I am a vegan and have been for about four years. I do not eat meat nor do I consume any dairy products. The reasons for my diet are not as important as is my right to choose to live by this diet and have others respect it, especially in a country in which food is in abundance.

Last Friday I decided to go and grab some lunch at the new cafeteria, run by SODEXHO, in the new Campus Center. Generally I have always been very cautious of eating any food here at UMB but I had seen signs all around campus promising a new level of quality and service. So I gave it a whirl.

I found very little in terms of selection for a healthy vegetarian diet, let alone a vegan diet. However I came across a pot full of soup labeled “Indian Lentil Soup.” Though everyone from India that I have ever met does not eat meat I proceeded with caution and asked the manager Mike if the soup was vegetarian. He replied “strictly vegetarian.” Who could argue with that?

I bought the soup and ate it about half way down, when alas! A piece of bacon in my soup! I went to complain and was offered my $2.00 back and a sorry, “this won’t happen again.” Really? How can I be sure? What processes does our food go through before it reaches the new cafeteria where a soup “strictly for vegetarians” is laced with bacon?

I was sick for a day and a half from eating the food, and any fellow veggie can attest to what I went through, but nonetheless something later made me even sicker to my stomach. HOW MANY VEGETARIANS ATE THAT SOUP ON FRIDAY THINKING IT WAS MEAT FREE? Beware of what you eat as always, but even more beware of where you eat. Come on SODEXHO! Let’s make this place more vegetarian friendly. It’s good for business and good for our health.

Tony [email protected]