A short and sweet post to share one of my Sainsbury’s finds.
This isn’t a new product but it is new to me.
Nottingham falls short
Nottingham almost got a new vegan cafe today, but pesky and harmful dairy made it on to the menu.
Such a shame.
Today marks to grand opening of a new food provider, The Bluebird Vegetarian Café. This café is operated by Adrian and Kate, two vegans who (according to their website) were able to achieve their dream of opening The Bluebird thanks to the help of family, friends and Freecycle donations.
As happy as I am for the vegan community of Nottingham to have another location to dine out on plant-based food, I am puzzled as to why a vegan of more than 20 years (Adrian) would open a cafe with dairy on the menu in 2014.
New vegan mayo hits UK
Here is some news worth celebrating.
The Financial Times (yes, the FT!) has reported the UK is about to see the launch of a vegan mayonnaise brand that has exploded in popularity across North America. To add to the excitement, the brand will be exclusively launched in Tesco stores, making it widely available to shoppers all over the country.
No sir, I don’t like it
Growing up in Australia, I was socialised into believing acts of animal exploitation were normal and a reason to celebrate. Some of my earliest memories are of animals being tortured for sport or food.
I was only a few years old as I stood in my aunty’s suburban kitchen and watched as live crabs were lowered into boiling water. My childhood memories are filled with fishing trips with my father who would press live worms onto the barbs of hooks as a tool to snare fish. Many of these fish were considered too small to warrant taking home, so were returned to the ocean with severe cuts and gashes in their mouths. Bigger sea creatures were left to experience excruciating deaths in the open air before being taken to a kitchen to serve as a meal.
My uncle kept racing dogs. Another uncle used a pump to suck living prawn-like animals from their sand homes. I have relatives who worked themselves into a near-religious frenzy when betting on animal sports. I was taken to a circus by my mother and aunty, where I was encouraged to ride a donkey. The poor creature trembled under my 9 year old weight, as my lanky legs dragged on the ground. Tears come to my eyes as I type these recollections. I feel shame and sorrow.
As a young person with world views still in development, I had no compassionate voices shaping my outlook. I was being conditioned to see animals as an unquestionable source of food, entertainment, clothing and sport.
A particularly perverse example took place in a classroom.
The Sunshine Sessions
UPDATE:
This event has been cancelled due to one of the organisers being seriously injured in an accident.
My thoughts are with them and I hope for the best.
Sean/FGV
Do you like to be inspired? Are you interested in meeting like-minded compassionate people and hearing what inspires them? Would informative presentations followed by a late night party be to your liking?
If the answer is yes, The Sunshine Sessions might be just what you need.
I am thrilled to be invited to speak at the inaugural outing of The Sunshine Sessions. This celebration of positive-thinking and ethical, self-directed people looks set to be a fascinating event.
A range of speakers from a variety of backgrounds and interests including education, personal wellbeing and veganism will deliver passionate talks to a roomful of guests, who will then party the night away after being fed delicious vegan food.
I love the idea of this event. One of the reasons I agreed to take part in The Sunshine Sessions was the inclusive nature of the event and the thoughtful range of speakers. This isn’t a collection of people telling you what you are doing wrong, rather a collection of presenters giving you an insight into the choices that work for them across the professional and personal realms of their lives.
The event will be taking place in Central London at an as-yet-undisclosed location on Friday November 28th, 2014.
An initial information page for The Sunshine Sessions has been launched allowing potential attendees to register their interest. This is where you enter your details to receive information relating to ticket availability and speaker details. Click here to visit now.
I’m looking forward to this event and it would be wonderful to see a lot of vegans in the audience. Keep checking back for more updates.
Follow The Sunshine Sessions on Instagram
Scoff it all
One of the most-read posts on this site was all about fudge.
Remember when I wrote about the fabulous sweet treat company Scoff? Their fudge was a revelation in my life and the home delivery service is both a blessing and a curse.
The sweet masters have expanded their range for the cooler months to include the mouthwatering Toffee Apple fudge. This seasonal flavour will be making an appearance at my 3rd annual vegan Day of the Dead party tomorrow, alongside the new White Chocolate and Raspberry Fudge.
Scoff have very generously jumped on board and I am thrilled to be featuring them on our giant vegan buffet table tomorrow.
If you are quick, there might just be some tickets remaining.
If you can’t make it to my party, you can order your own home delivered vegan fudge and truffles from the Scoff online shop.
You can follow Scoff on Twitter
You can like Scoff on Facebook
Popcorn joins the party
One of my favourite snacks is the gorgeous hot and smoky popcorn by Bloom’s, but I have been feeling a bit down recently as the brand seemed to have disappeared from UK stores.
But rest assured fellow popcorn enthusiasts, this tasty treat was just on hiatus as the company repackaged and rebranded.
My favourite flavour is back and better than ever.
I was so delighted to see the brand relaunched, I reached out to Bloom’s and asked if they would like to be included on the giant vegan buffet at my 3rd annual Day of the Dead party taking place this weekend.
Of course they are lovely people and said yes, meaning attendees can look forward to a jumbo bowl of the good stuff as part of the food line up. Smoked Mexican Chili is just the perfect flavoured popcorn for this event!
