Taylor Shaw & The Reappearing Vegan Options

Three years ago, I wrote an article entitled How I secured vegan free school meals for my daughter for The Metro (this was during my very brief stint as Unofficial Spokesparent for Vegan Families). Then, a year later, I wrote an update on my blog because the vegan school dinners my daughter had been enjoying were suddenly no more. 

My daughter's school is catered for by Taylor Shaw catering company. They seem to do catering for quite a lot of schools. I know this because I've spoken to parents of vegan children at some of the other schools. The company made the decision to stop providing vegan options because, according to them, they didn't need to. 

With Ember due to start reception in September, I'd started to worry about the lack of vegan options available. She's already one of the youngest in her year, and I think a hot dinner helps them get through the day. So, I'd been planning to get in touch with Taylor Shaw again to ask more questions about their policy of not providing vegan options. 

It seems a little outdated, considering the growing popularity of veganism. Many schools are introducing vegan options as a way of reducing their carbon footprint, and this is something supported by pupils who are keen to make environmentally-friendly choices. Many of the vegetarian options would be easy to veganise, so it felt unfair that the catering company were refusing to make small changes that would make their food more accessible. 

Primary schools put a lot of focus on inclusivity, empathy and celebrating differences, so it felt at odds to have a lunchtime ritual that failed to meet these standards. Even on special days (bizarrely, America Day is a thing at my daughter's school, where all the kids eat unhealthy food and celebrate a country governed by a man who likes to 'grab pussy'), they make no effort to offer vegan options.

So, it was more than a little irking in Veganuary (the month formerly known as January) when I saw the following tweet by Taylor Shaw catering:

I mean, if that's not a bare-faced attempt at jumping on the vegan publicity bandwagon, I don't know what is. 'Hey, try some vegan food, no, not at school, lol, we won't provide it.' I got strain from eye-rolling so hard. I tweeted them back to ask whether this signalled the introduction of vegan food to their menu. 

I received an email in response explaining that yes, the company would be introducing a vegan menu during the summer term. Obviously, it isn't the summer term yet, so I don't know whether this will actually happen, but I very much hope that it will. I'm excited to see the meal choices and for my then four-year-old to be able to enjoy a hot dinner with her friends each day. 

I don't know what inspired this change of heart from Taylor Shaw, but I have a sneaking suspicion it might have something to do with the recent discrimination court case. The court ruled that veganism is a belief protected by law and that vegans should not be discriminated against. Whatever the reason for the introduction of vegan options, I'm just happy to see things changing for the better. 

Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

Vegan Valentine's Day Gift Guide

1. Have you ever seen anything so wonderful as this vegan art print? I think not. It is perfect in every way. You can purchase this Spice Girls inspired print for £3.50 from Etsy. 

2. Aim high, right? I would never in a million years give or receive something this expensive for Valentine's Day, but hey, you might so I'm including it. I love this Matt & Nat vegan bag, £140 from John Lewis.

3. If you'd rather avoid buying flowers that will quickly perish, you could opt for a plant, instead. You can get this potted red rose plant delivered for just £19.99 from Serenata Flowers.

4. In case you were wondering, bath stuff is the way to my heart. The Dirty Vegans products smell amazing, so I had to include this Vegan is Love gift box, £26.99 from Etsy.

5. I think this vegan journal is a must-have. It's a weekly food planner and shopping list, and it's currently in the sale so it's only £7.50 from Paperchase.

6. This vegan cheesecake swirl star lolly is a cute bargain at only £1.99 from Ethical Superstore.

This post contains affiliate links. If you choose to buy something through one of my links, you won't be charged extra but the company will pay me a teeny amount as a thank you. 

How awesome is that Spice Girls print though, seriously? I really need it in my life. 

Happy World Vegan Day

I get a lot of press releases. Most of the time they are about absolute shite like Kate Middleton’s pelvic floor, but sometimes they are interesting. I have had a few press releases about veganism this week which isn’t surprising because today marks World Vegan Day.

