Stefano Contin, President of Societá Vegetariana, Via Chiara 5, 20155 Milan, Italy, Tel/Fax: +39 2 33001176

In March 1996 a new vegetarian society, called Società Vegetariana, was founded in Italy with the aim of making people aware of what vegetarianism is.

The first step taken to set up a network connecting people is the bulletin, that collects reports from Italian and international newspapers, with articles written by members of the society, and also answering letters and requests for information sent in by members from all over Italy.

In fact, Società Vegetariana has subsidiary groups all over the country: they are active on their own account, but agree to collaborate on practical measures to be taken together, such as distribution of material and leaflets to the general public, taking part in demonstrations against animal cruelty, among other things. At the present moment, Società Vegetariana is drawing up its ‘ Manifesto’: a summary of the ethics and philosophy held by the society and by vegetarians everywhere.

Although Italian cuisine offers plenty of choice to vegetarians in this country, the media is often strongly influenced by the meat trade, and frequently misleads the public.

In Italy, meat consumption is quite high: doctors and dieticians still, in an outmoded way, say it is necessary for health. The job that we, in the Società Vegetariana, have got to do is to explode this old-fashioned myth, and to give as much space as possible to our members to communicate and to express themselves.