OXVeg Online News, 11/10/2008
Dear Member, I am pleased to say that a new OV committee was duly elected at the planning meeting last Thursday 9 October. The 8 committee members are, in alphabetical order by first name, David Huish (Assistant Treasurer), Eileen Bourton (Membership Secretary), Heather Shepherd (Secretary), Pam Hopcraft (Stalls Co-ordinator), Paul Appleby (Assistant Secretary), Paul Freestone (Media Representative), Rachel Foster (Campaigns Co-ordinator), Sue Tibbles (Treasurer). From this you will see that we have a new Secretary, Heather Shepherd, who also becomes our website manager and new primary telephone contact (her telephone number is at the end of the newsletter). However, after 25 and a half years as Secretary it will take some time for me to hand over the various secretarial duties, and the new committee members to take up their duties, so please bear with us during the change over period. I should also point out that the new committee is not 'set in stone', and if you feel that you have something to offer we'd like to hear from you. In particular, there is a vacancy for a Social Secretary to organise social activities including the Dining Out Club. An updated Annual Report covering the 18-month period from 1/4/2007 to 30/9/2008 and a Financial Report covering the same period were also presented at the meeting on 9 October. If you would like a copy of either document (both are in MS Word format) please mail me. Along with a new committee comes a new name for the group: OxVeg - Oxfordshire Vegetarians & Vegans. The shortened name of OxVeg has been used informally for some time, whilst the new full name reflects the fact that we aim to cover the county of Oxfordshire (rather than just the city of Oxford) and that we welcome vegetarian and vegan members alike. Again it will take some time for the change to take effect, so don't be surprised if you continue to see references to "Oxford Vegetarians" on our headed paper and other documents and web pages for some time to come. Suffice to say that I hope that will continue to give OxVeg and the new committee the same excellent support that you have given us since the group was founded in 1967. ====================================================== FORTHCOMING EVENTS (* denotes events organised by OxVeg) Tuesday 21 October, 5pm. Introduction to VERO and film show, Seminar Room East, Mansfield College, Mansfield Road, Oxford. The first of four meetings for Michaelmas term organised by VERO (Voice for Ethical Research at Oxford; www.vero.org.uk). Admission free, refreshments available. * Monday 27 October - Saturday 1 November. Library display to promote World Vegan Day, Oxford Central Library, Westgate, Oxford. An informative display in the foyer of Oxford Central Library to publicise World Vegan Day (1 November; www.worldveganday.org) and the work of The Vegan Society (www.vegansociety.com). Thursday 6 November, 5pm. Talk by Andrew Knight, Director of Animal Consultants International, Seminar Room East, Mansfield College, Mansfield Road, Oxford. Organised by VERO (Voice for Ethical Research at Oxford; www.vero.org.uk). Admission free, refreshments available. Saturday 15 November, 10am-4.30pm. One World Fair, Town Hall, St Aldate's, Oxford. We are running a stall at this event organised by Oxford Oxfam Group (event details from Naveed Chaudhri on 01865 473144). Thursday 20 November, 5pm. Talk by Dan Lyons, Director of Uncaged Campaigns, Seminar Room East, Mansfield College, Mansfield Road, Oxford. Organised by VERO (Voice for Ethical Research at Oxford; www.vero.org.uk). Admission free, refreshments available. Sunday 30 November, 10am-5pm. Animal Aid's Christmas Without Cruelty Fayre, Kensington Town Hall, Hornton Street, London W8. More than 85 stalls, food, talks & videos, live auction of celebrity memorabilia, web clinic, children's workshop & creche, press-ups competition, etc. The venue is only 10-15 minutes walk from the Oxford Tube stop at Notting Hill Gate. Admission £2 (under 11s free). Organised by Animal Aid (www.animalaid.org.uk). Thursday 4 December, 5pm. Talk by Revd Andrew Linzey, Director, Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics, Seminar Room East, Mansfield College, Mansfield Road, Oxford. Organised by VERO (Voice for Ethical Research at Oxford; www.vero.org.uk). Admission free, refreshments available. Saturday 13 December, 10.30am-4.30pm. Winter Green Fair, Town Hall, St Aldate's, Oxford. We are running a stall (to be confirmed) at this event organised by Oxfordshire Green Party (event details from Holly on 07929 424055 or email greenfair{at}greenoxford.com). ====================================================== Statement on environmental issues by the IVU International Council The International Council of the International Vegetarian Union wishes to bring to the attention of member societies and other interested parties the connection between, on one hand, the production of meat and other animal-based products and, on the other hand, environmental destruction. While this connection has long been known, recent reports, such as the FAO's "Livestock's Long Shadow", have strengthened the case and increased public consciousness of the fact that vegetarianism is an eco-friendly choice, due to the link between livestock farming and climate change and to links between livestock farming and deforestation and habitat destruction, water and energy resource depletion, and food conversion inefficiency and waste. The IVU website offers one place to learn more about why vegetarianism is an eco-friendly choice and about how to inform the public about this. For instance, at http://www.ivu.org/members/globalwarming.html resources can be found on animal food's contribution to global warming. The environment, like all issues, is a complex one. It is suggested that member societies and other interested