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Veggies Campaign News

Pat | 16.05.2008 00:38 | Animal Liberation

New veggie catering campaign to be launched, another (almost) bites the dust.

From Climate Camps and Earth First Gatherings to SHAC demos and anti-nuke rally's, from green fairs and vegan festivals to community festivals and music festivals, and even weddings and birthdays, street-wise campaign caterers, Veggies of Nottingham are getting more requests for their services than will fit the diary. Being twice voted 'Best Vegan Caterer' doesn't help!

Meanwhile there is a growing awareness that the single most effective thing that an individual can do to benefit the climate is to change their diet.

The dilemma - how far should Veggies travel to promote this message?

Guided by feedback from their Events Catering Survey ( http://tinyurl.com/328t23), Veggies have a declared intention to cut back on distant events, in favour of more local ones, backed up by a commitment to support emerging vegan caterers in other areas such as London, Coventry, Manchester and Scarborough.

Towards these ends Veggies have been fitting out a spare catering trailer on behalf of a new mobile vegan group, Team Phish, to be based in Manchester.

In advance of the public launch of this new project, an exclusive Phish 'n' Chip Supper is to be held at the Sumac Centre's People's Kitchen at 6.30 THIS SATURDAY 17th May.

Also this Sunday 18th May at 1pm, a scrumptious fundraising vegan roast dinner with all the trimmings is to be held at Nottingham's Sumac Centre. See 'Team Phish details at  http://www.veggies.org.uk/page.php?ref=1312

... however ...

Just as this new project was nearing completion Veggies hit a crisis when their larger, newer trailer collapsed due to damp in it's wood panels! However within days a replacement trailer has been found into which the contents of the now dead trailer are being transferred.

See the shocking pictures at  http://www.veggies.org.uk/page.php?ref=815 !

Veggies crew are therefore now working all hours to refurbish/rebuild _three_ trailers before the Newark Beer Festival (23/24th May), Nottingham Green Festival (25th) & Kingston Green Fair (26th), closely followed by the Bristol Vegan Fair (31st May/1st June).

The dead trailer is being converted into a flat-bed trailer to be made available as a community resource, as the chassis is sound. Help is needed to complete this before the weekend, to make it available for the Sumac outbuilding re-roofing project which is also happening this weekend.


Your feedback on our work and future direction is very much welcomed. Please see our event catering survey at  http://tinyurl.com/328t23

See details of all these, and other Veggies & Sumac Events, at  http://www.veggies.org.uk/diary.htm

Pat
- e-mail: info@veggies.org.uk
- Homepage: http://www.veggies.org.uk

Comments

Hide the following 5 comments

You asked for feedback, so here it is. Great food. Great people.

16.05.2008 19:20

Having met you a few times I can safely say that you are all very nice people and serve great food. At the gathering {AR UK 2007} it was good to see young people joining in with Veggies making it a proper community event. I was very impressed at the way you arrived in darkness {in a field} and got everything up and running in no time at all and fed all those people.

Getting the veggie message into schools and businesses is something you've done well too.

Keep it up.

London against Camden danger Lab {Mandy}
mail e-mail: londonagainstblisslab@yahoo.com
- Homepage: http://www.myspace.com/londonagainstblisslab


Glad feedback says keep it local,profit for the people

17.05.2008 07:45

Veggies are not empire builders,they are cooperators. If other coops take up the idea locally, it is a great business model to copyleft as earner for all. Veggies workers& comrades in nottingham take a lot of strain to fund good things everywhere, not just the people you see on demo.
Driving all over the country is unsustainable& unsafe & the strain sometimes divides workers.This is a brilliant local business opportunity though, for other cities besides obvious ones with similar businesses like Nottingham, Manchester & possibly London & Bristol. I work with veggies to keep healthy cooperative businesses alive& help working people organise for life. Shame about the wood rot, the roof on that trailer had gas mans ali tape on its roof until we replaced it, anyway the interior metal we cut out is being reused & the base is now a useful flatbed for building work etc.
Support local workers cooperatives& make profit for the people!

Going vegan is not just ethical,its scientifically proven to take 16times less energy & resouces to grow veg than meat, plus creatine & natural synthesis means vegans can out do steriod bodybuilders. Check Bristol champion bodybuilder at 53, compared to most steriod meat eating bodybuilding wrecks.
PLease lets a bulk load of vegan creatine in, university science funders are being vslow in testing it, though Lcartinine tests seem to be going well

Green Syndicalist MEMBER IWW,ICA,


Progress report

19.05.2008 00:15

Something Fishy - Veggies offshoot Vegan Campaign Catering Project is Launched!
Something Fishy - Veggies offshoot Vegan Campaign Catering Project is Launched!

