SIR Paul McCartney’s daughter Mary talks about why she champions a meat-free lifestyle, and her pride in her mum and the pioneering veggie food range she created 25 years ago

Mary McCartney has plenty to be proud of.

There’s her acclaimed photographic career and popular cookbooks, and her former Beatle legend dad, and her four sons.

But if all that wasn’t enough, Sir Paul McCartney’s daughter is also proud to be vegetarian – and even prouder that her pioneering mum Linda started her own veggie food range when such things were unheard of.

A quarter of a century later, Linda McCartney Foods is a major part of a burgeoning UK vegetarian food market that has almost quadrupled since the range was launched.

Mary is rightfully proud of Linda’s achievements.

“She didn’t even realise what a food revolutionary she was,” says Mary proudly. “Vegetarian food ranges are quite mainstream now, but when she started, it was completely unheard of to have a range like that.

“I think we’re all quite proud of it, and we want to work to ensure it carries on her ethics.”

As part of her determination to further promote meat-free living, Mary started the Meat Free Monday campaign with her father and sister, fashion designer Stella McCartney, in 2009.

The campaign encourages people to forgo meat at least one day a week, both to help the environment and improve health.

An Oxford University study found that eating meat no more than three times a week could prevent 31,000 deaths from heart disease, 9,000 deaths from cancer and 5,000 deaths from stroke.

And it seems the campaign is striking a chord with the British public, as research shows 59 percent of Brits want to reduce their meat intake, with the majority citing health reasons as their greatest motivation.

While Mary agrees that being vegetarian can be a healthy option, she’s aware that meat-free doesn’t necessarily equate to healthy - chocolate, saturated fats and alcohol can all be consumed by vegetarians, after all.

She says she’s not worried about her own health because she feels good and knows she eats a balanced diet, but also stresses that vegetarians, just like meat-eaters, need to be aware of what they’re putting into their bodies.

“Sometimes people say they were vegetarian, but then they got really ill and their doctor told them they had to start eating meat,” she says.

“But were they eating properly, or were they just eating salads and bread?

“You’re responsible for eating what’s good for you, and you’ve got to get a balance or you’ll be lacking in vitamins and minerals.

“You need to think, ‘What have I eaten today that’ll give me the things I need?’”

Mary and her family are currently highlighting the 25th anniversary of Linda McCartney Foods, for which they’ve provided full creative support and ideas since the business was sold in 2000.

She says: “Everybody is very conscious that the food has my mum’s name attached to it, so we’re very keen to be involved and very passionate about it because we want to carry on what she started.”

For more on Meat Free Monday, readers can visit Mary and Stella’s website at meatfreemondays.com