parties endeavour to stay up-to-date, to rely on reputable information sources, to avoid exaggeration and to share resources with other green groups, including fellow vegetarian organisations. ====================================================== Vegetarian for Life update You might recall my mentioning Vegetarian for Life (www.vegetarianforlife.org.uk), a new charity working on behalf of older vegetarians and vegans throughout the UK, in a previous OV Online News. Company Secretary Tina Fox has sent us the the following update: "VfL is doing very well - it is our first year end now (end of September) and I am currently writing our annual report. We got our catering guide out to some 14,000 care homes and had a very positive response. We are shortly to also send it out to 2700 home care agencies and we are working on a special Xmas leaflet to go out to all the homes on our list (now 215) and others with a recipe by Rose Elliot our patron. Our next stage is to work on a booklet for hospitals and I have been invited to address the Hospital Caterers Association in January so I think we are making great strides for a very small organisation." You can send a donation to Vegetarian for Life (and request a copy of the Christmas leaflet - sae appreciated) at 182 Higher Bebington Road, Bebington, Wirral CH63 2PT. ====================================================== Book review Pancake: A Global History by Ken Albala. Reaktion Books, 2008, 128pp, hardback, £8-99. ISBN 978 1 86189 392 5. Compared with the heavyweight Beans, Ken Albala's latest book is altogether lighter fare, and arguably more enjoyable for that. Pancake: A Global History is one of the first titles in Reaktion Books' Edible series, which seeks to provide an introduction to the history, cuisine and culture of foods and beverages from around the world. Pancakes, defined by the author as "a starch-based comestible, poured as a batter onto a hot surface and cooked until solid", are a truly global dish, coming in all shapes and sizes and served in a variety of settings with dishes ranging from hearty working class fare to the Crepes Suzette of haute cuisine. A selection of recipes are provided for the enthusiast. Most of the recipes contain eggs and only one is suitable for vegans: La Socca, a simple mixture of water, olive oil and chickpea (gram) flour, seasoned with salt and pepper and popular along the southern Mediterranean coast. Other animal-free pancakes include the Ethiopian injera and the more familiar Indian dosa. Ken Albala's chatty and anecdotal style makes Pancake: A Global History an enjoyable read, and the book is attractively illustrated with 31 colour and 18 monochrome illustrations, including a double-page action picture of the world's oldest pancake race held on Shrove Tuesday every year in Olney, Buckinghamshire, reputedly since 1445. An appendix lists a selection of pancake-related websites, including those of the Pancake Appreciation Society, pancake art and pancake music videos! In short, there is plenty here to keep foodies and pancake enthusiasts alike entertained and informed. Paul Appleby, October 2008 (You can find this review, together with a review of Ken Albala's "Beans: A History" on our website at www.ivu.org/oxveg/Reviews/beans.html ). ====================================================== Save our Sosmix Sosmix is one of the first and best veggie sausages. It made barbecues, hot dogs and burgers possible in the 1980s years before veggie foods such as sausages were available. Great food like this made going vegan easy. Now the manufacturers have been bought out and Sosmix contains cows' milk! It's unneccesary things such as this that make going vegan difficult - and deprive vegans of the choice they deserve. Please sign the petition below and pass the link on. You don't have to be vegan to sign it. http://www.petitiononline.com/sosmix/petition.html Meanwhile, devotees seeking arguably tastier alternatives produced by the undoubtedly more ethical not-for-profit social enterprise Veggies might like to try the following products. Veggies Burger Mix, Sosage Mix and Hemp Burger Mix: hand-made in Nottingham by vegans, from organic vegan ingredients, in a vegan kitchen, by a Vegetarian Food and Drink Guild member and Vegetarian Society affiliated group: Veggies Catering Campaign. 350g - £2.95 + £1.63 p&p 900g - £5.40 + £2.49 p&p You can order by paypal or credit card by hitting the donation button at the bottom of http://www.veggies.org.uk/nvvs/ and sending an email to confirm. ====================================================== ANZAC biscuits A colleague at work who hails from New Zealand gave me this recipe - a vegan version of a recipe for biscuits traditionally baked on ANZAC Day (25 April) when the Australian and New Zealand dead of two world wars are remembered. 50 g rice flour 2/3 cup rolled oats 2/3 cup coconut 75 g sugar 50 g "Pure" margarine 1 tablespoon golden syrup 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 2 tablespoons boiling water Combine the flour, rolled oats, coconut and sugar. Melt the margarine and golden syrup. Dissolve the baking soda in the boiling water and then add to the syrup mixture. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry and mix well. Roll into small balls and flatten with a fork a place on a lined baking tray. Bake at 180 degrees C for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy! ====================================================== And finally ... A new magazine, Cook Vegetarian, has hit the high street. The title is self-explanatory, but early reports are less than complimentary. Members of The Vegetarian Society can claim a discount on the magazine at http://www.vegsoc.org/members/discounts/index.html Best wishes, Paul Appleby OxVeg Online News editor
Author: Paul Appleby
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