How could we implement vegetarian listings on menus?

I’m putting this question in General, because I don’t need or want any rude/snarky/vicious comments about vegetarians or vegans. Judgments about vegetarians and vegans can be discussed on another Q. This Q is just about ideas regarding the implementation of indicators on menus, that’s all. If you are interested in helping me with this Q, I’d be most appreciative. If you don’t have anything useful to add, please move on to the next Q, or ask another Q yourself. Thank you all, in advance : )

I’m not suggesting any kind of governmental mandates, I’m just wishing, but not expecting, that restaurants would voluntarily indicate whether their dish is vegetarian or vegan. Kind of like how some restaurants currently list their dishes as heart healthy with a little heart symbol.

It would be nice if a meal that was actually vegetarian (no meat, fish, fowl, gelatin, lard, carmine, etc.) had a V next to it. If the meal was actually vegan (no meat, fish, fowl, gelatin, carmine, eggs, dairy, honey, or non-vegan sugar, and no products containing or involving the use of animal products) that it would have a VG next to it.

It might take a little bit of education, just to make sure everybody was on the same page as to what exactly constitutes vegetarian and vegan, but once those guidelines were established, I think this would be a lovely idea. It would make life a little easier for everyone, those that are choosing to eat vegetarian and/or vegan meals, and those folks who are preparing those meals and having to describe what is in (or not in) those meals.

The restaurateurs, and the menu designers, could have “cheat sheets” to figure out how to label their dishes. Once these ideas became common knowledge to the restaurateurs and the diners, these markings and symbols would simply be nice reminders, just like the little heart symbols. I don’t think this would be any harder, or any more inconvenient, than listing the calorie counts and nutritional values that some restaurants give, voluntarily.

I’d like to do away with the cutesy terms flexitarian and pescatatian. These two terms really don’t mean anything other than the fact that these folks actually do eat meat or fish, maybe just not all that often, which is fine, but these terms can be very confusing for people that are trying to be helpful and trying to figure out what can and cannot (or if you prefer will and will not) be eaten by vegetarians and vegans.

Just to reiterate, I’m putting this question in General, because I don’t need or want any rude/snarky/vicious comments about vegetarians or vegans. Judgments about vegetarians and vegans can be discussed on another Q. This Q is just about ideas regarding implementing indicators on menus, that’s all.

Thanks everybody.