January 30, 2013 at 5:54 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28: Islanders are being encouraged to cut back on their meat consumption during October as part of Vegetarian Awareness Month.
There are many differing views on the health, environmental and moral benefits of vegetarianism.
Regardless of which side you are on, there are certainly benefits which can be taken advantage of whether you decide to live completely meat-free or otherwise.
To mark Vegetarian Awareness Week we decided to speak to Anjula Bean, who launched the only vegetarian food outlet in Bermuda — Juice ‘n Beans, and Nicole Stovell who helps to run the Vegetarian Society of Bermuda. We have also shared some delicious vegetarian recipes HERE.
Anjula Bean has been a vegetarian all her life but found it difficult to find the food she needed living in Bermuda.
It was for this reason she decided to launch her own vegetarian café called Juice ‘n Beans which now serves a range of veggie curries, breakfasts and vegan soups daily.
“There was a need in Bermuda for this. I was born a vegetarian — I eat no meat, no eggs, no fish — anything that breeds we don’t eat.
“We wanted to do something different, a niche, it is difficult to find anywhere that has a total vegetarian menu and on top of that curry is very popular. Being from the Indian culture it was a perfect fit.”
Limited options
Originally from Delhi, Bean has been living in Bermuda for 30 years and says that the island is improving in terms of the options available to vegetarians.
“At the beginning it was very difficult — you could always get a salad and you can always get pasta with tomato sauce in the restaurants but it becomes monotonous. “Now restaurants are beginning to offer more vegetarian meals — they will have a little green tick next to the vegetarian options — it is definitely growing.”
There are many arguments making the case that vegetarians and vegans suffer illnesses related to nutritional inadequacy, Bean insists she and her vegetarian parents alike, have lived a healthy lives.
“As a vegetarian you have to be very careful with your protein and carbohydrates. “We eat a lot of carbs so we have to be careful to pick our protein and eat a certain amount on a regular basis to stay healthy. We eat a lot of lentils and beans and chickpeas and cheese — we have to be careful we don’t eat too much of it but enough to sustain bodies because we really don’t need that much. Raw vegetables are also very important.
“I have never been unhealthy. My parents have been vegetarians all their lives. My father is 84 and my mother is 79 and they need no medication and have no diseases. There are things that happen and that is part of life but we need to keep our bodies clean and we can definitely survive without meat.”
Juice ‘n Beans is marking Vegetarian Awareness Day on October 1 with a five per cent discount for all customers who mention this article.
The Vegetarian Society of Bermuda is a champion of local, organically grown produce which inevitably does cut down on the fuel consumption involved in shipping produce around the world. and air pollution
But what is certain is that there are endless highly nutritional and tasty non-meat options out there which, regardless of what camp you are sitting in, are great addition to any diet.
The Vegetarian Society of Bermuda is active in promoting vegetarianism in Bermuda and encouraging the population to consume less meat on the whole.
To mark Vegetarian Awareness Month, in conjunction with The Chewstick Foundation, will be screening the film Forks Over Knives which explores the health implications of eating too much meat, in particular poorly reared or processed meat. It examines the theory that the increase of degenerative diseases can be decreased by avoiding animal–based and processed foods. It includes input from nutritional scientist Dr Campbell. (See details of the film above.)
The Vegetarian Society of Bermuda was formed in 1966 in order to support the island’s vegetarian and vegan population. Nicole Stovell, who runs the society amongst others, explained: “Essentially —focus is primarily on supporting people who are already vegetarian in terms of consistently informing them about international vegetarian conferences, food fairs around the world and local green events and health fairs.
“We also support local farming in a major way so we fully support the Farmers’ Market as well as other fruit and vegetable farmers around the island. In our efforts to promote a more sustainable lifestyle in general we support local farming outright wholeheartedly.
“The reason we support that in such a major way is because as vegetarians most of our diet is comprised of fresh fruit and vegetables — for us that is very important. Relying on imported fruit and vegetables is very expensive, it’s not as healthy for your system or the planet as a whole.”
The society also works to inform visiting tourists about the best places to eat and find food. Each year on the first day of spring the society organizes a “Meat Out Day” for its 250 members where they meet up and share vegetarian dishes. It also produces a quarterly e-newsletter for its members.
Anyone interested in becoming a member of the Vegetarian Society of Bermuda can e-mail [email protected] The Vegetarian Society also holds tables at various green and health events across the island where the public can sign up.
Information
What: Screening of the film Forks Over Knives. See the website www.forksoverknives.com
Where: Chewstick Foundation headquarters on the corner of Court Street and Elliott Street
When: Thursday, October 6
Time: 6:30pm
For more information on the society visit www.vsbforum.org or call 236-8771.
Click HERE for three delicious vegetarian and vegan recipes courtesy of Anjula Bean and local cook the “Saute Sista” Cheryl Kerr.
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