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Meatless Monday gains momentum

Living Well
meatless
Meatless Monday options include local vegan gelato.

Last Monday, June 12 was proclaimed Meatless Monday in the District of Sechelt and restaurants and food business up and down the Coast celebrated by offering special deals on plant-based foods and meals.

Participating businesses offered a 25 per cent discount on vegan and vegetarian options, giving patrons the opportunity to “veg out” in support of the international movement to reduce consumption of meat products.

The initiative promotes eating meatless on Mondays to help raise awareness that limiting meat consumption even just one day a week can improve personal health and wellness, reduce the environmental impact of raising livestock for mass production and help prevent cruelty to animals.

Gillian Brady, one of the organizers, explains that Meatless Monday began as a plea to American citizens during World War I to help with war deprivations by leaving meat out of meals at least once a week. The idea was revived in the early 2000s by the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health as a means of promoting better health by eating less meat.

The United Nations got on board in 2010, releasing this statement: “A global shift towards a vegan diet is vital to save the world from hunger, fuel poverty and the worst impacts of climate change.”

“Meatless Monday is now active in 44 countries,” Brady noted.    

Brady, along with co-organizer Karen Holland, started a local Facebook page in 2013 and held spring events in 2014 and 2015 with about a dozen restaurants involved each time. This year, participation jumped dramatically, with the events supported by the District of Sechelt, Sechelt Downtown Business Association, Gibsons and District Chamber of Commerce, Vancouver Humane Society and EarthSave Vancouver, which will include participating Coast business in their Veg Directory.

“We were thrilled with the enthusiasm of 27 Coast businesses signing on to participate in the June event this year,” Brady said. “Most businesses now recognize that Meatless Monday focuses on the positives of plant-based food and we don›t ask for any restrictions on regular meat dishes offered.”

While any day of the week is a good day to explore healthy and meatless options, Monday is ideal as it can sometimes be a slower day in the food industry, so it’s a great time to encourage diners to support local restaurants by promoting meatless options, often offered at a discount.

“Mondays were also chosen because we all tend to make healthy goals at the beginning of the week,” Brady said.

While planning the June event, Brady was encouraged to discover so many eateries offering more meatless options.

“We loved the variety of food we could offer this year,” she said, “from take-out vegetarian pizza to vegan gelato and smoothies to lunches at three supermarket delis to full dining out experiences.”  

The group is planning more Meatless Monday campaigns for schools and businesses to promote plant-based food, meal sharing and awareness. Details, recipes and even sources of locally- and humanely-raised meat (for those eating meat on days other than Monday) are available on Facebook at www.facebook.com/meatlessmondayssc