Vegetable patch

01 January 2000
Vegetable patch

There seems to be no doubt that more people are turning their backs on meat and moving towards vegetarian options. Statistics from the 1995 Realeat Survey, conducted for Haldane Foods Group, suggest that 4.5% of the UK population are now vegetarian, and many more are going for the healthy option and avoiding meat in the process.

The evidence for this trend comes not only from organisations such as The Vegetarian Society or The Association for Vegetarian Catering (Caterveg), but also from manufacturers such as Emile Tissot Foods, Döhler UK and Master Foods, all of which have launched new vegetarian lines for the catering industry in the last year.

Contract caterers such as Sutcliffe Catering Group and Gardner Merchant have also noticed that the take-up of vegetarian dishes is steadily increasing even among non-veggie diners. David Hoyle, group manager for Sutcliffe's London East division, puts this down to the fact that healthy eating is becoming a priority, particularly among the younger clientele of his City units.

Hoyle says that there is a take-up of between 5% and 30% on vegetarian dishes at sites under his control and has implemented a bank of about 50 vegetarian recipes, with Vegetarian Society stamp of approval, at those units (including the Mercury One-2-One site).

Anne Simpson, chief dietician at Gardner Merchant, says that it too offers vegetarian dishes as a matter of policy - a minimum of one hot and one cold vegetarian dish every day. But she disputes the belief that vegetarian dishes are always healthier than meat options. "Many vegetarian dishes contain a lot of pastry or dairy produce which healthwise is not too good," she says.

There is also debate over what constitutes a vegetarian meal. True vegetarians, as defined by The Vegetarian Society, will only accept the use of free-range, unpasteurised eggs in any dish and so there are very few products available to the catering market which satisfy that requirement, due in part to health and safety requirements.

There are acceptable meat substitutes on offer, however, produced from either cereal or soya bean bases which can be used in casserole or stir-fry dishes instead of meat. Tofu - soya bean curd - has been used for centuries in Far Eastern cuisine and is marketed for caterers by Suma Wholefoods.

A cursory glance at the type of pre-prepared lines on offer reveals a number of vegetarian variations on burgers, sausages, pies and cold buffet foods. But there is less choice when it comes to anything more adventurous, although Italian-based dishes figure largely.

Pasta

There are a vast array of pre-prepared pasta dishes available to caterers. David Jones, managing director of vegetarian food supplier and consultancy Vegetarian Express, believes this is because the market is dominated by people cutting back on red meat. "They tend to prefer dairy-orientated products and pasta sauces are very often cream- or cheese-based," says Jones. The company's own-label Venetian pasta boats are a pop-ular option with high street restaurants. They are priced at about £19.90 for 12 x 11oz units.

Examples of pasta dishes launched in the past year are Master Foods' lentil and mushroom cannelloni and mushroom ravioli - both under the Dolmio label. These join four existing pasta dishes that Master Foods says are suitable for vegetarians; two other tortelloni variations, a ravioli and another cannelloni dish.

Emile Tissot has a policy of offering a vegetarian option in any ready-made frozen meal line it launches. It recently added a mushroom and nut fettucini to its Italian pasta range, which already includes lasagne verdi and tagliatelle Niáoise.

Buffet food

This is the easy way to offer a vegetarian option, particularly in pubs or banquet catering. Examples of new lines launched within the last 12 months include a three-layered mushroom terrine (layered broccoli, mushroom and carrot) and a mush-room and herb brioche distributed by Vegetarian Express (£18.70 and £6.80 respectively); and a cheese, tomato and basil quiche (£7.79) marketed by Brake Bros Foodservice.

Both Brake Bros and Vegetarian Express market a wide range of other buffet items and offer consultation advice for customers.

Eileen Steinbock, company dietician at Brake Bros, confirms that its growing portfolio of vegetarian products is customer-led. "The product development team tries wherever possible to make sure that there are meat- and fish-free products suitable for vegetarians."

Snack Bites

There are any number of burgers and breaded bites available aimed at pubs or caterers operating in schools, colleges or ferries.

Examples of recent lines are Bernard Matthews Food Service's tikka and taco triangles (about 27p each) and Haldane's Realeat Vegebites, which seeks to provide an alternative to breaded chicken bits (about £2.49 per bag).

Speciality meals

Pre-prepared Indian and Mexican vegetarian dishes are on the portfolios of both Brake Bros, Vegetarian Express and Emile Tissot, selling to pubs and high street restaurants. New lines include Brake Bros' Mexican vegetable stir fry and Tissot's spicy bean tortilla pie and vegetable balti. The latter two augment existing lines including a vegetable moussaka and biryani.

In many cases, though, it is manufacturers producing for specialist markets - such as Berrydales - which have come up with a more interesting choice of dishes. Berrydales aims its ready-made meals at people with food intolerances or vegans. Its Home Bake range includes chilli jambalaya, basmati & wild rice pilaff, and roman cabbage with bulgar wheat (prices range from 84p to £1.20 per portion).

A home-grown speciality dish, haggis, is also available to caterers in vegetarian form, from Macsween in Edinburgh. It has developed a vegetarian haggis based primarily on nuts and pulses which it sells in 1lb to 4lb sizes at about £1.50 per lb.

Meat substitutes

Haldane's best selling meat substitute - Realeat Vegemince - has recently been augmented by Realeat Vegesteak which is suitable for stewing and priced at about £2.49 per 1lb bag. The company also markets Vegemince and Vegesteak in pre-prepared meal form as a vegetarian chilli, bolognese and curry.

Marlow Foods' meat alternative, Quorn, is a cereal-based product, available to caterers in pieces, minced or as burgers. Its high profile retail advertising campaign has resulted in 250% growth year-on-year.

Desserts

Desserts can be a tricky area for committed vegetarians as most mousse-based items contain gelatin, an animal-derived setting agent. However, Döhler UK is now marketing a base whose setting agent, carrageen, is derived from seaweed (list price for 5kg pack is £34.95). The base can be used in gâteaux or on its own and comes in 46 flavourings.

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