vegetarian label.

[vreqz]

hello.

I am so hurt inside..How can dairy be "Suitable for Vegetarians"?

Vegetarian food is not meant to come from slaughtered animals or products of slaughtered animals. But young calf's are killed to make much of the milk produced.

If anything, at a minimum, to be compromising, food packets and food menu items in restaurants should at least state: suitable for "lacto-vegetarians" when milk is contained.

Please help, with some good information.

thanks.

 

[Second Summer]

I sympathise with your sentiment, which is why I'm a vegan. I believe back in the day members of the Vegetarian Society had a disagreement about the exact meaning of "vegetarian", and this resulted in some members leaving to form their own group and coined the term "vegan". "Vegetarian food" had come to mean "non-flesh foods", so eggs and dairy were still considered vegetarian.

In India, which is the likely origin of western vegetarianism, "vegetarian" is synonymous with lacto-vegetarian. Although of course back in the day they didn't speak English, so I suppose they used a different word which today is translated as "vegetarian". In any case, the concept originated in India, and made its way to the West several times. The first proponent in the West was probably Pythagoras, the famous Greek mathematician.

Back in the day the vegetarian concept was often intertwined with religion. Religion was perhaps more or less the only source of ethical standards in those days. More recently the concept of animal rights and the ethical considerations in our interactions with animals have been developed independently of religion, and the problems of animal by-products and exploitation beyond just the flesh have become more clear.

Back in the day they were also limited by less knowledge about nutritional requirements, and no non-animal sources of B12. So it would have been impossible for veganism to develop at that time.

I hope that answers some of your questions, sorry if it was a bit incoherent!

 

[vreqz]

Thank you. I appreciate your time. I'm glad I found the forum
Your message opens up some thoughts for me on the origins and perspectives back in the day.

I trying to achieve or inspire better labeling on menus and food products that contain milk and eggs.

so I shall post more below.

thanks.

 

[vreqz]

How often do we see and hear:

"Go Vegetarian for the animals!! Be Kind!!!"

Inspired people then go out and purchase "suitable for vegetarians" foods, believing that some thought and care and love
has gone into the product.

This is not true as we know. (Watch Earthlings documentary for further info) millions if not billions of animals suffer under that
labelling and eventually are slaughtered.

just found something cool....post in a minute.

 

[vreqz]

There is confusion and great contradiction between being a Vegan and being a Vegetarian.

A Vegan is a Vegetarian, but goes beyond just diet. 'Vegetarian' is the diet of a Vegan lifestyle.

A Vegetarian that wears leather is not a Vegan. These are two separate concepts.

Who agrees= NHS , Food.gov(uk government), Vegetarian society. and so on...

So, if a product says " Suitable for Vegetarians" it is not claiming the product is suitable for a vegetarian diet, no,
it is stating that it is suitable for a type of vegetarian diet but you as a consumer need to look in the ingredients first!
You may need to call the chef and cause a scene or disrupt your meeting. or miss an ingredient in the list. confusion.

The food packet or menu of course could say "suitable for lacto-vegetarians" if containing milk for example,..but that would reduce sales and open minds of the people on the stepping stones towards a compassionate diet and or lifestyle.

Check this out:

UK government states:

The 'Suitable for Vegetarians' logo is not regulated. It is known as a 'voluntary claim', which means it is illegal for the labelling information to include anything that is false or likely to mislead.

UK government state also.

9. The terms ‘vegetarian’ and ‘vegan’ in food labelling are used voluntarily by industry. Where these terms are absent, consumers rely on the list of ingredients.

replay: "Where these terms are absent, consumers rely on the list of ingredients."
& "illegal for the labelling information to include anything that is false or likely to mislead"

So they are saying that when these terms are 'not' absent consumers 'do not' need to rely on the ingredients list!!

