Work sustainability policy dictating crap food

[ThisBrickOtter]

So, my employer has gone on a sustainability bender (don't look at this happening at the same time as the expensive and resource consuming rebrand). This now means for our dept get together, which usually has food, only vegan or vegetarian options are available. This is really annoying me.

I'm a pro thought for the environment type but my choices don't extend to meat (I don't find the vegan argument convincing, I do the vegetarian one, but got ill when tried that). I consume what meat I can afford, thoughtfully.

I do have an unusual relationship with food. Part neurodiversity (this extends to authority at times, something I keep an eye on!), part poor childhood. I think this might be contributing to my reaction.

But yep, I feel angry that my food choices are being taken away. Last meeting I was at where they did this, only the sweet food got completely finished. The savory vege sandwiches and fallafel was picked at. Same with the fake chicken. The policy is resulting in more food waste, not less. So that annoys me too.

I have no issue with people's personal choices, but this feels like being lectured to about drinking but a very drunk uncle.

AIBU feeling this way?

"I don’t willingly restrict my diet to a minority of food" when you just said you willingly went hungry rather than eating a non-healthy carb laden sandwich for one meal of your life? Okay.

Not eating bits of animal flesh made you depressed? You can't have one meat-free meal without triggering mental illness? Really?!

Where did I say that?

I ate the sandwiches but because it was carbs, carbs and more carbs I was hungry with the hour.

I think most people would read what you wrote and take from it that you didn't eat the food, but fair enough I retract.

Our City Council did this. ( and so did Cambridge) . Vegan exclusively , whooo 😇😇we’re so wonderful.

Until the local rag printed some pics of the huge piles of stuff left untouched to be thrown away ( I don’t know why it didn’t go to some sort of charity, maybe they thought that would be unnecessarily unkind), which caused a rethink ( I can’t reist saying ‘egg on faces’)

I know, what a load of shite but quite amusing to read!

I imagine the animals involved were rather more depressed.

I can't eat a lot of veggie/vegan food unless I make it myself as it has so much soya in it... next time say you have allergies to nuts and soya and see what alternatives they come up with.

I am less worried about eating meat as we don't eat a lot anyway, but most commercially prepared vegetarian and vegan food is awful. In fact. Thinking about it I hate commercial buffets full stop.

It's a real shame if it's increasing food waste and that needs to be addressed.

If your employer provides all your meals every day, I would be annoyed. But I struggle a bit with the odd meeting being a huge problem.

I dont go to many catered meetings but they have normally been sad sandwiches, crisps and fruit.

I'm not sure I really would miss catering ham if I was offered roasted red peppers and pesto instead or instead of egg mayo got hummus or avacado and tomatoes.

Maybe others are getting more exciting meat dishes at thier meetings.

I agree. I would like to be vegetarian but I have an allium allergy and it’s pretty much impossible to eat anything catered that is both vegan and safe for me.

Plain egg and mayonnaise or cheese sandwiches would be perfect, but these days it seems to be a procession of complicated fillings that all have alliums of some sort shoehorned in, or worse, completely anonymous stuff in bread that is probably contaminated with all the other fillings anyway.

Oh, and don’t even start me on the samosas and similar mystery parcels of doom! 😂

Poor catering is it. Not because it’s veggie or vegan but because they have just changed a cheap meat buffet to a cheap veggie / vegan one meaning even a lot of veggies won’t like the offerings.

Now if they did curries and rice with no fake meat in. Some onion bhajis. Proper meals with sides as snacks even if in small grab bowls. A proper veggie / vegan meal no fake items.

Why don't you secrete a pork chop in your pocket on the day of the event? Cheese down your bra? Ham in your shoes?

I am a meat eater but like a lot of vegetarian meals and would happily eat these most of the time. The problem for me is with fake meat. I see it as a big carcinogenic and would not touch it at all. It's vile! And not a better option than meat.

Fake meat makes me ill. My SIL once pulled a stunt serving fake meat burgers at a family bbq, without saying. Not only did everyone immediately detect it and left most of it, I had one bite and felt ill the rest of the evening. Virtue signaling would have worked better if she didn’t have a massive gas guzzler of a car.

my work canteen also serves hardly any meat ( fine, I can cope) , but the alternative is fake meat I can’t eat. I’d be fine with jacket potatoes with cheese and coleslaw, or interesting salads, but they don’t do nice alternatives . So I bring in my own lunch every day. Catering company lose money every day.

Probably because plenty do

Sure I read that some meat substitutes were incredibly resource intensive to make.

Don't advise people to pretend to have allergies that they don't, it's seriously dickish.

You're making life harder for people with real allergies.

How often are these events?

YANBU. There is lots more food for vegans now, but the choice of veggie food has definitely got worse as people try and lump veggie with vegan. Lots of substitutes like cauliflower steak for meat and processed fake meat. I'd much rather eat pulses and eggs and dairy.

It's got to the point I end up getting the meat option where previously I would have picked the veggie option. (I'm a meat-light omnivore)

Pop a few Whiskas pouches in your pocket. Excellent for on-the-go extreme meat needs. Jelly or gravy...your choice.

Trouble with that is that it won't taste any different to the faux meat options.

I have bad IBS and have to avoid a lot of things including onions, garlic, chilli, beans and pulses (the full list is massive). I love a plain sandwich too! I won't end up in hospital, but I do feel awful for days and have lots of symptoms I won't explain here.

It's absolute green wash. I'd take my own food. I'd also be requesting locally sourced meat instead of UPFs. Probably wouldn't get it.

Good vegan food cooked by a vegan. Yes. Catering services who have basically just removed the meat and added a ton of processed crap. Nope.

But this is a one off event? Occasional event? Eat lots of meat then go attend the event . Besides not all vegan food is fake and processed. You are overreacting if its only for the event not daily work place menu. Even then, you could pack a steak.
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