Tickets for my Day of the Dead party can be purchased here. Click here to read about the event.
You can visit Bloom’s online
Fry’s goodbye
It is time to say goodbye to a family who have single-handedly revolutionised the UK vegan scene.
Patrick and Lisa Drummy have been at the forefront of getting meat replacements to hungry people for well over a decade. From humble beginnings with an often broken-down van, Pat launched a distribution company to spread the Fry’s Vegetarian range of vegan products all over the UK.
Due to Pat’s hard work and commitment to compassion, the South African produced products quickly became a staple freezer item for many veggie households. Pat poured his entire life (and livelihood) into the business and his dedication helped countless people make the transition to a meat free life.
Pat’s daughter Lisa joined him not long after this runaway success, making Fry’s UK a true family concern. Between them, they positioned the products in some of the biggest retailers in the country including Holland & Barrett and Ocado. They infiltrated huge catering distributors helping to get vegan food served in hospitals, schools, prisons and pubs all over the UK.
Lisa and Pat are two of the most respected people in the vegan community.
Year after year they tirelessly threw themselves into making Fry’s one of the leading vegan meat brands in Europe. I’m sure they couldn’t recall how many early starts there were or how many thousands of hours were spent spreading the vegan message throughout the country.
They have been friends to so many charities and outreach groups. Pat generously sponsored several of my events such as my Sea Shepherd fundraisers and the London Vegan Beer Fest. Dozens or maybe even hundreds of local animal welfare groups came to love Pat and Lisa for their generosity and honest desire to make the world a better place.
As Pat and Lisa step away from the business and hand the UK distribution back to the parent company, it is evident that our community is losing two of its staunchest supporters.
Pat and Lisa asked me to share the following statement with all of their friends and customers:
After 13 successful years of increasing choice for ethical consumers by introducing vegan foods to the UK market, we have lived to see Fry’s being stocked by health food shops, Holland & Barrett, Ocado and 3663. We’ve worked hard, met some truly great people and had a lot of fun along the way, but sadly, the team behind Fry’s Distribution UK is closing its doors on 31st October as it’s time for us to retire. Pat and Lisa would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support, your hard work, your business and, most importantly, your friendship.
I can’t express what these people have done for vegans and animals in the UK.
Please leave a comment for Pat and Lisa below.
Fucking horrendus
As you know, previously-vegan range Goodlife now contains a few products with dairy.
Like many compassionate consumers, I am appalled that a company claiming to be ethical would take this huge step backwards.
Look below to see a Twitter conversation from earlier today between me and Goodlife.
This might very well be the worst attempt at recovering from a product scandal that I have seen in years.
Goodlife are sorry that I am upset? Don’t worry about me, mate. I’ll be fine.
Worry about the poor fucking cows that will be used, abused and left for dead when they are no longer productive. Think about the contribution you are making to the constant cycle of exploitation every time you send a pallet of products out to stores. As you receive payment from customers, know that those funds are yours only because baby cows are being ripped from their mothers every single day in the UK and sent to veal crates or factory farms.
No, don’t worry about upsetting me. It’s your tragic family I feel sorry for with its need to earn money any way possible. What an absolutely fucked up thing to know your bills are being paid because animals are being impregnated constantly and killed when they are spent.
Look at this quote from the Viva! White Lies website.
Dairy cows are portrayed as having an idyllic life but the reality is that cows (like all mammals) only produce milk for their young after giving birth. Dairy cows are kept in a cycle of near constant pregnancy and lactation (meaning huge physical and psychological stress, often leading to disease and exhaustion). Every year, dairy cows also suffer the separation from their young just a day or two after giving birth, calling for each other desperately – the trauma and stress have been studied and even the dairy industry admit it causes emotional stress. The fundamentals of dairy farming – removing newborn calves to sell the cow’s milk – always conflicts the animals’ physical and emotional welfare.
Goodlife. Reverse your ridiculous decision to include dairy in your products. Make them vegan again. If not for the individual cows suffering through the dairy process, for your family. Don’t make the horror of dairy farming be your family legacy.
I urge all concerned readers to reach out to Goodlife via Facebook and Twitter.
Vegan action for Liverpool
Vegan comfort food enthusiasts in the Liverpool area have got a new reason to smile.
Say hello to The Old Hardware Shop.
This vegetarian coffee shop opened just weeks ago in the neighbourhood of Woolton Village, which is a bit of a posh area if you are to believe Wikipedia.
Amy and Rosie and the people behind this new meat free enterprise and wanted me to share some photos of their vegan options which include vegan cheese and chorizo toasties, vegan sausage and bacon butties, vegan hot dogs, vegan tuna mayonnaise sandwiches and vegan fish finger sandwiches.
They assure me they always stock a vegan cake option and vegan ice cream, while any coffee, milkshake or hot chocolate (with marshmallows) can be made vegan.
Check out the photos below, like The Old Hardware Shop on Facebook and get in there for some good eating.
Of course it is a shame the venture isn’t 100% vegan but this is sure to be a welcome addition to the Liverpool food scene for compassionate eaters.
