Is it really that hard.....? 🤔

[StillGotBabyBrain]

My family is vegan, not a massive deal.

When the school has events, no vegan option, so everyone gets a bbq or food catered and we don't. Not even a dairy free alternative for hot drinks! (Primary school, high school is better).

When they go for sleepovers I get worried parents asking me what should they do, can I provide food and drinks for them...

Pubs and restaurants barely cater for adults let alone add options for the kids menu.

Went to a choir meeting the other week, nothing I could eat from the food included in my ticket price.

Am I being unreasonable thinking it's really not that difficult to provide bread and houmous or vegetable dishes? They're suitable for everyone, so isn't a waste of food! Blows my mind.

There's so much vegan stuff available now there's really no excuse. Including vegan party food (in response to the poster who mention those little party snacks). Yesterday I bought vegan cocktail sausages/sage and onion sausages, prepared Mediterranean roasting veg, hoisin pulled mushroom burgers, pastrami, mushroom and seitan wellington... All from Sainsbury's, nowhere outlandish. If you can prepare a beefburger, you can prepare a vegan one. It's not restrictive in the slightest.

As for vegan stuff being UPF, so is most of the non vegan stuff mentioned here. And do you know what isn't UPF, is widely available, and also vegan? Vegetables! How hard is it to roast some veg with a bit of olive oil and herbs, for example? Or stuff a few mushrooms?

And all of your suggestions are so simple to provide as part of a PTA buffet/barbecue! What planet are you on?
Most people could provide a vegan meal for a small supper party or lunch, I don't think that is the issue (although the militant vegans on this thread would make me nervous to do so, I have to say) but I think it's mass caring provided by volunteers that we are talking about here.

That's utter rubbish for a start! Doctors are on the large part, completely untrained in relation to nutrition and just follow the old pyramid that's outdated.

There are plenty of nutrionists that do recommend plantbased diets, especially in relation to patients who are ill as plantbased can reverse disease!

Join the PTA and show them how easy it is.

I often eat Veggie because I follow a halal diet. I wouldn't eat something that had contact with pork products. But if other items where on the same plate I'm not going to snub it. I'm not eating that item. It is harder to cater for different things. And I understand that. And if I know there won't be an option for my kids then I bring something. Or if it's a bbq I will bring a dish to share etc. I also understand my lifestyle is a choice not shared by everyone so I accept there's not always going to be something for me.

You don't and this whole, I eat well raised and humanely killed meat is just a fallacy in most cases. Butchers get a lot of meat from factory farms.

If people really wanted to eat 'well raised grass-fed and grazed animals' like so many insist they do, at the rate people eat meat and dairy, we would need THREE planets... over half the crops grown on earth feed animals which then take up more space and resources. Hence why animal agriculture is the second most damaging cause of climate change...

People seem to be very misinformed.

Also when my kids where at a school where they allowed kids to bring in sweets for birthdays to hand out at the end of the day. I used to bring in a pack of vegetarian ones to the teacher and she used to just replace the one given with that and I would tell them to use them for anyone else who required it and let me know if they ran out. I don't expect other parents to worry about my restrictions as they aren't allergy based. A few have though and I thought it was very very kind that they asked and or provided and alternative.

We frequently have 20-40 people over for family get togethers. I am grateful every day that there are no intolerances, allergies, vegans or even vegetarians because it is soooo complicated.

Actually I say no allergies, I found out (very nearly too late) that one of DHs cousins has a nut allergy. That could have been a disaster.

It's not that I would mind preparing alternatives but there is absolutely no guarantee of no cross contamination... As would be the case in most people's kitchens.

My mum also used to do big parties and she realised she had to start hiding the veggie dishes or everyone would have a bit and there would be none left for the actual veggies.

So it is actually hard. Especially en mass. And especially when you consider that it isn't just you. You're family is vegan but Janet's is gluten free, Bob is dairy intolerant and Lisa is vegetarian. Yes, in theory you could cater for all of those people in one 'dietary requirement' dish but then the vegetarians are annoyed there's no cheese or eggs, the gluten/dairy people are annoyed they've not got any meat and the vegan is annoyed that they have sub standard gluten free bread.

You know the expression you can't please all the people all the time... well...

Also, where are you eating out that there are no vegan options? Bloody everywhere has substituted half their menu for vegans these days!

I genuinely respect the choice you've made but you also have to be more realistic about what you expect from others. And as suggested, at these volunteer events there is absolutely nothing stopping you from volunteering to help.

What planet is @A1b2c3d4e5f6g7 on? One that’s being destroyed by climate change. And they literally mentioned vegan burgers in their post, and how they can be found next to meat burgers. So, yes, they are simple to provide for a PTA barbecue.

@Katypp I was replying to the people who said they wouldn't have a clue what to cater vegan children or friends who came for lunch, dinner or a sleepover.

