Following a four-week assessment procedure, 72% of non-abstaining citizens remained in favour of the movement. The vote was kept in reaction to lobbying from the Plant-Based Universities campaign, which is supported by Animal Rebellion (a spin-off of ecological group Extinction Rebellion).
“It’s great that Cambridge students’ union has passed our motion”
The movement does not guarantee that Cambridge’s catering services will get rid of animal items entirely, as choices about menus are made by the university instead of the trainees’ union. The vote likewise does not use to the university’s colleges, though Plant-Based Universities Cambridge said it supplied “an extremely strong mandate for colleges to begin transitioning to 100% plant-based menus”.
But while the result is presently unpredictable, the university formerly consented to get rid of beef and lamb from menus in 2016, recommending that it might be open to making more modifications.
Plant-based at universities
Cambridge is the 2nd UK university to elect completely plant-based menus, after Scotland’s Stirling University likewise enacted favour last November. Half of meal alternatives at Stirling’s trainee’s union will be plant-based by the next scholastic year, and this will increase to 100% by 2025.
In the United States, catering huge Sodexo has actually partnered with the Humane Society to make 42% of the meals it serves at universities plant-based by 2025. The business decided after determining that most of its supply carbon emissions stem from the purchase of animal-based foods.
“It’s great that Cambridge students’ union has passed our motion to work with the university to implement a just and sustainable plant-based catering system,” said William Smith from Plant-Based Universities Cambridge. “By removing animal products from its menus, the university could significantly reduce its environmental impact and showcase to the world its commitment to sustainability.”
