IN RESPONSE to the recent column by Dorset County Show Secretary Will Hyde, I wanted to focus on the word ‘choice’ when it comes to the food we eat.

I do not have choice. I would love to eat food containing wheat and barley but in doing so, I would be unwell. I have Coeliac Disease and management means staying on a gluten free diet for life. I know many others who have an allergy to lactose or dairy, so consuming milk or cheese would make them ill.

It is an incredulous statement to say ‘cheese will not kill you’. It might not but other food could. We have all seen the headlines where consuming a particular food has ended someone’s life abruptly and tragically. Restaurants and supermarkets place huge importance on dietary requirements and labelling for that very reason.

I agree in eating a well-balanced diet and we can all do this whatever our dietary requirement, eg whether we are vegan, vegetarian, gluten free, dairy free or lactose free. We all have choice in what we eat and that should be respected.

Fiona Napier

Weymouth

Click here to read Will Hyde's column, 'Enough is enough over veganism'