Life as a vegan has changed a lot over the past decade (read 10 things that have changed in my 10 years of being vegan). It is so much easier now. It is easier and more affordable to find vegan products, and there are so many substitutes out there. Vegan is a word people understand now (they really didn’t 10 years ago), and restaurants tell you in moments whether they cater for vegans. It’s easy to eat out, there are vegan Magnums and vegan makeup is readily available now. Unsurprisingly, it’s the young driving this change. While their grandparents are getting excited about Brexit, young people are making informed food choices for the planet.

Hitwise sent me a press release to let me know that online searches relating to veganism have increased by 84% in the past three years. And, after analysing the data, they have revealed that the following questions are the 10 most asked. So, I figured I would answer them.

1.     Who makes vegan strip lashes?

Superdrug! They make vegan everything, pretty much. And it’s always labelled so you know which products are suitable for vegans. Superdrug is my one-stop shop for all such things.

2.     When is vegan week bake off?

You missed it. But don’t worry, from what I heard, it was just Paul Hollywood walking around being condescending about vegan food, so you didn’t miss much. I decided not to watch it because I figured that was going to happen. A lot of people have been telling me about vegan meringue since watching it though so it clearly impressed the general public.  

3.     Who sells vegan pizza?

Everybody. It’s almost too easy to get vegan pizza nowadays. I’m almost tired of sampling them all. You can get vegan pizzas at supermarkets, restaurants and even some takeaways. The days of painstakingly making your own vegan pizza are long behind us. I kind of miss them, sometimes, but also there is nothing quite like an oven pizza on family movie night.

4.     What would happen if everyone turned vegan?

People would stop making fun of vegans. And, um, probably the word vegan would go extinct. And the planet might be a little healthier. And there would probably be a black market of meat products from unspecified sources. And animals wouldn’t spend their lives in factory farms. And Tunnocks would have to diversify and veganise Snowballs which would be, to be honest, my favourite thing about the entire world adopting a vegan diet.

5.     Why aren't avocados vegan?

Remember before that QI episode when nobody talked about how vegetables weren’t actually vegan? Man, I miss those days. So, basically, for those of you who missed QI, vegetables are farmed using bees to pollinate the plants. And this isn’t done in a happy-go-lucky ‘I hope a bee comes along soon’ kind of way, it’s done in a ‘I control the bees, work for me, bee-tch’ kind of a way. So, yeah, that doesn’t sound that vegan. Neither are pesticides. Or most medicines. Or screens (they have gelatin in). So, it’s pretty difficult to live an entirely vegan life in modern society, but that doesn’t mean there’s no point in doing your best. Eating avocados is vegan, you’re still vegan if you eat them, even if the farming methods suck. [Side note: isn’t it tedious how desperate people are to see vegans ‘break’ their veganism with stuff like this?]

6.     What happens to cattle if everyone becomes vegan?

Um, well, wild cattle would probably continue to be on the endangered list. Maybe people would be more interested in conserving them if they weren’t also eating them, so perhaps it would be a good thing for those populations. And, there would be no need to farm cattle anymore, so farmers would stop breeding them and then they wouldn’t live on factory farms or be slaughtered for food.

7.     What would happen if we all became vegan?

Um, I already answered this. See number 4. But, basically, it would be great.

8.     Where can I buy red vegan stew?

I don’t even know what this is!? I’ve never heard of it. I hope you find it soon. K, thanks.

9.     Where can I buy mini vegan sausage rolls?

Ocado, for sure. Probably other supermarkets, too. Also, you could just cut up regular sized vegan sausage rolls, right? In the 80s, you’d have had to make your own. Another reason to be thankful that the 80s are over.

10.  Why is honey not vegan?

(said very slowly) Because it is an animal product.

Honey isn’t vegan because animals are exploited to make it. They are bred, they die in transit, Queen bees have their wings clipped. It’s just not vegan. If you can get your head around not eating steak and not eating yoghurt, then honey is that far a leap from there.

Photo by Ivana Milakovic on Unsplash

Taylor Shaw & The Vanishing Vegan Options

When Ebony first started at school almost two years ago (how?!), it was really simple to organise vegan school dinners for her. It was so easy, in fact, that I wrote this smug little piece for the Metro so other vegan parents could replicate my success.

