Note from the Coordinators
OUTREACH TO DIETITIANS
Thank you to all our donors who enabled us to have a booth at the Academy of
Nutrition and Dietetics annual meeting in Washington, DC. We were able to place
Vegetarian Journals directly into the hands of about 1,000 dietitians. Many
times, attendees would say no to taking one, since so much is given out at this
event, but then see it was vegetarian and enthusiastically change their mind. The
only exception was when one woman said no as she raised animals on her family farm.
However, the friends with her took information.
This year's meeting was attended by 11,000 health professionals from across the country. It was especially great talking to nutrition students who will be future dietitians, as they picked up materials for vegetarian/vegan clients they may have in the future. When we first started exhibiting at this event in 1988, it was filled with booths promoting animal products, fast food, and items like soda. The Vegetarian Resource Group and the Seventh-day Adventist Dietetic Association were the rare but very welcome voices sharing vegetarian information. This year the hall was filled with companies pushing "plant-based" products, and surprisingly we didn't see one fast food company. Of course, not all vegan or plant-based foods are healthful, and so that's an ongoing discussion. And thank you to the donor who bought a table for vegetarians at the Academy Foundation dinner, which supports dietetic research and scholarships. Typically, sponsorships like this would have been for companies promoting animal products. The importance of donors supporting alternatives and the impact on decision making cannot be overestimated. There's a lot more to be done, but thanks to everyone's support and activism, we can appreciate all the change among health professionals and society in general. Kudos to VRG Nutrition Advisors Reed Mangels, PhD, RD; Cathy Conway MS, RD; and Eric Sharer MS, RD, who helped answer questions at The Vegetarian Resource Group booth this year.
Reed submitted comments for VRG to the Food and Drug Administration concerning their request for information on labeling plant-based products with terms that often are used for dairy foods, such as "milk," "yogurt," and "cheese." On our blog, she also answered a question about Silk "milk" and Vitamin A.
Thank you to all our members for their support and working together for a healthier, kinder, and more ethical world.
Debra Wasserman & Charles Stahler
Coordinators of The Vegetarian Resource Group
