The Vegetarian Society is a British registered charity established on 30 September 1847 with the aim of promoting understanding and respect for vegetarian lifestyles.
History
The first recorded meeting of the Vegetarian Society was held at Northwood Villa, a vegetarian hospital at Ramsgate, Kent in 1847. Its first full public meeting was held in Manchester the following year. In 1848, the society published the first issue of its magazine 'The Vegetarian'.
The Society claims to be the oldest society promoting vegetarianism in the world. Before the Society was founded, vegetarians were known as "Pythagoreans".
Current work
The society's current work is primarily geared towards the provision of advice and education to individuals, educational establishments, and community groups.
The Vegetarian Society act as a pressure group with the goal of influencing food producers to remove non-vegetarian ingredients such as gelatin from their produce. This pressure is also exerted in the form of an approval stamp for those goods which are suitable for a vegetarian lifestyle and a list of products which are not appropriate for vegetarians.
Notable members
Notable former members of the Vegetarian Society include Isaac Pitman, Mahatma Gandhi, George Bernard Shaw,Linda McCartney and Mick Collier.
Other societies
Vegetarian societies parts of the western world, notably the United States, Australia, and New Zealand though these societies are not directly linked to the Vegetarian Society.
External links
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