So they say that if one does not want to consume eggs but doesn't mind milk, one can happily buy a "suitable for vegetarians " product without looking into the ingredients or calling the chef.! Wrong , there needs to be a defining word before the word Vegetarian such as 'lacto' and or 'ovo'!

"suitable for ovo-vegetarians" for example.

 

[vreqz]

How can I improve this? Does it make sense? Thanks.

 

[ledboots]

Unfortunately, there is no standardization of vegetarian food labeling. I read the ingredients/ask the server even if it says"vegan."

 

[Clueless Git]

... there needs to be a defining word before the word Vegetarian such as 'lacto' and or 'ovo'!

Hello vreqz,

Octa-lacto is the assumed default vegetarian diet.

That is due to the sheer numbers of egg and milk (NOT vegetables) consumers who hi-jacked the vegetarian flag from true vegetarians.

The sheer number of fish consumers who now claim the vegetarian flag will undoubtedly see the assumed default vegetarian diet to be octa-lacto-pesci, in time.

Chicken eaters are already getting in on the act; Octa-lacto-pesci-pollo will become the assumed default 'vege'-(lol!)-tarian diet after that.

Already the "if it's not red then it's not really meat, so I'm a vegetarian too!" crew want in on the act.

Soon there won't be enough space on the average packet or tin to fit all the "suitable for milk/egg/fish/seafood/chicken/duck/pig/lamb/goat/beef (so long as it's organicaly reared)/absolutely-anything-I-shot-myself/road-kill/well-it-was-dead-before-I-bought-it-so-it-would-only-have-gone-to-waste/buffalo/ostrich/yak/gnu/kangaroo/baby-panda-served-on-a-bed-0f-bamboo-shoots eating vegetarian(s)" descriptors in.

 

[vreqz]

Good point. I really appreciate your time ,

you have exaggerated the idea to get it across, I do see what you are saying. but I do not think that will ever happen (regards meat veggies) ,

However, we can never allow a 'Meat'-Vegetarian on food labelling. But if this is a danger such as Pesci-Vegetarian? Vegans really need to do something before that happens. We need a strict law on labelling.

Vegetarian is defined : One that does not eat animals or animal by-products. ( by-products from live or dead animals is now the very controversial issue thanks to the veg society, dairy industry ) I think we have to settle for the veg society definition. So milk is a vegetarian ingredient. : /

however, if we cannot have : " Suitable for Vegans" + "suitable for Lacto Vegetarians" + "suitable for Ovo Vegetarains" or "suitable for Lacto-Ovo Vegetarians" if it seems to complex? To suit the perspective of what you said above we could simplify :

"Suitable for Vegans" = all packaging ingredients and processes are Vegan friendly.

"Suitable for a Vegetarian (1)" = True Vegetarian

"Suitable for Vegetarians (2)" = Contains honey.

"Suitable for Vegetarians (3)" = (Ovo), contains egg

"Suitable for Vegetarians (4)" = (Lacto) , contains milk

Or combine types together = "Suitable for Vegetarians (2,3)" ....so to combine numbers in a very short space, to meet with the needs you stated above, just in-case, future proofing!

People can then find their suitable product much more easier on menus, people can see that the chef is aware of the new label and then simply find the correct number next the V leaf logo or inside the logo design, or in the text.

People will then be reminded they are not a true Vegetarian, truly helping animals, until they get up to type 1 and then on to Veganism!

In reality, people who eat milk and eggs are not Vegetarians. But what I am saying above here is a compromise , what it does is it allows the Vegetarian society to continue under its name, all they need to do is add the extra definition so people can see they are not true vegetarians unless they stop eating milk and eggs.

 

[vreqz]

very ruff artwork.. but as an idea....a concept, to inspire thought and provide information to the consumer.

from an immediate glance this tells us the food contains honey(2) and egg(3).

or something like this. : / need a good artist.

above: True vegetarian food , no egg, milk or honey . (1)

This Stays the same of course. all food and packaging and factory processes are all vegan friendly as can be.

peace: )