For a PTA event, 80p for some oat milk, and then a few vegan burgers cooked on tinfoil at a PTA bbq, or some ciabatta with hummus or guacamole, or a pasta salad with some diced veggies, olive oil and salt, pepper, balsamic vinegar etc is easy enough surely?

You're making a very big assumption there that we give a shit about the “ethical argument”. We don’t. You can “win” that boring bullshit all you want 😂

Restricting yourself in such a way and being sanctimonious over others isn’t a “win” in any shape or form 😂

Yeah... And what are they cooking those vegan burgers on, likely they only have one bbq? How many do they do (cos waste isn't good for the planet either). How do they make sure only vegans get to eat the vegan burgers... Multiple people on this thread already mentioned that although not vegetarian they would have the vegetarian option for many other reasons.

It is NOT that simple!

So far I've had four friends get cancer. Three of them were vegan and young. Since we've mentioned the vegan sausage rolls, their creator also died of cancer. Veganism isn't a guarantee of health.

I enjoy entertaining and cooking for people.

However, after catering for fussy kids, vegetarians, pescatarians, life threatening allergies, tbh I run out of options time and money for vegans.

Most of my best veggie / fussy options involve cheese or eggs. I always make pure veg options but wouldn't provide a protein source to go with... it would involve purchasing a whole other food stuff and prepping it for just one... seitan, tofu, lentils etc. That would be outside my time and budget constraints.

Vegan is the most restrictive of diets, and it's I'm afraid it's on you if you choose it. It's not actually your right to have people prepare food for you.

Basically if I'm cooking for you and others, and you're the most difficult, then you'll be least catered for.

Also, your self righteous attitude doesn't really help others warm to you or your choices. So that might also be a part of it.

But there's literally scientific studies that show that is not true. Most soya is actually grown to feed animals.... most extinct wildlife and endangered wildlife is because of animal agriculture.

I've not told you how to live or what to feed your kids. Don't do it to me, especially when it's just meat and dairy trade lies.

As a vegetarian, I find that vegan food is now EVERYWHERE so I'm baffled by this. My problem is the lack of vegetarian options now.

Chips aren’t always vegan though especially in Yorkshire Chippys or gastro pubs or some of the posh freezer ones.
I was in a chip shop in Hebden Bridge and a woman was loudly saying she was Vegan and she’d just have chips. But there was a sign up saying we fry in beef dripping. She had them anyway?!

Nope. You're just being mean for no good reason.

Most restaurants have a vegan menu inc McDonalds although my dd tells me the Vegan items aren’t cooked separately.

Toast and jam, peanut butter or biscoff spread is all vegan. Wow, life altering difficulties...

I'm tempted to say: it's very much a sign of the times.

People deliberately choosing an option that makes them "special", and then bursting into tears when they find that "being special" often comes with various inconveniences.

And the hapless "ordinary people" are once again blamed for not changing everything to ensure that life revolves around the "special people". "Is it really that hard?" 😂

I would cater for vegans but that's only because it's so easy nowadays. Infact, thinking about it, its rare I do a buffet with meat options so it wouldn't take much to go fully vegan. I do a lot of fish options though, salmon side, tuna, sushi etc. I keep toying with the idea of going vegan but I like eggs too much. My diet is very egg based 😂.

I think you have to cut worried parents some slack. It's easy to get caught out if you don't know what you are looking for in ingredients. People are more educated these days, but I'd still check everything with the vegan for complete certainty - because I might get caught out.

YANBU to expect to be catered to.

Schools etc. will cater to vegetarians, Kosher, Halal...and lots of those are easily adapted to vegan. Hell, we eat vegan 'accidentally' quite a lot of the time - loads of vegetarian curries (just use coconut oil instead of ghee, vegan yoghurt etc.).

It doesn't have to just be salad and hummous, but if it is, at least it's an effort!

(Mind you, if those places haven't asked about dietary needs/preferences maybe you could approach them before the event to make sure? I'd be well pissed off if I'd paid for a ticket and there was nothing I could eat!).

How do you know if someone's vegan? ....................................... They'll tell you!!

Always true.

Look OP, there are circa 1.2% of the UK population that are vegan. Social events like school PTA stuff or mates BBQs you are probably going to be the only ones there that are vegan.
So actually what you're actually asking is 'Why can't people make a bespoke meal for me and my family?'

Yes most places will have a veggie section but what I would be most concerned about with picnic / platter scenarios is cross-contamination which inevitably happens.

You say 'just put on more vegetables' but actually this is a ball-ache. Veg prep is time consuming.

Restaurants are getting better, probably because they have realised there are higher profit margins, however, for some kitchens it is really hard for them to have a section that is entirely dairy/meat free - which is what you are asking them to do