We know October is a busy month events-wise, but trust us, drop every other challenge and follow this. We have one contest coming up for you that will surely earn you social brownie points (and also potentially a weekend break at the Radisson Blu Resort in St Julians).
The Malta Meat Free Week is the brainchild of Darryl Grima, whose passions for animal rights, climate change and biodiversity loss saw him curate himself a vegetarian lifestyle over the span of three decades. Two years ago, he casually set up VeggyMalta to share his experience and bridge the gap between industry and consumer, and his venture is expanding at the speed of light.
“One of the things I realised is that whilst there is growing support and awareness, for many, switching to a plant-based diet is very hard”, Darryl explains. “Change needs to be done in small doable steps and that is how the Malta Meat Free Week came about – to help people make the necessary changes towards a hassle-free transition into a plant-based diet”.
Darryl has faith in the doability of the challenge, especially for those already familiar with a diet pattern. “It is more than possible to reduce and eventually remove meat products from your life. Tasty healthy food is a concrete reality,” he enthuses. Darryl also mentions the MMFW website, which is fully geared with recipes to inspire the curious-yet-still-slightly-sceptical ones among us.
Markets and big-chain stores are also being involved in this challenge but Darryl admits this process is more arduous since meat is sold on the premises. “We would also like companies and businesses to take up the challenge as a group/team”, Darryl continues. To participate, you just need to post pictures of your veggie meals on social media between the 6th and 13th October. You must tag the page if you’re posting on Facebook, as well as adding the hashtag #maltameatfreeweek. Instagram-dominant users can also participate by tagging their food snaps with #mmfw.
So, are you up for the challenge? I know I am.