Published at 09:08, Monday, 31 October 2011

I NOTICE from this week’s paper that discrimination against people’s eating habits is alive and well and flourishing in Hexham.

The advert from Hexham Golf Club implies that if you are not a meat eater, you are not welcome. As a vegetarian, this is an attitude I find all over the town.

Very few hotels, pubs or restaurants in Hexham welcome people like me and my wife.

The only places where we can be confident of being treated like ordinary human beings, as far as food is concerned, are the Indian and Italian restaurants.

In most of the cafes it is also usually possible to get non-meat snacks and light lunches.

I find the worst discrimination often comes from the ‘award-winning’ venues. Usually they don’t advertise any vegetarian options on their menus at all.

Occasionally, they might have a token option – but with no choice. Sometimes, they might state, in very small print, that a vegetarian option is available, but there is no detail as to what it might contain.

The result of this blatant discrimination is that my wife and I rarely eat out in Hexham. We take our business elsewhere.

In fact, I tell other vegetarians not to come here at all because the town is so hostile to people who do not eat meat, fish or poultry.

I'm not surprised that Hexham is struggling economically.

With this amount of discrimination going on, it is clear things will not improve until there is a fundamental change of attitudes.

PETER ARNOLD,

Hexham

Published by http://www.hexhamcourant.co.uk