Lacto-ovo vegetarianism

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A lacto-ovo vegetarian (also known as ovo-lacto vegetarian, but sometimes incorrectly referred to as octo-lacto vegetarian, as "octo" means eight) is a vegetarian who is willing to consume dairy products (i.e. milk and its derivatives, like cheese, butter, or yogurt) and eggs. Lacto means "milk" and ovo means "egg".

In the Western world lacto-ovo vegetarians are the most common type of vegetarian. Generally speaking, when one uses the term vegetarian a lacto-ovo vegetarian is assumed. Lacto-ovo vegetarians are well-catered to in restaurants and shops, especially in Europe and metropolitan cities in North America.

Among lacto-ovo vegetarians who are motivated by ethical reasons, it is a common practice to avoid fertilized eggs as well as caviar because both involve the killing of beings.

A lacto-ovo vegetarian doesn't eat poultry, meat or fish. However, cross-culturally, different cultures recognize vegetarianism differently. For example, there are Japanese and Indian vegetarians who consider fish to be vegetarian.

In contrast, a vegetarian who consumes no animal products is called a vegan.

In the airline industry a lacto-ovo vegetarian meal is known by the acronym VLML.

---