Posted on
November 22, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
The Vegetarian Resource Group is
hosting our 38th Annual Pre-Thanksgiving Vegan Potluck Dinner on Sunday,
November 24th, 2019 at 5 PM. The event is taking place at:
North
Baltimore Mennonite Church
4615 Roland Avenue
Baltimore MD 21210
We will be showing appreciation for
turkeys by not eating them! Come join us for a variety of festive, delicious
vegan dishes! Please bring a vegan dish – free of meat, fish, poultry, dairy,
eggs, honey, or any other animal by-products – that serves 4 per adult
attending.
Adult admission is $5 and children
eat free! Any questions call (410) 366-8343 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm.
Also, you may want to bring a vegan
canned good for the church that will be used for feeding the hungry. We hope to
see you there!
Posted on
November 22, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
The Vegetarian Resource Group (VRG) is an independent non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public on vegetarianism and the interrelated issues of health, nutrition, environment, ethics, and world hunger. Our health professionals, activists, and educators work with businesses and individuals to bring about healthy changes in schools, workplaces, and the community. Registered dietitians and physicians aid in the development of nutrition-related publications and answer questions about the vegetarian and vegan diet. For the past 25 years, we have commissioned polls exploring vegetarian-related issues, results of which are often used by researchers, the food industry, and the media. Financial support comes primarily from memberships, contributions, and book sales.
We welcome the
opportunity to comment on Horizontal Approaches to Food Standards of Identity
Modernization. We commend FDA for their commitment to protecting consumers
against economic adulteration; maintaining the nutritional integrity of food;
and providing flexibility to encourage manufacturers to produce more healthful
foods. As a consumer organization, we also prioritize providing clear, helpful
label information that consumers can use to make an informed choice and to be
able to find the foods that they are looking for. It is important for Standards
of Identity to be modernized so that label information is relevant to today’s
consumers.
We recognize the need
to update Standards of Identity. Regardless of the approach used to update
these Standards, it is important to meet the needs of a variety of
consumers. We have both specific and
broader suggestions for meeting the needs of vegetarians, vegans, and those who
wish to eat vegetarian and vegan foods.
According to our most
recent poll (1), about 4% of adults in the United States consistently follow a
vegetarian diet, about half of these are vegan and do not eat any animal
products. People choose to follow vegetarian or vegan diets for a variety of
reasons including health, ecological, and religious concerns, dislike of meat,
compassion for animals, belief in non-violence, and economics. Many other
people avoid dairy products and/or meat products due to environmental concerns;
health issues such as allergies, lactose intolerance, or hypercholesterolemia;
or for other reasons. Our most recent poll (1) finds 46% of American adults
sometimes or always eating vegetarian (including vegan) meals. This segment is
likely to increase since 60% of 18-34 year olds always/sometimes eat vegetarian
(including vegan) meals when eating out. Clearly, a large and growing segment
of the population needs products to be labeled in a way that meets their needs
as consumers of plant-based products.
Vegetarians and those
interested in reducing animal product consumption commonly use plant-based
products (milks, cheeses, yogurts, meats) in place of animal-based products.
The plant-based products are used to add variety, to enable users to prepare
foods similar to those made with animal-based products, and, in some instances,
to supply nutrients such as calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12, and protein. Label
information should allow consumers to recognize plant-based products that
replace meat or dairy products using familiar words like “burger,” “milk,”
“cheese,” or “bacon.”
Our understanding of
dairy terms like milk, yogurt and cheese, and meat terms like burger, sausage,
or bacon, when they are used to label plant-based products is that these
products are plant-based alternatives to animal-based products. In many,
although not all cases, plant-based products can be used in food preparation
and will behave similarly to animal-based products. For example, plant-based
cheese may be used to top pizza; plant-based milk used to make a cream soup.
Just as different dairy milks and cheeses have different tastes,
characteristics, and uses, so do plant-based milks. For instance, chocolate
milk, even though it’s labeled as milk, would not be used to make a savory
dish. Similarly, replacing Cheddar cheese with ricotta cheese in macaroni and
cheese would result in a very different product. Despite these differences,
these products are all identified as milk or cheese. Considering the wide
variety of animal-based products identified as milk, cheese, or yogurt, it does
not seem incongruous to also identify plant-based products as milk, cheese, or
yogurt with a modifier identifying the main plant ingredient (e.g. soy milk,
cashew cheese, almond milk yogurt). Similarly plant-based meat replacers could
be identified as “soy burger,” “tempeh bacon,” or “tofu-based sausage.”
The Nutrition Facts
and ingredient list on food labels along with front of label information allows
consumers to evaluate the nutritional characteristics of plant-based products.
Our website, and those of other vegan organizations, encourage consumers to
seek out plant-based products that are fortified with nutrients such as
calcium, vitamin D, and vitamin B12 if they rely on these products as a source
of these nutrients. Consumers are aware that there are nutritional differences
between plant-based and animal-based products. We note that terms such as
coconut milk and peanut butter have been used for many years without confusion
as to their plant origins or to these products’ nutritional differences from
cow’s milk or dairy butter.
We believe that prohibiting
plant-food labels from including words like milk, cheese, burgers, sausage, and
yogurt in the name of these products would lead to consumer confusion. We urge
you to permit the labeling of plant-based products with names that include
milk, cheese, burgers, sausage, and yogurt.
