Truth can be stranger than fiction. Readers (especially from other countries), please comment and tell us what school lunches are like where you live.

So here’s a true tale of serendipity. I spent two days in Lisbon before flying back to the States, and it was a sad affair. Instead of the planned sightseeing and city tours, I was laid up in the hotel for most of that time. Using crutches is hard enough, but using crutches on sidewalks with centuries-old cobblestones is even more of a challenge. I stayed in our hotel’s lounge while my cousin went out to see the city sights. She came back and reported that there was one restaurant close to the hotel, and she thought it was near enough that I could make it on crutches. “I don’t know what kind of restaurant it is and whether they have anything for you though,” she said.

We decided to try it. After a herculean effort on my part, we made it to the restaurant door. What kind of restaurant was it?

I laughed out loud. And enjoyed a heaping plate from the buffet:

When in Lisbon, check out Green Pepper at 14 Avenida José Malhoa. They made my day.

But this is interesting: author Bonnie Farmer (a vegetarian and registered dietitian) discusses whether people can get enough protein from plant-based diets. Although vegetarians in the study had lower protein intakes than the intakes of non-vegetarians, they were not lower than recommended amounts for adults. That’s important info for anyone who claims they can’t embrace a plant-based diet because they won’t get enough protein. Vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains, and legumes all contain protein. And Farmer also points out that some studies show that vegans have higher iron intakes than both non-vegetarians and vegetarians.

homemade vanilla extract: the finished product

Back in January, we showed you how to make homemade vanilla extract. Here’s the finished product. Wish we could share the amazing aroma with you.

Food labeling in India: The green image denotes a product without animal ingredients, while the image on the right labels products containing animal ingredients. Image courtesy of Kotra and the Wikimedia Commons.

A reader named Pradeep wrote to tell us about India’s veg-friendly food-labeling system, in which a green dot on a product means it does not contain any animal ingredients. Pradeep is now in the United States and has difficulty identifying veg products. He has to examine food labels and determine whether unfamiliar ingredients might be derived from animals.

And it’s no wonder. Here’s a little background for those who may not be aware of how veg food labeling works in the United States (hint: it’s much different from India’s system). The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) Food Labeling Guide only addresses animal products in the food allergen section, and the FDA passes the buck by saying: “We recommend that producers of meat products, poultry products, and egg products, which are regulated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), contact appropriate USDA agency staff regarding the labeling of such products.” A search through the bewildering maze of the USDA’s Web site doesn’t shed much light on that agency’s stance on labeling.

Enter the Vegetarian Resource Group (VRG), which provided a thoroughly researched overview of the labeling situation in 2006, concluding, “There is no federal regulation of the word ‘vegetarian’ or ‘vegan’ in the United States.” So although food products in the United States lack a federal label that would indicate products containing animal ingredients, individual organizations are stepping up to the plate to address the issue. The Vegetarian Label Fact Table in the VRG’s article compares these labels and what each might indicate.

If anyone is interested in working with Pradeep on a labeling campaign in the United States, contact us and we’ll forward your info to him. In the meantime, keep reading those labels, and share your shopping strategies with us.