Care home wins PETA award for signing up to Veganuary

Harper Fields care home in Coventry has won an award from the charity PETA for offering all residents an alternative option of vegan meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner throughout the month of January.

The home run by Barchester promoted veganism last year with a vegan festival encouraging its residents to ditch meat and dairy and eat only plant-based food.

It has now gone one step further encouraging residents to sign up for Veganuary and go vegan all of January.

Dawn Carr, special projects manager for PETA, said: “Diners of all ages can benefit from vibrant vegan meals, which contain no saturated animal fat or cholesterol.

“PETA is recognising Harper Fields for leading the industry and making plant-based food available to residents for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.”

Veganism is one of the fastest growing lifestyle movements, with the number of British vegans rising by 360 per cent to around half a million over the last decade, according to figures from The Vegan Society.

Advocates of vegan diets claim it boosts energy, prevents digestive problems such as constipation and helps with weight loss. Veganism also means you get a good amount of fibre and antioxidants in your body, reducing the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.

Hannah Mulholland, the care home’s activities coordinator, has introduced the initiative to the home, using PETA’s catering recipes and giving vegan starter kits to residents.

She said: “Our brilliant kitchen staff have shown how easy it is to offer residents meals that are healthy, cruelty-free, and delicious. We look forward to seeing our residents enjoy all the benefits of plant-based meals, including a higher fibre intake and a boost in energy.”

She added: “It is such an honour to receive this award for Harper Fields, I spend a lot of my spare time educating others about being vegan and showing people how to cook tasty vegan dishes and so to be given this opportunity by my fantastic manager was a very special challenge to me.

“Residents, staff and relatives have got on board with our project which is extremely heartwarming to see. Taking care of our residents is our main priority so to provide healthy and nutritious meals is imperative to their physical and mental wellbeing, our residents like to keep fit with one of our four exercise classes a week we provide (even taking them swimming) so they have welcomed Veganuary and the vegan festival with open arms.”

Chefs at the home have found cooking vegan food to be a new challenge and have been learning to use substitutes in cakes and brownies as well as in the main dishes.

Ms Mulholland believes the UK will soon see a new wave of vegans approaching the age where they need assistance in daily living. Consequently, she said “we wanted to show that we have thought about the future of our care that we provide and not just the present and hopefully other care providers will follow suit”.

Harper Fields' Christmas gifts for residents this year were cruelty-free: the shaving, spa, and skincare products were not tested on animals, and the slippers, hats, and scarves were made from animal-free materials.

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