According to the Vegetarian Society, around 4.5 percent of the UK population follow either a vegetarian or vegan diet. This equates to just over 3 million vegans and vegetarians over the age of 18 months. Care home managers who are committed to person-led care must, therefore consider how to cater for meat-free diets among their residents. Getting the balance right between healthy nutrition and delicious, tempting meals is therefore key.

This World Vegetarian Day (1 October), Care Vision has drawn up some top tips to help you navigate your way through providing excellent snacks, drinks and meals for vegans and vegetarians among your residents and staff. Don’t forget to use the nutritional monitoring and meal planning tools on your care planning software for easy tracking, scheduling and organisation.

Get the nutritional balance right

The top priority for planning meals in care homes is getting the right balance of proteins, carbohydrates and vegetable content to support healthy living. While you don’t need meat to ensure residents get everything they need, without it, you will need to look for other sources to provide the correct amounts of essential nutrients and represent all the required food groups. For example, you can find plenty of protein in nuts, seeds and legumes or beans if you need to replace dairy products in a vegan diet.

Iron, which is found in meat and important for red blood cells, is also present in pulses, dark leafy vegetables, wholemeal flour and cereals. Vitamin B12 ius harder to replicate, but can be found in fortified soy milks, tofu and selected plant-based substitute sausages and burgers, for example soy. Vegans who do not consume dairy products can find calcium in leafy vegetables, nuts and fortified cereals instead.

Eating with the eyes

We don’t just appreciate food and beverages with our mouths and taste buds. the first impression of meals and snacks is normally visual, as we take a look at what has been prepared. It is important, therefore, to make vegan and vegetarian meals aesthetically pleasing to tempt residents and encourage them to eat and drink well. Take advantage of the natural rainbow of colours that fruit and vegetables offer and. Choose foods with different textures and shapes for a varied plate. Always serve at least two vegetable portions per meal and look for variety to draw the eye.

Ease of eating

As with any meal planning for care home residents, vegan, vegetarian or otherwise, take care to think about how easy it is to eat and digest. Look for foods that are easy to chew and can be consumed in smaller portions. A loaded plate can feel overwhelming and it is often easier to ask for a second helping than work your way through too large an amount first time round. If you are serving something unusual, tell people what it is and how it will taste. Think about how easy foods are to digest and whether they can be eaten without compromising or altering the effects of any medications that residents may be on.

All in moderation

Limit the amount of unhealthy ingredients you serve up with vegetarian meals in care homes and avoid replacing meat with easy, nutritionally poor options. Too much salt, fat or sugar can have negative implications for blood pressure, weight management, and dental care. The Care Vision system can track individual residents’ diets and nutritional intakes to monitor progress and flag up areas where certain ingredients may need to be reduced or eliminated altogether. This is especially important for conditions such as diabetes that are exacerbated by excessive intake of sugar.

Meat substitutes

Sometimes, meat substitutes, such as tofu, soya protein, tempeh and other plant-based alternatives can help add interest, provide texture and support people moving away from meat for the sake of their health. This is an area where creativity can produce amazing results. Changing up traditionally meat-based dishes can be a hugely popular move.

So, switch a meat steak or burger for a Portobello mushroom, or use chickpeas and lentils instead of minced beef in a lasagne. Humas on toast can replace liver pate, while many a vegetarian enjoys traditional nut roast with all the (non-meat) trimmings over Christmas. Similarly, there are a wide variety of plant-based milk substitutes out there for vegans to enjoy with their morning cup of tea.