Foodback: the Bosher family

In order to improve her family’s health, Susan Bosher from Amersham began supporting Meat Free Monday in 2018. As time went by, she delved into the environmental impact she and her family were having. Here’s Susan’s story …

“I came across the Meat Free Monday hashtag on Twitter a few years ago and decided to adopt it mainly to have a healthier diet that included more vegetables.

It wasn’t until a couple of years later that I realised the consequences of meat-eating to the environment.

When we started, there was a collective groan from my husband and two sons who were reluctant to make the change. But I soon had comments like ‘not bad’ and ‘this is quite nice’. However, they would still often say ‘this would be even better with chicken’ or similar!

After a couple of months, for some reason I lost track of what day it was and cooked meat on a Monday. To my surprise, dinner was met with slight disappointment and comments of ‘Oh, isn’t it Meat Free Monday today?’ So the doubters had been converted and began to enjoy Meat Free Mondays.

Of course, in time they also began to become more aware of the environmental implications of meat-eating and although they wouldn’t give up meat in the foreseeable future, they are definitely enjoying vegetarian/vegan meals more now than ever before. I do tell family and friends about what my family are doing with the hope that we would inspire others to think more about the planet.”

What meals do you have on a typical Meat Free Monday?

“We love lentil or chickpea dishes with spices like coriander and cumin with sweet potatoes and spinach or kale.”

What resources (cookbooks/social media pages/websites) have you found useful?

“I get my recipes from the internet, googling the vegetables that I have or that I fancy cooking that day, then search for recipes that I like the sound of. I use the Meat Free Monday website, the Empower to Cook Food Citizens Cookbook and #meatfreemonday on Twitter.”

Any tips for others considering Meat Free Monday?

“For someone considering trying to adopt Meat Free Monday, I would recommend to just start with one meal and if you don’t want to or can’t follow up every week just taking that first step is important. Once you’ve cooked one meat free meal it becomes easier and your repertoire grows over time. I bookmark all the recipes that I like and keep them all together in a file on my phone so that they’re easily accessible when I’m out food shopping.

Giving up meat just one day a week makes a difference and I’m glad that our family have been able to adapt to this change. I even find myself making meat free choices sometimes when eating out now which I would never have considered a couple of years ago.”