetarian for Life was founded 15 years
ago as a voice for vegans and vegetarians. We do not claim to have ‘heard it all’, but we’ve certainly fielded thousands of enquiries over those years. We wanted to highlight the issues that frequently arise, and we wanted to make some positive recommendations. So, a few years ago we commissioned the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Vegetarianism and Veganism to launch an inquiry into respect for religious and philosophical beliefs while eating in care.
The good, the bad, and the ugly Unfortunately, the inquiry found that meals in hospitals and other care settings – particularly for vegans and vegetarians – may be inadequate nutritionally. They do not always promote good health and in some cases they are unappetising. Tuesday was a care worker who
www.thecarehomeenvironment.com July 2024
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