It was easy, I got in touch with the school’s catering company and explained that my daughter was vegan, and they said no problem and then filled the school’s freezer with vegan substitutes so my daughter could enjoy school dinners with her peers.

Then, a few weeks ago, this all stopped. The catering company, Taylor Shaw, who provide food for over 300 schools across the country, have decided to stop doing vegan options. They haven’t really explained why. At first, they blamed allergens, and then the School Food Standards (which don’t mention not providing vegan options so I got the impression they were just trying to sideline me with industry jargon by this point).

Taylor Shaw is one of many catering companies and, luckily, the others seem to be going above and beyond to ensure no pupils are left out at lunchtime. It’s a shame that, at a time when veganism is becoming more popular, a large catering company is taking such a big step backwards. And it’s frustrating when it would be so easy to veganise a number of the meals. The Taylor Shaw menus seem to rely heavily on Quorn for their vegan options so it would be easy peasy to switch the vegetarian Quorn for the vegan version and create a dish more children could enjoy.

I realise vegans are in the minority, but our numbers are growing year after year. Vegan children should have access to free school dinners just like the rest of the children. My daughter might be the only vegan at her primary school, but the primary school just up the road has four vegan pupils. If Taylor Shaw caters for 300 schools, there must be other vegan children who are affected by this move.

I have sent a complaint to the catering company detailing why I feel this policy change is a step backwards, though I have not yet heard back. I would urge the parents of other children affected by the move to complain as well. The company may not even realise how many vegan children they should be catering for unless we make ourselves heard. Please do email Taylor Shaw’s head office to complain. You can contact them on [email protected]

Also, email me on [email protected] because there is strength in numbers and I think it’s important we work together to encourage the company to provide inclusive lunch options for all.

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

A Vegan Meal at Auberge de Cendrillon, Disneyland Paris

When we booked Disneyland, I knew I wanted to take Ebony to one of the character dinners. I had earmarked the money right at the start of the planning so I knew it was there for when we needed it. What I didn’t do, however, was book the meal. And this was pretty dumb. The character dinners fill up months in advance, especially during busy periods, so you need to book it in advance. When we eventually rang to book it, two weeks before the holiday, we were advised to ring back days before in the hope of getting a cancellation. Luckily, I hadn’t mentioned a character dinner to Ebony so she wasn’t disappointed.

A couple of days before we arrived at Disneyland, Laurie rang the reservations number again and this time he was successful. The woman on the phone explained that cancellations are common so it’s always worth ringing repeatedly if you have no luck the first time. The woman on the phone also happened to be vegan (what are the chances) and she wasn’t overly hopeful we’d be able to find much vegan food at Disneyland. She made a few recommendations of places to try and gave some examples of the sorts of food we might find.

We booked the Princess lunch at Auberge de Cendrillon. Located near to the castle, this is one of the fancy restaurants in the park. Laurie popped in the day before to explain we were vegan, but we were told there wasn’t much they could do. It didn’t sound great, to be honest. We could have the prawn salad without the prawns, pasta and then a fruit salad. The lunch isn’t cheap, it came to around €125 just for me and Ebony to eat there. I did some Googling and found some pretty depressing photos of the vegan meal at the restaurant and it was almost enough to put me off. But then it’s not really about the food, is it? It’s about the princesses, and I decided I’d happily eat baked beans on toast if it meant Ebony got to have a magical meal at Disneyland, so we went anyway.

I didn’t tell Ebony about the meal in advance. I told her we were sneaking off for some special time just the two of us. She had decided to wear her Belle dress to the park that day so she was perfectly dressed for the occasion. I put a little bit of glitter on her face and sprayed glitter spray in her hair and then said I’d take her for a drink. When we got to the restaurant, we were asked to take a seat in the waiting area. As we waited, the seats around us started to fill up with other little girls wearing princess dresses.

After a 10 minute wait, we were taken through to the restaurant and shown to our seat. Our waitress came over to explain what the vegan options would be and they were what we were expecting. Soon enough, Cinderella’s mice scurried past and that caught Ebony’s attention. A little while later, Ebony noticed Ariel milling about in the background. She figured Ariel must have come for her lunch break at the restaurant, so was pretty excited to be eating where the princesses ate.

