Vegan/Vegetarian Food Options at Ryerson University

As many students avoid eating animal products for ethical, environmental, and dietary reasons.

As many more students are choosing to skip meat-based meals altogether for health concerns, such as the mad cow scare, avian flu or salmonella poisoning.

As the vegetarian population is rapidly growing throughout our society, with more than 25 percent of the population opting out of meat-based meals, as meat-avoiders, choisetarians, vegetarians, fruitarians, vegans or Janists.

As young womyn, ages 15-25, are the group who most often to eliminate meat from their diet these being a large segment of our university population.

As in Canada, more than 6 million people between 20 to 64 years old are overweight and another 2.8 million are obese.

As the resposiblity and opportunity to combat this epidemic lies on Ryerson University as a leading Canadian university, by providing healthy, nutritious and accessible food.

As the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (in the U.S.) has provided scientific evidence showing that vegetarian and vegan foods promote good health as well as help promote a healthy weight and lifestyles

As Ryerson University as an institution would no doubt support holistic and inclusive dietary practices for its students and not deny them the right to access nutritional food options

As many racialized global majority peoples suffer from lactose-intolerance, and as this demographic constitutes a large part of the Ryerson Universtiy population.

As providing vegan options meets the needs of lactose-intolerant or allergic students, as well as those others that opt not to consume animal products or participate in animal cruelty.

As Aramark (our prison-food provider) has provided soy or other vegan based meat or cheese alternatives at other higher learning intstitutions in response to the rise in dietary concerns.

As Aramark, in a recently published (U.S) nationwide survey of over 100,000 college students, stated that nearly a quarter of the students asked said finding vegan meals on campus was important to them.


Be it resolved, that we the undersigned, ask and demand of you, Ryerson University to move forward on the introduction and mainstreaming of more, affordable, nutritious, non-meat based healthy food options,

because 'fries are not a vegetable'

and the only salads with dark greens have some dead animal in them.

Be it further resolved, that we the undersigned, ask and demand of you, Ryerson University, that you do so in a timely, expedient and cncerted way, for the health and future of the ALL of the students (and community members) at Ryerson University, including staff, faculty, admin, and community members at large.