NATIONAL Vegetarian Week next week should interest even more of us this year. An increasing number of people are giving up eating meat since the scares over BSE and the recent foot-and-mouth outbreak, and 29 per cent of people, in a National Consumer Council survey, said they had stopped eating meat.

Being a vegetarian even ten or 20 years ago wasn't easy, as there were very few short cuts available and the general public taste was definitely carnivorous. Meals in restaurants and private homes revolved heavily around meat. Vegetarian products were few and far between and the idea of a meat-free meal seemed more penance than pleasure.

Not any more. Our eating habits have changed. Many of us have changed to a lighter way of eating that relies less heavily on meat, certainly on red meat. We've seen the rise of the "demi-veg" - people who through choice of taste eat very little meat.

And now shop shelves groan with alternative products. Not just tofu, soya and vegetable versions of meat products, but a whole new way of cooking in which the lack of meat is almost incidental. But some shelves groan more heavily than others.

We chose busy mornings when the shelves were fully stocked to see what the major supermarkets have to offer.

ASDA

Sandwiches: Not an exciting choice, but reasonable. Plenty of cheese - different varieties named instead of being anonymous mousetrap - with different combinations of filling.

Ready Meals: Very little on offer. Shelves were packed on Friday morning but only small selection of veggie meals and all the pasta dishes we saw contained meat. The only pre-packed vegetarian Indian options were side dishes. The fresh counter did better with vegetable tikkas and veggie pizzas.

We liked: Broccoli mornay £1.49 for 454g. Broccoli in a tomato and cheese sauce. Tasty and filling. No meat bangers £1.24 for six (280g). Made with soya protein. Quite tasty, though could have been juicier.

Veggie verdict:The basics are there but could try harder.

CO-OP

Sandwiches: Not too adventurous but a reasonable selection.

Ready Meals: Good range of veggie pizzas, including some organic and some quiches. Curries seemed a bit limited, but good range of pasta meals, including low-fat versions. Also some excellent vegetarian soups with interesting, delicate flavours.

We liked: Their honesty in labelling. For some people, vegetarianism is about a lot more than not eating meat. The Co-op labels its wines for vegetarians. (And also, bless them, for those allergic to sulphur). It labels the source of its eggs, free-range or wherever. So, for instance, the lasagne lists "egg white (from caged hens) and vegetarian cheddar cheese made using a vegetarian rennet derived from a genetically modified micro-organism". That is real information. Away from the food counter, they label their film as containing gelatine and use alginate instead of gelatin in their body wash.

This sort of labelling makes life a lot easier for people who care. Congratulations to the Co-op for doing it and when are all the others going to do the same?

MARKS & SPENCER

Sandwiches: Brilliant - free-range egg, different sorts of cheese, vegetable salads. Lots of really interesting combinations.

Ready Meals: Amazing choice. We counted seven different vegetarian quiches, exciting enough even for real men. Pasta, pizzas and curries in abundance, including unusual versions such as asparagus lasagne, veggie versions of stodgy favourites like vegetable casserole with herb dumplings, roast onion and mushroom pudding. Also innovative food such as cherry tomato and aubergine tartlet. Not cheap but delicious.

We liked: Everything. (Okay, that's a bit indiscriminate and we're greedy, but that's how it was)

Veggie verdict: M&S might have lost its way in womenswear, but after a bit of a humdrum spell the food hall is getting its direction back, especially in innovative vegetarian food. Forget the elastic waisted polyester and head for the goat's cheese tartlets. You might never want to eat meat again.

MORRISONS

Sandwiches: Bit disappointing. Lots of meat and fishy sandwiches looking appetising but for veggies there seemed to be little more than anonymous cheese salad. Yawn.

Ready Meals: Decent choice. Veggie lasagnes, curries, chillies, pizzas. Roasted veg cannelloni, various veg bakes. Good range of Quorn ready meals and Cauldron Foods range, such as meat-free sausages, etc.

We liked: Vegetable chilli 99p for 300g. Vegetable bake - green beans, cauliflower, carrots, potatoes in cheese sauce. £1.29 for 340g.

Veggie verdict: Decent choice. You don't feel like a second-class citizen.

SAFEWAY

Sandwiches: Very limited range altogether, but some interesting veggie versions.

Ready meals: Good choice of pizzas, pastas and quiches. Mushroom risottos, vegetable bakes. Curries a bit more limited. Good range of Quorn and Cauldron Foods.

We liked: Luxury roasted vegetable lasagne £1.99 for 400g. Wensleydale and carrot chutney sandwich on oatmeal bread £1.40.

Veggie Verdict: Veggies wouldn't starve here.

SAINSBURY'S

Sandwiches: Limited, but then overall their sandwiches are limited as up here their stores don't tend to cater too much for the lunchtime trade.

Ready Meals: Excellent unless you fancy curry. Apart from Bombay potatoes and a vegetable jalfrezi, all the pre-packed curries contained meat. Each of the Takeaway packs contained one veg and one meat portion. All the curries on the fresh counter contained chicken. So much for choice. However, there was an excellent range of interesting-looking pizzas, including garlic mushroom, Mediterranean veg, spinach and ricotta, plenty of quiches, such as spinach and gruyere, leek, cheese and chive. Plenty of Quorn and Cauldron Foods products and some interesting pasta dishes.

We liked: Focaccia goat's cheese and caramelised onion pizza £2.99 for 372g. Excellent focaccia (hand-stretched, though I can't say we noticed that), topped with tangy goat's cheese, sweet onions, mascarpone cheese and marinated courgette. Interesting, innovative and delicious.

Veggie Verdict: Overall, very good, but maybe their vegetarian specialist just doesn't like curry.

TESCO

Sandwiches: Interesting variety, not just in straightforward sandwiches, but in flat bread wraps and baguettes.

Ready meals: Good range of quiches, especially in the Finest range, such as roasted vegetable tart and mushroom tart. Reasonable curries - including mushroom and spinach - and plenty of pasta meals.

We liked: Goat's cheese and red pepper quiche (£1.99) and the spinach and ricotta cannelloni (£1.49). We suspect that somewhere out there is a factory that makes nothing but tanker loads of all-purpose spinach and ricotta filling. But this was one of the better versions of it.

Veggie Verdict:Good basics with occasional real treats.

Apart from the supermarkets' own products, two of the most popular brands of veggie foods are made by Quorn and Cauldron Foods. Quorn is actually a sort of mushroom, full of protein and easily adapted to all sorts of shapes and uses. Especially useful if your children want the same sort of food as their friends.

QUORN FAJITAS £3.49

Instead of bits of chicken, you get your protein from Quorn. Some of the Quorn recipes work well, others don't (notably their version of sliced ham). This was one of the successes - good texture and excellent taste.

CAULDRON FOODS

Organic leek, cheese and mushroom nut roast £2.09 for 285g

A new generation of nut roasts with really interesting flavours. Cauldron Foods make a wide range of sausages, roasts, ethnic foods such as felafel and Mexican bondegas, delicious pates. Details on www.cauldronfoods.co.uk

BOUQUET OF THE WEEK will be back next week. To nominate a helpful shop assistant, kind neighbour or efficient company, just write to Bouquet of the Week, Sharon Griffiths, The Northern Echo, Priestgate, Darlington, DL1 1NF. Each week the person nominated in our main letter gets a real bouquet of flowers or a box of posh chocs.