The Food

We’d been told the starter would be a ‘prawn salad without the prawns’, so I was expecting a miserable plate of salad leaves. We were actually served more of a seaweed salad (similar to the ones you get from sushi restaurants) which is one of Ebony’s favourite foods so she was thrilled. It was really tasty and we both cleared our plates.

Next up, we had pasta for the main course. Ebony had a plate of plain spaghetti served with a tomato sauce. This came on a plate shaped like Mickey Mouse so she was pretty much over the moon. She really liked the pasta sauce and managed to get spaghetti all over her autograph book moments before a princess arrived to sign her book. I had the same main course (sadly no Mickey Mouse plate for me) but with the addition of sauteed mushrooms which were taken from one of the other dishes on the menu. The tomato sauce was from the kids' menu so it wasn’t the most flavoursome dish, but it was a lot better than I was expecting and the mushrooms were really nice.

Finally, there was a fruit salad for dessert. When I’d looked online before the meal, I’d seen photos that looked like that tinned fruit salad from the 90s so I wasn’t expecting much. In actual fact, the fruit salad was really nice… but it was still a fruit salad. The non-vegan desserts look way better and I think if Ebony had seen one of those next to her fruit salad she’d have been pretty disappointed, but she didn’t and so she loved her dessert. It’s not exactly an exciting vegan menu, and it’s not worth the cost of the meal, but you’re not paying for the food, are you? It’s all about the experience and that was definitely worth the money.

The Princesses

Like I said, I wasn’t expecting much from the food, but I figured it would be worth the money as long as Ebony was able to meet a few princesses. And it was definitely worth it, she had the most amazing time and managed to collect quite a few autographs for her little book. The Little Mermaid came over to our table and introduced herself to Ebony who looked more than a little starstruck. Ariel signed her autograph book, posed for some photos and chatted to Ebony about Disneyland. We were at the restaurant for about two hours and during that time Ebony met Ariel, Aurora, Suzy and Perla (Cinderella’s mice, if you must know), Belle and Cinderella. Each came over and posed for photos, signed her autograph book and chatted with her about her day.

 

Belle is Ebony’s absolute favourite and she was in complete awe of Belle when she came over to chat to us. She gave her the biggest hug ever and had a huge smile plastered across her face for ages afterwards. I honestly don’t think I’ve seen her that genuinely happy since her sister was born. The princesses were amazing, they all took the time to talk to Ebony and happily chatted away to her about Disneyland and the other characters. Aurora, in particular, was amazing. While we were there, I saw her speak three languages fluently meaning that it didn’t matter what language the kids spoke they were still able to interact with their favourite princess.

At the end of the meal, Ebony snuck over to my seat and cuddled up to me and said it had been the absolute best 'me and her' time ever. Ever. And it truly was. You could stumble into Disneyland Paris without any forward planning and still have the most magical day ever, but the little extras add an extra touch of something special to an already brilliant holiday.

My Beautiful Eyes & The Angry Little Man

I love Kat Von D. I don’t really know much about her professional or personal life, but she has revolutionised my face. Switching to a vegan diet was easy. It took me a while to learn the names of hidden animal ingredients and it took me ages to find a vegan snickers alternative, but aside from that, it was pretty easy. I thought I’d struggle to give up cheese, I thought I’d miss having milk in my tea, or that Christmas without a Terry’s chocolate orange would be miserable, but it was all fine.

The thing I did struggle with was makeup. Back in 2009, it was impossible to find good vegan makeup. You had to order things off the internet and hope they would be amazing, but they never were. The mascaras ran, the foundations were too dry and the eyeliners smudged away to nothingness. Finding good vegan food was easy, but decent makeup was proving more of a challenge. I quizzed experienced vegans on their makeup brands, I did many Googles and I tried a lot of makeup.

Then Kat Von D changed my life. Her stuff is amazing. It is the future of vegan makeup. I have an ink eyeliner from there that is like an actual tattoo it stays on so well. And last week I picked up a pencil eyeliner (I am all about the eyeliner) and it was the most amazing eyeliner I have ever used in my whole life ever and I am 32 so that’s a lot of life. All her stuff is vegan and cruelty-free, but it is also amazing and stays on and doesn’t look crap. What more could a vegan want? Blue lips? She’s got you covered.