Our suggestion for allowing
for increased flexibility and for providing useful information is to use
standardized label terminology. The following terms are proposed:
Plant-based: Used to indicate a product that contains exclusively ingredients not originating from animals
Mainly plant-based: Used to indicate a product that contains mainly ingredients not-originating from animals
Animal-based: Used to indicate a product that contains mainly or exclusively animal-based ingredients
Vegan: Used to indicate a product that
Does not an contain animal products (meat, fish, fowl, dairy, eggs, and honey) or ingredients derived from animals such as vitamin D3 from lanolin
Is not produced with animal-based processing aids or with processing procedures using animal products such as bone char for cane sugar
Does not contain insects or insect-derived ingredients, or insect secretions
Does not contain animal genes and is not genetically derived from animals
Nutrient Content Claims such
as “high in” or “good source of” could be used to indicate plant-based or vegan
products that provide significant amounts of key nutrients such as calcium,
vitamin D, iron, and vitamin B12 that consumers may expect to be in
animal-sourced products.
Thank you for the
opportunity to comment on this issue.
References
1. Stahler C. How many
adults in the U.S are vegetarian and vegan? How many adults eat vegetarian and
vegan meals when eating out? Asks the Vegetarian Resource Group. https://www.vrg.org/nutshell/Polls/2019_adults_veg.htm
Published 2019.
Posted on
November 21, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
Through December 31, 2019, you can give a gift membership to The Vegetarian
Resource Group (includes a 1-year subscription to Vegetarian Journal) for $15 each. Offer is valid
in the USA only!
This is a terrific way to share the vegan message, as well as support VRG
outreach. Gift subscriptions can be done online by simply typing in your
message and the name and address of each gift recipient in the comments field.
Go to: www.vrg.org/donate
Posted on
November 21, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
Are you looking for some alternatives to Turkey this
Thanksgiving? Fortunately, there are many options today.
Field Roast offers these choices:
1. Celebration Roast with Traditional
Bread Stuffing and Gravy – made with fresh onions, celery, cranberries
and butternut squash.
2. Hazelnut Cranberry Roast en Croute
– a rich, hazelnut-infused grain meat stuffed with Field Roast sausages,
crystallized ginger, cranberries and apples – wrapped in a savory puff pastry. It’s
even Toaster Oven friendly!
See: https://fieldroast.com/products/field-roast/
Posted on
November 20, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
Vegetarian Journal is available on Kindle in the USA and UK. The newest edition features: Cooking for a Crowd (featuring side dishes); Winter Delights; Vegan in Nashville; VRG Scholarship Winners; Cozy Up to Vegan Yarn; Get Acquainted with Ugly Veggies; Scientific Updates; Book Reviews; Vegan Cooking Tips for Mushrooms; Vegan Product Reviews; Vegan Action by a Journalist; Nutrition Hotline; and more.
Posted on
November 20, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
For those on a vegetarian or vegan
diet that have an eating disorder, generally it’s been very difficult to find
in-patient treatment. Alsana is now offering a program.
They say, “Spearheaded by our vice president of clinical nutrition
services, Tammy Beasley, our Alsana leadership team worked tirelessly for over
a year and a half to create a robust program for vegan clients that integrates
our high culinary standards within our in-depth treatment process. This
carefully and lovingly thought-out process has allowed us to confidently open
our doors to clients with eating disorders who are also following a vegan
lifestyle.”
Treating Vegan Clients
“We believe that full, sustained
recovery is possible in clients practicing veganism. We also acknowledge that
there is an additional challenge in treating these clients and are dedicated to
helping them navigate their unique path to recovery. By incorporating our
detailed veganism program within the five dimensions of Alsana’s Adaptive Care™
Model (medical, movement, nutrition, clinical, and relational) we see
vegan clients achieve recovery alongside their non-vegan peers.”
The contents
of this posting, our website, and our other publications, including Vegetarian
Journal, are not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice
should be obtained from a qualified health professional. We often depend on
product and ingredient information from company statements. It is impossible to
be 100% sure about a statement, info can change, people have different views,
and mistakes can be made. Please use your best judgment about whether a product
is suitable for you. To be sure, do further research or confirmation on your
own.
Posted on
November 19, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
Vegan Publishers has released a new vegan book for children
called Happy Animals: Friends Not Food.
Young kids will better understand in a positive way why they are being raised
vegan after reading this book.
Posted on
November 19, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
The Vegetarian Resource Group is
hosting our 38th Annual Pre-Thanksgiving Vegan Potluck Dinner on Sunday,
November 24th, 2019 at 5 PM. The event is taking place at:
North
Baltimore Mennonite Church
4615 Roland Avenue
Baltimore MD 21210
We will be showing appreciation for
turkeys by not eating them! Come join us for a variety of festive, delicious
vegan dishes! Please bring a vegan dish – free of meat, fish, poultry, dairy,
eggs, honey, or any other animal by-products – that serves 4 per adult
attending.
Adult admission is $5 and children
eat free! Any questions call (410) 366-8343 Mon-Fri 9am-5pm.
Also, you may want to bring a vegan
canned good for the church that will be used for feeding the hungry. We hope to
see you there!
Posted on
November 18, 2019 by
The VRG Blog Editor
The promo is for a 6-count Variety Medley only. Your
promo code is: VGR25. The regular cost for the 6-ct Variety Medley is
$35.99 PLUS shipping for a total cost of around $50.00.
The promo code provides a discount
and FREE shipping at the final cost of $25.00 (50% off).
Vegetarian Traveler® was formed by
founders Christy and Chuck. They have been vegetarians for decades and found
that, like many of us, eating away from home presented a challenge. They
developed Toasted Bean Blends that offer single-serve, convenient, shelf-stable
vegan proteins using simple ingredients.
The Vegetarian Resource Group (VRG) is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public on veganism and the interrelated issues of health, nutrition, ecology, ethics, and world hunger. We have been helping health professionals, food services, businesses, educators, students, vegans, and vegetarians since 1982. In addition to publishing the Vegan Journal, VRG produces and sells a number of books.
Sign up for our newsletter to receive recipes, ingredient information, reviews of new products, announcements of new books, free samples of products, and other VRG materials.
