by FarmingUK Team | Dairy, Education, Meat, News
Rural campaigners have hit back after a small group of students at Lancaster University voted to ban meat and dairy products at its campus-wide catering outlets.
The Students’ Union voted to transition to 50% plant-based catering by 2025, and 100% plant-based catering by 2027. 18 out of 19 members voted in support of it.
The move, however, has been branded an “attack on freedom of choice” against the majority of Lancashire’s student population, which comprises of some 13,000 students.
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Sabina Roberts, a spokeswoman for the rural group, said the decision “absolutely should have been put to a student vote”.
“It seems preposterous that a minority group of students could take a decision so complex and personal – an individual’s dietary choices – and force it onto the wider student body.
“Vegan campaigners are welcome to present their arguments in favour of plant-based diets, but should not impose a diet in university-affiliated buildings.
“Students should take on their democratic duty and consider placing forward a counter-motion that keeps meat on the menu.”
The Countryside Alliance has spearheaded what it calls a ‘rural fightback’– encouraging universities and local councils to reject calls for compulsory veganism.
Instead, its motion commits universities and councils to procuring locally-sourced meat, dairy, and plant-based produce.
Ten councils, including Dorset, Wiltshire, and Suffolk councils, have passed the motion so far.