I love Kat Von D because she made me ageing eyes look good (not an easy task). I don’t know who she is or what she stands for. I don’t really care as long as she doesn’t give me panda eyes. She is vegan though so that’s pretty good because it means she’s probably someone I agree with on a lot of issues. Although, actually, you can’t exactly take that for granted.

One thing I’ve noticed in the vegan movement is that there are a surprising number of folks who don’t share my viewpoint on many issues. Sexism is rife in the vegan movement, something which is pretty upsetting to see. And racism often rears its ugly head in the comments box in vegan groups. Not to mention there’s a lot of pro-life vegans (apparently, if you care about an actual pig, you should care about a clump of human cells that can’t feel pain, um). And, as the polar opposite of that sector the vegan movements, there are the antinatalists. These are the vegans who don’t believe in having kids - and not in an ‘I don’t want kids myself but you guys do what you like’ kind of a way, in more of a ‘having children is wrong and anyone who does it is terrible’ way.

Don’t have kids, have kids, whatever, do what makes you happy. But don’t waste time worrying about what other people are doing. And definitely, don’t go round telling parents that they’re not vegan because they have kids. Er, yeah, so apparently that’s a thing now. You see, Kat Von D is pregnant and she announced it on Instagram with a sweet photo and a blue heart and she got a shitload of abuse from angry vegans. Not all the vegans were angry, some of them were lovely and said congratulations. You know, the normal ones. But the abnormal ones stood out a little more because their comments were so misplaced on a pregnancy announcement photo.

Someone commented, "Congrats on undoing your veganism almost tenfold.” So, yeah, that was nice. Way to go, the vegan movement, for making us all look like a bunch of dicks, yet again. Oh, and, obvs it was a man who said it, because, you know, it’s necessary for a random man to have an opinion on what any woman does or doesn’t do with her reproductive organs. Being vegan and choosing not to have kids for the planet are separate things. Being child-free is not a requisite of being vegan. There is a real problem in the vegan movement at the moment with this, there are some very loud and aggressive voices constantly shouting that nobody should be having children. This atmosphere has made some vegan parents, or wannabe vegan parents, feel unwelcome in vegan spaces and that’s not exactly a good thing, is it? If we want to encourage more people to take up veganism, and if we want to make veganism as accessible as possible, and encourage this next generation of vegans to actually be vegan, then we need to welcome them into the movement and allow them to be a part of it.

It’s not up to random Instagram users what makes a person vegan or not, I’m pretty sure that’s already been decided by the Vegan Society. And, I would argue, with my amazing smokey eyes, that Kat Von D has already done more for the vegan movement than some angry little man on Instagram. Being an aggressive, hostile little twat isn’t making anybody want to be a part of the vegan movement, if anything, it’s just showing them that the vegan movement is as flawed as the rest of the society. Those angry little white men just seem to get just about everywhere, don’t they?

Photo by Alysa Bajenaru on Unsplash

Would You Send Your Child To A Plant-Based Nursery?

Important clarification: a plant-based nursery is a nursery offering plant-based meals. It is not a nursery carved out of potato, with decorative celery columns, brussel sprout carpets and a radish roof. If you want to send your child to a nursery like that, you will have to set one up yourself. Unfortunately, it does not yet exist.

According to news reports, one mum was apparently angered when her son’s nursery switched to an all-vegan menu last week. The mum, Aimee, posted on an online forum to complain about the change. She wrote, “This has really got my back up as I feel we are being railroaded into making our children vegan without a choice, no option of meat or fish!”

Now, firstly, it’s worth noting that one plant-based meal a day doesn’t make you a vegan. Quick, somebody tell Beyonce (actually don’t because I love her and I am willing to exempt her from the whole plant-based vs vegan debate if it means we have something in common). If you eat a packet of crisps that happen to be free from meat and dairy, you’re not suddenly a vegan. Don’t worry. You still have the whole rest of the day to get your fill of flesh. One meal, or even one day a week, does not a vegan make. That's a wise selling us wise vegans have been saying for years.

