As I give up everything tasty in search of a greener diet I thought it was worth posting the videos for my previous challenges:

What? No Car?

Massive Waster

My colleague bit in to the burger. Crunchy ciabatta gave way to succulent minced beef topped with salad. Meat juice glistened on his lips and the smell of a flame grill teased my nostrils. I realised I was watching him intently, my watering mouth craving a similar treat. I looked down at my own lunch to find a quartered beetroot surrounded by what looked suspiciously like soggy hazelnuts. I was only two days in to my Vegan Challenge, it was going to be a long four weeks.

My meat-free month was the suggestion of a man called Tom who is so enthusiastic about vegan living that he runs a group for other fruit and nut heads, the Dulwich Vegan Society. It isn't just meat that you have to erase from your fridge though, it is everything you hold close to your culinary heart. For example no dairy means that butter is gone and it turns out that butter is in everything that is delightfully unhealthy and delicious. I am a very un-creative cook and my first concern was to find a replacement for my lunchtime chicken bagel and spag-bol dinner.  When I quizzed Tom about what he ate day-to-day his answer sounded worryingly like the food you order to accompany a steak because you 'think you should'.  "A lot of fresh fruit and veg" isn't a meal, it's a side. However brushing aside concern that I might genuinely become a bit malnourished I was intrigued to see how this would change the way I ate. Would my eyes be opened to a new variety of sustenance and break away from my normal routine or would I end up living on a months worth of beans on toast (without cheese!)?

Of course my main motivation are the green benefits.  From an eco point of view you can't deny the vegan logic. Animal protein is very 'carbon heavy' whether it's the sort you throw on the BBQ or eat on crackers. From their birth our four-legged farm friends are walking methane machines and even after they are turned into chops or cheese we consume energy keeping them fresh. A soft nosed cow on the front of the 'Go Vegan' literature was also a reminder that the conditions endured by some animals on their way to our plates are far from comfy. "Don't eat me," he seemed to say, "have a lentil and bean salad instead." I did as I was bade.

As I write I have made it to the end of my first vegan week and thanks to some careful panning and some superb cooking by my in-house-lady-friend I haven't starved. Constantly grazing on nuts and fruit keeps the hunger at bay and pulses of all shapes and sizes have replaced meat in my diet (I am yet to try the joys of tofu). The main area for adjustment seems to be inside my digestive tract as it learns to cope with this new high fibre diet but as long as my gaseous production stays below that of a growing cow I think the carbon scales for the week will tip in my favour. Hopefully my resolve will last  as long as the stack of chick-peas in my cupboard.