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Awesome of the day: One of Sweden’s Biggest Festivals Decides To Only Serve Veggie Food

“Way Out West has always had an environmental focus. It’s close to our hearts and we always want to be better. In the research out there, food is the biggest factor that affects the environment around us and meat is the worst thing of all for the earth. A lot of people think it is just about the conditions of the animals and public health but the fact is that it’s just as much about wasting resources and polluting the earth.

The food we eat and throw away stands for 25% of the average Swede’s climate foot print. We have to do something, and we’re the ones who decide what to eat.

At Way Out West 2012 we will only be serving vegetarian food. This means that all food for audience, artists and staff will be vegetarian. If you want to eat a bratwurst once you’ve left the festival, that’s your call. But during the festival in Slottsskogen that option doesn’t exist. We’re not trying to force people to not eat meat but if we can affect climate change even if it’s just for a few days, we will. We want to erase the myth that veggie food isn’t tasty, that it isn’t filling. We want to challenge the idea that meat is norm, vegetarian is exception.

This festival wants to push discussion forward. We like being the first ones to do something. This year’s festival is one for the history books and we’re doing it together. We’re doing something different and new. No one wants to ram a change of eating habits down your throat - just see Way Out West 2012 as a break for a few days.

You could think a few days of just vegetarian food doesn’t help fight climate change. But it does, we’re expecting far fewer emissions and waste due to this and it affects the whole festival’s carbon foot print. If we also get some of our festival-goers to reduce their meat intake for the rest of the year, we could go really, really far”

About Way Out West: It’s a festival outside of Gothenburg with an audience of about 25 000. Some of the biggest acts performing this year is Kraftwerk, Blur, Frank Ocean, Bon Iver, OFWGKTA, Florence + The Machine, Feist, First Aid Kit, The Black Keys and Hot Chip.