Sunday, 1st October is World Vegetarian Day - and what a fantastic time to go vegetarian.

- press release from the European Vegetarian Union (EVU) for World Vegetarian Day 2006

Vegetarianism is very much increasing in popularity. Approximately 7% of the UK population now shuns meat, and approximately 5 thousand people go veggie every week (The Vegetarian Society, UK). There are many health benefits to becoming vegetarian. Scientific studies comparing vegetarians with typical Western diet eaters have found that vegetarians are considerably healthier and less likely to suffer from a wide range of illnesses than meat eaters. Illnesses such as heart disease, certain cancers, hypertension, stroke, bowel problems, appendicitis, gallstones, gout, and obesity, can all be caused, or made worse, by a meat-based diet (Food for Thought, Dr Vernon Coleman).

One of the main reasons for the increase in vegetarianism is the moral reason. In the UK, around 2½ million farm animals are slaughtered every day. Most of these animals are reared in over-crowded factory farms where they are denied fresh air, exercise or meaningful social contact (Animal Aid, UK).

Furthermore, the meat industry contributes to serious environmental hazards, such as climate change and global warming. For example, growing food to feed animals uses vast amounts of water, reducing water sources to dangerously low levels. Animal manure is polluting soils, rivers and lakes with nitrates, pesticides and growth hormones, reducing the amount of safe drinking water further. Huge quantities of fossil fuels such as coal, oil and gas are also consumed. Wildlife habitats, including rainforests, are rapidly diminishing (Animal Aid, UK; VIVA, UK).

World hunger is another major issue. What we eat in Britain and other rich countries has a direct effect on world hunger. Animals eat about 5 to 10 times more plant food than humans but return only a very small amount of what they eat as meat and dairy produce. This means that most of the crops that are grown are used for feeding animals instead of the starving population (Animal Aid, UK).

This year has also seen a number of serious dangers in the meat industry, including the bird flu pandemic and the meat scandal in Germany. For those that haven't thought about becoming vegetarian before, it is time to stop and think about what is on your plate and where it comes from before the next scandal.

It hasn't been all bad news, though. We have now proved that as well as vegetarians being healthier, and kinder to animals and the environment, they are brainier. Recently, in the UK, a group of vegetarians took part in Test the Nation: IQ Test on live television. They came top beating all the other groups including butchers, public school, state school children, estate agents and footballer wives. The butchers came fourth. In addition, the person with the highest IQ result in the studio audience was in fact a vegetarian.

World Vegetarian Day 2006

For World Vegetarian Day this year, our theme is traditional vegan dishes in Europe. Each country has their own traditional dishes, but many of these are meat or dairy based. However, we want to show you that with so many meat substitutes and dairy alternatives available in the shops, it is so easy to make your favourite traditional recipe without using any animal products.

We have a collection of mouth-watering recipes, including some photos, from different European countries for you to enjoy. These recipes are either traditionally vegan or are substituted with vegan alternatives. In some of the recipes shown, it also tells you something about the origin of the dish. Just visit our website at www.euroveg.eu/lang/en/info/wvd/2006.php and click on the country flag of your choice, and it will take you to the list of traditional recipes from that country. Then click on the recipes you want to see.

Finally, I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who sent us the wonderful recipes.

Happy World Vegetarian Day!
From all of us at the European Vegetarian Union (EVU).