Don't call it vegan and other tips from hospitals to get people to eat less meat
npr.org
npr.org
So, if I were to run a restaurant, I would try a different strategy. I wouldn't label which products are vegetarian on the standard menu. Instead, I would also offer a vegetarian version that only included the vegetarian dishes for whomever might want it. The standard menu would of course also include the vegetarian dishes, just not singled out.
My hypothesis is that, as a result, non-vegetarians would become more likely to order dishes that happen to be vegetarian but aren't explicitly labelled as such, rather than filtering them out of their options by default.
Or does not the people making those brand trust the vegans enough to know what is vegan and what is not?
You go to the grocery store, and you see three brands of ketchup. One is labeled "vegan ketchup!" and two are not -- which do you choose?
E.g. flour might not be vegan (or non-icky).
L-Cysteine is an amino acid and one of the most common reducing agents in baking. It is often extracted from various sources such as poultry feathers from ducks or chickens, cow horns, hog's hair, and even sheep wool. However, the L-Cysteine used in food can also be derived from human hair. Most of the hair used for L-Cysteine production originates from China, where it is collected from barbershops and hair salons. It can be created vegan in labs, but that would increase the price.
l-Cysteine offers many benefits:
- Gluten softening and dough relaxing
- Dough conditioning
- Reduced mixing and fermentation times
- Better dough consistency and easier handling
- Improved pan flow
Many bakers don't include it intentionally, they purchase the flour and it's already included.
It does that with me. While I'm not a vegetarian, I do eat very little meat. Not intentionally, it's just how I naturally prefer to eat. So I don't avoid any dishes just because they happen to not have meat in them.
However, when items carry a special label like that on menus, I do tend to overlook them because in a lot (certainly not all) of restaurants, there's a real difference between those dishes and dishes that happen to not include meat. The ones being marketed as vegetarian/vegan are often simply not very good.
> Instead, I would also offer a vegetarian version that only included the vegetarian dishes for whomever might want it.
I agree, this seems like a better way to go.
Generally irrespective of price, vegetarians only get 1 or 2 options. Most of the time even salads have meat on them. No, I'm not paying for salad+meat, hold the meat.
I use these veg labels to quickly scan what I can eat. For me they are useful. It's worth looking next time you're out. I doubt you can make a veggie only menu as it would look quite pathetic.
NOTE: I've lived in metro areas, Chicago, NYC, SF-Bay and Denver, so I'm not talking about the boonies.
Just cutting your meat consumption in half would be a substantial change, and with only positive effects on your health. Meat is a very good source of nutrients but most westerners consume far too much, and are at zero risk of a deficit in those nutrients.