Sweden Opens Its First All-Vegan School

Woldorf-style educational facility Hagaskolan-Waldorfskolan recently became Sweden’s first all-vegan school. The school first opened in 2006 in Stockholm and, after it moved to the Solna municipality in 2018, transitioned its menu and ideology to be fully vegan. Now, a typical menu at Hagaskolan—which serves 185 students from ages six to 15—features dishes made with fully organic ingredients and includes Pad Thai, samosas, mac and cheese, spring rolls, hamburgers, and potato wedges, along with a selection of small dishes daily. “In addition to being the first school in Sweden (perhaps all of the Nordics) that serves a completely vegan menu, we have more music and crafts on the schedule than other schools,” Hagaskolan Principal Veronica Blixt Myrsell said. “We have a safe, family environment and visitors usually point out that there is a very warm atmosphere at the school. When the students move on, we want them to have developed into free-thinking, responsible people who can make a difference.” In addition to the school, the organization runs Vanadislundens förskola, an all-vegan daycare center in Stockholm. Stateside, California’s MUSE School—founded by Suzy Amis Cameron, wife of famed director James Cameron, who transitioned the school to be all-vegan in 2015—is currently offering international franchising opportunities to expand the concept of cruelty-free education worldwide.