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To: BBC Trust, BBC Audience Services, BBC Director-General Tony Hall, Mark Linsey - Controller Entertainment Commissioning, Tessa Finch - Head of Development Television Productions.

BBC - we want an ethical cookery show!

Introduce a prime-time vegan, vegetarian and ethical cooking show with its own chefs, exciting recipes and dedicated programming content.

There are 150,000 full-time vegans in the UK and 1.2 million vegetarians who are not catered for by any cooking programmes. We are simply not watching current mainstream cooking programmes and we do not feel represented under the BBC’s policy to reflect the diversity of the UK.

Why is this important?

Recent high profile scientific evidence shows that eating a plant-based diet will help prevent worsening climate change. Animal agriculture overuses the world’s precious resources and is a significant contributor to greenhouse gases; 40-50% of farmed grain is fed to animals for the meat and dairy industry.
As advocates of an end to unnecessary cruelty to animals, vegans are leading the trend towards a compassionate, ethical and healthy diet and we ask that the BBC stop excluding us from food programming.
A fresh new cooking show will inform and help address the problems of stereotyping and cultural reference that prevent so many people from changing to a plant based diet.
Veganism is a legally protected belief under Article 9 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights. Yet, it is underrepresented and often misunderstood; generally vegans eat a much wider variety of food than meat eaters. Where is the modern celebrity chef who could introduce innovative culinary television programming that represents vegans and a better nutritional future for everyone? Look to the popularity of people like Lee Watson, author of Peace and Parsnips and five-year vegan, and Áine Carlin, Peasoup blogger and author of The New Vegan.
It is time for a distinct and vibrant ethical cooking show to take centre stage, push meat to the side and bring modern and compassionate attitudes in to the heart of the BBC.
References
1. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/no-meat-no-dairy-no-problem-is-2014-the-year-vegans-become-mainstream-9032064.html [Accessed 26 December 2015]
2. https://www.vegsoc.org/sslpage.aspx?pid=753
3.8 million mainly vegetarians in UK and, “according to the European Vegetarian Union, Britain has the third highest rate of vegetarianism in the European Union” http://www.libertygb.org.uk/v1/index.php/home/root/news-libertygb/6123-uk-vegetarians [Accessed 26 December 2015]
3. BBC RADIO 4 - Henry Dimbleby in conversation with Professor Tim Lang (Professor of Food Policy, City University London) http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06s9d26#play [Accessed 26 December 2015]
4. https://www.vegansociety.com/about-us/key-facts
Other useful information
http://www.veganuary.com
http://london.vegfest.co.uk/pr-russell-brand
5.Peasoup Blog http://www.peasoupeats.com
6.Deliciously Ella - http://www.deliciouslyella.com
https://twitter.com/DeliciouslyElla

One World, Many Lives
https://www.vegansociety.com

Updates

2017-09-02 20:15:37 +0100

We had an appeal to keep the petition going - so that's what we'll do. Please keep sharing.
Thank you supporters . . :)

2017-08-31 07:46:35 +0100

5,000 signatures reached

2017-08-29 21:58:08 +0100

A pilot TV show is being made by our friends at Just Good Food and this exciting, new campaign may be of interest to you.
https://chuffed.org/project/just-good-food-the-vegan-cooking-show-for-everyone.
This original petition will close soon. Sadly it has not reached the hoped for numbers.Thank you for signing it and for supporting cruelty-free food on TV. Please consider supporting the new venture at Just Good Food.
https://chuffed.org/project/just-good-food-the-vegan-cooking-show-for-everyone

2016-02-04 14:55:47 +0000

Addition
This is to make it clear that this is a petition for an ethical and cruelty free vegan cooking show; that is, that there can be no animal cruelty or human exploitation whatsoever in the ethos, content and production of the petitioned for programme. The principle also encompasses the use of sustainable ingredients, using the programme to highlight environmental and ethical issues surrounding resources like palm oil. This may seem a bold step to some, but someone needs to be delivering a cooking and food programme with an unequivocal ethical and cruelty free agenda. And if not the BBC who? If not now, when? But it is also a request to make a programme for the vegetarian audience-those transitioning to veganism, those seeking a healthy lifestyle, those seeking to reduce their environmental impact, the curious, and well, everyone. Vegetarianism is often veganism’s training ground and whilst a specific content programme is needed, no such distinction is needed for the audience.

2016-01-19 17:28:49 +0000

1,000 signatures reached

2016-01-19 12:35:14 +0000

500 signatures reached

2016-01-19 10:31:17 +0000

100 signatures reached

2016-01-19 10:18:00 +0000

50 signatures reached

2016-01-19 10:05:02 +0000

25 signatures reached

2016-01-19 09:48:59 +0000

10 signatures reached