ASPEN, COLORADO, June 16, 2011 (NY Times): A new nationwide pro-veggie effort, aimed at persuading people to go meatless at least one day a week — has been embraced here more than in any other city in America. At least 20 institutions and restaurants are offering vegetarian choices on Mondays under a plan announced this month.
Aspen Valley Hospital began boosting vegetarian choices several years ago in its food services. This month, the cardiac rehabilitation unit, where 20 percent to 30 percent of the patients are second-homers, began urging patients to patronize Meatless Monday restaurants in town. The public school system also embraced Meatless Monday two years ago.
The ambition and scale of the wider restaurant effort for Meatless Monday, which started on June 6, has made Aspen “the nation’s first true Meatless Monday community,” said the Meatless Monday campaign, a national effort in association with the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health.