Scottish university bans meat and dairy from menus

Students at a Scottish university have voted to exclude meat and dairy products from all campus meals and food outlets.

The vote at Stirling University means only plant-based alternatives will be offered to the 17,000 students from 2025.

But student union officials have called for a much quicker transition, demanding that 50% of food options are vegan, beginning in 2023.

See also: Countryside Stewardship to become second tier of ELM scheme

The exercise was part of The Plant-Based Universities campaign – a nationwide initiative led by activists Animal Rebellion.

But, while the outcome was welcomed by Guardian columnist George Monbiot and BBC presenter Chris Packham, it has sparked anger from countryside groups.

Illogical ban

The Countryside Alliance said the move was illogical.

It would be better for the students’ union to opt for locally sourced meat and dairy with low airmiles, rather than implement an all-out ban, the alliance argued.

It also highlighted that only a fraction of the university’s student population had taken part.

About 100 attendees joined the meeting where the vote was decided, despite the university having a student population of around 17,000.

A similar outcome at the University of Edinburgh’s student union was overturned when the wider student population was consulted before a ban was imposed.

Of the 6,000 votes cast at Edinburgh, 58% said “no” to the proposal to impose a vegan-food-only policy on caterers.

Countryside Alliance spokesman Mo Metcalf-Fisher urged Stirling University to reject the student union’s demands and demonstrate their support for Scottish farmers by retaining meat options in meals.

Mr Metcalf-Fisher also suggested Stirling’s student union would do more for the environment by sourcing sustainable local meat and dairy produce.

An avocado flown in from South America cannot have eco-superiority over a piece of grass-fed beef from a local farm, he said.