Vegetarian Times Goes Green

Vegetarian Times' decision to do a little playing with their name is incredible intriguing. According to WRAL.com VT is experimenting with the name Greens for its veggie-focused glossy:

Vegetarian Times magazine may be going even greener. The 33-year-old bastion of meatless cooking is considering changing its name to Greens, a move editor-in-chief Elizabeth Turner says is aimed at broadening the appeal of the magazine.

She says only about half the magazine's readers are vegetarians; the rest only dabble with meatless cuisine. The magazine wants to see how many other dabblers could be attracted with a new name. But Turner says that's all that will change.

"The mission of the magazine would not change, but we thought we might reach more people and get more people excited about eating low on the food chain," she says.

To test the new name, the magazine is printing two versions of the newsstand copies of the September, October and November/December issues, some with the traditional Vegetarian Times logo, others with Greens.   ...   The magazine's content also is getting an eco overhaul. It will regularly offer tips to help readers make ecologically sustainable choices and regularly highlight eco-friendly products with its "Greenie Award."

With "green" being the most hyped buzz word of the moment, one has to wonder if VT editors are just jumping on the trendy train. But I think that the move is one that came about for different reasons. The word "vegetarian" carries with it some negative connotations in some parts of our society. Discussions about meatless eating can turn very heated in a short amount of time, with omnivores and herbivores debating everything from health to animal rights. I think that VT's decision to toy with the name Greens allows them to separate themselves from a term that carries with it a stigma--be it deserved or not.

What do you think about Vegetarian Times' possible name change?

Comments

[Erica Lonesome]

I'm an avid Veg Times reader. I buy it mostly for the recipes because they are easy and delicious. I am an on again off again veg but it's a lot easier to be "on again" with this magazine. I just bought the Nov/Dec issue and it was very confusing to me. I was looking all over for my magazine and all I saw was Greens. It makes me think of spinach. I like spinach but not as the name of a magazine. The words "from the makers of Vegetarian Times" are so small that you have to actually pick up the magazine before you can read them. I would like it if they went back to the old name.

[noell]

I'm glad I found this because I subscribe to VT and almost bought this at the store thinking it was a fall supplement, that would have been a $6 waste...

[Susan]

Y'know, it took me nearly two months to even figure out that "Greens" was indeed, Vegetarian Times. I buy my copies from the newsstand--yes, I know there's monetary savings by subscribing, but I can get my copy of VT two weeks earlier by purchasing off the shelf; but that's another story--I miss the VT name.

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[Dentists McKinney]

AWESOME! I’m constantly searching for vegetarian-related blogs and I stumbled your site. I found your blog on Google and read a few of your other posts. I just added you to my Google News Reader. Keep up the good work! Look forward to reading more from you in the future.

- Shane