You should never read the comments on these sorts of stories, I know, but I did. Opinion was split, some people didn’t see what the big deal was. Others were outraged, they wanted her to take this complaint all the way to Ofsted.

It’s one meal a day, surely? Does that matter? You can take a Peperami and cheese strings with you when you pick your kid up from the nursery. Hell, you can stand outside the gates, udder in hand, ready to squirt the milk from the teat of your newly acquired cow straight into the mouths of the kids toddling out of the gates. Does it matter if your child goes eight hours without eating meat or dairy? Apparently, to some parents, it does.

Now, clearly I’m biased on this. I am a decade into being vegan and I have two vegan kids (well, one, the other hoovers up biscuit crumbs at playgroup so I’m not sure she’s fully committed to the lifestyle yet, but she’s only 18 months old so there’s still time to convert her). I know kids can thrive on a vegan diet because I have two happy girls (well, one, the biscuit sneaker can get a bit grouchy at 3 am) who are growing and learning and doing all of the things kids are supposed to do.

I’m assuming the kids at the nursery are given a balanced diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables, so I'm struggling to see what the issue is. If it turns out the kids are just fed buckets of the diary-free Ben & Jerry’s ice cream with not a vegetable in sight, then hell, I’d be outraged, too. But the idea of a room full of toddlers sitting down to eat fresh vegetables really isn’t that offensive to me.

A plant-based diet is inclusive to people from different cultures. Rising numbers of children are being diagnosed with dairy allergies, and skipping the dairy may also be reassuring to the parents of those youngsters. There have been a few incidences reported in the media lately of children being wrongly fed food they were allergic to, something which can be life-threatening for children with severe allergies.

As well as being inclusive, a plant-based diet is healthy. There are plenty of healthy, energetic vegan kids thriving on a plant-based diet. According to a recent survey, seven percent of the UK is now enjoying a vegan lifestyle. I’m not sure I can quite believe that the number is that high, but certainly, veganism is a lot more common, and accepted, than it was ten years ago.

Not accepted enough that we’re ok with our kids eating the occasional vegan meal though, apparently.

What do you think? Would you pull your child out of nursery if they switched to a plant-based meal plan?

Photo by Sven Scheuermeier on Unsplash

What I Want For Mother's Day

Another Mother’s Day, another gift guide. I took my mum out for afternoon tea for Mother’s Day. I will probably write about it soon because the vegan option was uh-mazing. I don’t know what I’m doing yet. Ebony wasn’t well today but she was stood fully dressed at the door at 8:50 am this morning sobbing because she couldn’t go to school. She kept saying she needed to go because of ‘a secret’ which I think was the Mother’s Day stall they have at school. So now I won’t get my £2 beaded bookmark this year which is, obviously, disappointing.

Instead, I would accept any of the following:

Chocally Vegan Variety £22.95 (pictured)

Oh my God, this stuff is so good. I had it instead of an advent calendar and I cannot stress how amazing it was. The chocolates are so tasty. So delicious. So wonderful. All vegans need some of these in their life, trust me.

Custom T-shirts

Ebony loves nothing more than matching. I love nothing more than homemade gifts. I would love a customised t-shirt designed by Ebony. And it would be even cuter if she had a matching tee. I’m not saying I’d wear it to the pub, but I’d definitely wear it to bed.

Cover FX Foundation £34

I need this stuff. My skin is ageing, I am ageing, life is terrible. I am suddenly feeling very old and I need some amazing foundation to make me look at least slightly airbrushed. I’ve never used Cover FX but it’s supposed to be amazing. And it’s all vegan and cruelty-free, obviously. I was meant to get some for my birthday last year but only House of Fraser sell it in Manchester and that’s just so far… so I got something from Debenhams instead. This year I am haggard enough to need to walk the extra distance.

Double Handle Bucket Bag £30

I am in desperate need of a big handbag. My bag doesn’t fit books in so I am forever carrying a paperback which makes me look like a really lame, middle-aged attempt at a hipster. I need to get a bigger bag so I can stop worrying about misplacing my reading material. I like this one in yellow. All my bags are yellow.

This is a collaborative post.