Oxfordshire County Council has been caught up in a hypocrisy row over its vegan menu. The council banned all meat,  dairy and eggs from catering at its events, citing climate change.

Now the Liberal Democrat council has admitted serving imported oranges and bananas at council lunches, despite telling others to reduce their “food miles”, a concept aiming to keep produce local to benefit the environment.

The Countryside Alliance has opposed Oxfordshire County Council's plant-based push from the start. 

In 2022, after the council had voted through the measures to provide entirely plant-based food at meetings and civic events, the Alliance stood with local farmers and council opposition members in criticising the council's leadership.

A subsequent investigation launched by the Countryside Alliance found that not only did the free vegan lunches for councillors cost the taxpayer more than the conventional lunches they had previously had, but also that the council had no clue where the food on offer had been sourced from, raising doubts about the carbon footprint from field to plate.

Further scandal was caused when it was revealed one Liberal Democrat councillor, who voted twice in favour of the vegan meals, was caught smuggling dairy milk into meetings and sharing it with colleagues. 

The recent controversy comes despite the council contributing to the Oxfordshire Food Strategy, which call for “reduced food miles” in the county.

A spokesman for the council stated:

“While we do try to source food locally there have been occasions, particularly in the winter months, when food such as oranges and bananas have been sourced from further afield. All other fruit is British-grown.

“We need to balance sustainability against the wish to serve councillors a balanced menu which is nutritious and healthy.

“Oranges and bananas are bought in small quantities from local shops. Such shops would source these oranges and bananas from various locations.”

Following concerns being raised that it was breaching its environmental guidelines, the council has been forced to review its plant-based menu.

The Countryside Alliance has called on the council to completely reverse its ban on meat.

Mo Metcalf-Fisher, Director of External Affairs, said:

“It never made sense to ban grass-fed beef from a farm up the road, to only source fruit from South America, for example.

“British meat is vastly sustainable and the answer to cutting emissions lies with supporting and promoting our farmers and their produce, not policing what people eat.

“Oxfordshire’s leadership should right the wrongs of the past, mend their relationship with local farmers, and reverse this illogical meat ban as swiftly as possible.”

Back in 2021, the meat and dairy ban was passed by the council passed after being submitted by Ian Middleton, a Green party councillor, because it was “in the interest of the health of our planet and the health of our people”.

Photos of the first vegan lunch posted by Cllr Middleton on X showed a spread of fruit, including melon, mango, kiwi and pomegranate, alongside sandwiches, pastries and chocolate cake.

This decision caused outrage among farmers, led by Jeremy Clarkson, who said: “It’s the principle of it. You can’t dictate. You might be a vegetarian but you can’t make everyone else a vegetarian just because you are.”

Bethia Thomas, a Lib Dem councillor, called on the council to rethink its catering policy at a full council meeting on Tuesday.

In a written question, she claimed “meals have not been sourced locally, and do not promote sustainability or wholly reflect the policies set out in the food strategy which the council endorses”.

She called for the council to use local produce “to reflect the county’s rural economy and our farmers’ role in food production”. About three quarters of Oxfordshire’s land is used for farming.

Liz Leffman, the council leader, said she has asked for the authority’s facilities management team to “review the current arrangements for full council lunches”.

The Countryside Alliance will continue to campaign for British farmers, local food procurement, and freedom of choice for consumers.

The original news article from the Daily Telegraph can be found here.