Jan. 9th, 2007

baratron: (angry)
Sainsbury's supermarket has decided to stop putting a "suitable for vegans" label on the front of all their own-brand food products. Apparently, they "do not feel it is vital information".

What I actually feel about this is unprintable, and it's not as if this journal is a swearword-free zone. But I'm so ridiculously angry that it's taken me an hour and 15 minutes to write something coherent enough to send off to their customer services.

[livejournal.com profile] jonnynexus writing in [livejournal.com profile] ukvegans describes what shopping in Sainsbury's has been like up until now: "... like Disneyland for vegans. We've been like kids let loose in a sweet shop. Gravy (which we put in soups, stews and everything!), ice lollies, chocolate sauces, apple strudels, biscuits - all the things that we can't usually eat because they contain unspecified "flavourings" just waiting for us to grab them, take them home, and eat them.

It didn't matter to me that Sainsburys costs more than Tescos. It didn't matter that my nearest store was much further away than my *three* local Tescos superstores. It didn't matter that it had limited opening hours (compared to their 24 hour opening).
"


This is the email I'm just about to send to Sainsbury's. I've included it because it has some points that hasn't been brought up in [livejournal.com profile] ukvegans- most importantly, the number of non-vegans who will choose to buy vegan products for various reasons, and how Sainsbury's consumer tracking is underestimating the number of vegans due to the sheer number of us who live in omnivorous households.



I am absolutely dismayed to read online that you have decided to stop printing "suitable for vegans" clearly on the front of your own brand food products.

I switched from Tesco's to Sainsbury's about 4 years ago BECAUSE of your vegan labelling - although I only became vegan a year ago! I have severe lactose intolerance and casein allergy, meaning that I have to completely avoid all animal milks and their byproducts. The fact that I could pick up any own-brand product on your shelves and see INSTANTLY if it was suitable for me has saved me many hours of shopping time. My other lactose-intolerant and casein-allergic friends will all agree with this.

People choose vegan products for a large number of reasons. MANY of the people who want to buy vegan products are not themselves vegan. For example, Alpro soya milk is selling itself as ideal to reduce blood cholesterol levels (soy protein has been clinically proven to do this), or to help women going through the menopause (due to the natural plant phytoestrogens present). Every time I'm in the supermarket I see people buying large quantities of Alpro milk alongside normal cow cheese and meat products. A person with a fish, shellfish, dairy or egg allergy will choose a vegan product because that word "vegan" guarantees that the animal product/s they cannot eat is absent. A person with religious dietary restrictions will choose a vegan product because it guarantees that no prohibited animal product/s is present. People who have friends, family members or co-workers who are vegan, allergic or religiously observant will buy vegan products to ensure their friend, relative or co-worker has something safe to eat. And people who want to reduce their environmental impact or carbon dioxide footprint will increase their intakes of vegan foods while remaining omnivorous. The kind of people who eat organic, free range meat and organic, Fairtrade fruit and vegetables will also be gradually reducing their animal protein intake, and be looking for organic, vegan dishes to accompany their meal.
ExpandRead more... )

If you are vegan - or have an allergy or intolerance to dairy products - or vegetarian and thinking of becoming vegan - or belong to a religious group that avoids certain animal products - or if you've ever bought a vegan product for a friend, relative or co-worker - PLEASE send Sainsbury's an email here or ring their Customer Careline on freephone 0800 636 262 or Typetalk 18001 0800 636 262. They really need to know how many people this is going to inconvenience, and how many people are going to end up shopping elsewhere. It might not make a difference, but you never know.

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