Vegetarian “Bushtucker Challenge” Accepted by Conservationist
To celebrate National Vegetarian Week, which runs this year from the 24th – 30th May 2010, Wild Futures is enlisting people to “Go Veggie” for the week and gain sponsorship for doing so. People taking up the challenge include Keith Thompson, who is based in Lilongwe Wildlife Centre in Malawi, Africa, where he works with ex-Sanctuary keeper, Andrea Donaldson, in the reintroduction of baboons and vervet monkeys into the wild as part of a programme funded by the Born Free Foundation.
The week will be a true challenge for keen fisherman, Keith, who says:
“I am 60km from the nearest shop and, due to the heat, keeping fruit and vegetables fresh in this environment is almost impossible therefore locally reared chicken and fresh fish form the basis of my daily diet.”
Keith can be sponsored by visiting www.justgiving.com/vegetarian-keith.
The environmental benefit of a vegetarian diet has been recognised for many years but the issue came to the international fore in 2008, when Dr Rajendra Pachauri, the Chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, stated:
“A vegan living for 70 years will pump an average of 100 tons less CO2 into the atmosphere than someone eating meat and dairy products.”
Said Matt Nott, Education Officer at the Wild Futures Monkey Sanctuary:
“As an organisation, we hope to encourage people to be more open to a vegetarian diet. We make no criticisms of those who choose to make meat part of their daily intake, but would like to plant the seed that by replacing even the odd meal with a vegetarian option can be both healthy and delicious and, importantly, can help to reduce your impact on the environment.”
Visitors to the Monkey Sanctuary café during the week will be treated to free veggie burgers[1] as part of a promotion to raise awareness of the benefits of a vegetarian diet as a sustainable and environmentally-friendly practice. The Monkey Sanctuary’s award-winning café serves only vegetarian food in line with the charity’s aims and objectives to adhere to sustainable practices in all areas of its work. The free burgers will be offered to those giving the password “Beanies” during vegetarian week.
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The Monkey Sanctuary Information
Telephone: 01503 262 532
Opening Times:
11.00am – 4.30pm every Sunday – Thursday (closed Friday and Saturday)
From 28th March – 30th September 2010 (plus October half-term)
Wild Futures (Charity reg. No. 1102532) is an educational and environmental charity promoting the welfare and conservation of primates, and working to end the abuses of primates in captivity. Its flagship project, The Monkey Sanctuary, in Cornwall, is home to victims of the primate pet trade. Drawing on over 40 years of primate expertise, Wild Futures acts as an advisory body to sanctuaries and conservation organisations in the UK and overseas and advises DEFRA on UK animal welfare legislation.
For more information or further pictures contact:
Liz Tyson, Public Relations and Communication Manager
www.wildfutures.org +44 (0) 1503 262 532
[1] While stocks last. Burgers kindly provided by Beanies. 1 per customer.