VEGETARIAN SOCIETY AWARDS 2005

Categories and Criteria

It is now too late to vote for the 2005 awards but you are welcome to look at the lists of nominations.

In 2004 The Vegetarian Society Awards celebrated the rise of the gourmet vegetarian restaurant - this year we want to celebrate the delicious, wholesome fare found in the comfort of veggie cafés and bistros around the UK. Please nominate your favourite place for a 100% vegetarian brekkie, lunch, snack or informal evening meal for this prestigious award.

Which pub or pub chain understands and values vegetarian customers by providing clear information about the suitability of dishes and products for vegetarians, and offering vegetarians real variety on their menu rather than a single vegetarian option..

Tell us which retailer offers the biggest selection of vegetarian ready-meals (include brand names and own-label). Remember ready-meals can come in a tin or a packet as well as in the frozen food and chilled sections!

Best meat or fish substitute

The number of vegetarian meat or fish substitutes available grows every year as food technology progresses and as the number of people looking for alternatives to meat rises. Perhaps you’ll nominate the product that satisfies both the veggie and meat-eating members of the family, or the product that helped you go veggie without having to sacrifice the taste of a bacon butty, or your love of fishy flavours.

Best 100% vegetarian box of chocolates

A box of chocs is a real treat for most people, but if you’re a veggie it could be a game of gelatine roulette! Nominate the best box of chocolates that is guaranteed to be 100% vegetarian, and is of course scrumptious and indulgent to boot!

Soup is a meal in itself, and the possibilities for different veggie flavours and textures are virtually unlimited. We are looking for the range that uses quality vegetarian ingredients to create the ultimate in classic flavours and the most exciting new combinations. We don’t mind whether the range is sold in tins, cartons or packets, we just want to know which you feel has the most to offer a veggie shopper.

A vegetarian lifestyle isn’t just about food. Another key area of consideration for vegetarian consumers is the suitability of body and skincare products – something that is not always clear from the ingredient list. We would like to award the company that offers the best range of vegetarian body or skincare products that are entirely vegetarian, so please tell us whose products you enjoy and trust.

Why do some manufacturers use non-veggie colouring? Why do some foods unnecessarily contain gelatine or meat stock? Why do certain brands of alcohol insist on using isinglass? Please nominate your most wanted product that could be veggie with only the tiniest change to the recipe.