Work is progressing well on refitting the new new Veggies Trailer, hopefully in time for this coming weekend's events.
The laying of the floor was completed on Sunday, the reinstallation of the stainless steel wall lining will follow tomorrow, the refitting all the shelving, gas fittings, plumbing etc.

The Something Fishy launch was a huge success too - some 70 people came, compared to usually 30 for Saturday's Sumac Meals.
See  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1312

Lots of other stuff going on at Sumac too - see progress report on the Outbuildings Project at  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1328


So who is available to join us over this crazy coming weekend:

Fri/Sat 23/24- Newark Beer Festival -  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1309

Sun 25th - Nottm Green Festival (and a wedding buffet) -  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1264

Mon 26th - Kingston Green Fair -  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1263

Also Monday - Campaign Catering at Open Cast Coal Mining protest in Derbyshire. Who can collect/take food we'll organise in advance for D-I-Y distribution?
See  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1322


by the way - today, Monday, National Vegetarian Week vegan food give-away McDemo in City Centre. Call 0787 086 1837 for details.

Wednesday 21st - Sea Shepherd Benefit  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1278
Thursday - Nottm AR Meeting -  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=112
Friday - Green Garden Cafe - new vegan catering group launch in Coventry:  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1321

-----------------------

!!! Veggies Crew are in the running to overtake Heather Mills in the Vegan Environmental Awards - but we need to hussle a more votes !!!

Even if you have voted before you can vote again at  http://www.bristolveganfayre.co.uk/Awards08Campaigners.htm

Pass this on to your friends!

pat
mail e-mail: info@veggies.org.uk
- Homepage: http://www.veggies.org.uk


Great, didnt have the dosh to get chips or booze that night,my bank messed up

19.05.2008 12:17

though Iam sure your using frymax rather than transfats or hydorgenated oil, Pukka pies do as do many chips shops.
Have a look into Frymax its commercially available.

I personally cant work for veggies anymore, though generally its good fun, unless one person insists on doing all the driving then its get scarey, whichever company it is.
Health & safety for voluntary organisations is as important as anywhere else, veggies is better than many now, lets keep it that way. Do not accept less than free food, free transport,festi access+ profit share if part-full timer.
I demanded veggies profits went to Sumac & not enough to keep myself going, over using genourosity can seem like exploitation to many outside the organisation.
Those running voluntary workers coops need to act less like CEO's, even if sometimes its convenient in long run its not.
Labour New claimant deals can suck either government or "anarchist", I wont say anymore I have a long list of2 decade served voluntary workers who agree,just dont take this comment off,& yes Ive recovered after the attack almost thanks

Green Syndicalist & ex veggies workers MEMBERs IWW,ICA,


Say No To GM Oil

19.05.2008 19:15



Thank you for your comment re the launch of the 'Something Fishy' vegan catering campaign. You ask about the oil used - "though I am sure you're using frymax rather than transfats or hydorgenated oil".

The oil used is actually mainly sunflower oil from Community Foods, a wholefoods producer supportive of local, fair trade and organic producs, via the regional distributor, Lembas from Sheffield.

'Something Fishy' is an independent Manchester-based project, supported by Veggies of Nottingham, so at the end of the day the purchasing choices are theirs, not Veggies, although we hope they'll be guided by Veggies policies.

However what they are NOT using is the Genetically Mutated oil likely to be found in many Nottingham Restaurants. Trading standards officers in York found around a quarter of caterers using cooking oils sourced from a genetically modified (GM) food without telling their customers. The same GM oil is on sale - including wholesale to caterers - in Nottingham. Bookers and other catering suppliers have been selling oil identified as GM by very small print on the cans. Print off these pictures and ASK at your local chippy, deli, restaurant or take-away.
See  http://www.veggies.org.uk/page.php?ref=1130 for more info.

Although Veggies uses organic oils in almost all our catering, this may not be worthwhile or cost effective for frying non-organic chips! Although organic has other environmental benefits, a plus point is that the waste oil is to be filtered and used to run Veggies van. This subject may be discussed in more detail in a future posting re the running of Veggies vehicle on straight veg oil, following conversion with a Veggie Power Kit, from  http://www.veggiepower.co.uk/

Look out for 'Something Fishy' at Nottingham's Green Festival on Sunday -  http://www.veggies.org.uk/event.php?ref=1312

Pat