Two vegan businesses in the UK bow out

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Running a vegan business in 2019 is brutal.

The costs associated with keeping a business alive can swamp an entire operation overnight and it takes nerves of steel to keep an independent set-up running and in profit.

Even with the best intentions and highest work ethic, circumstances can transpire to force the closure of a business. This can happen unexpectedly and suddenly. The decision to close a business isn’t always about money but it usually plays a big role.

Two women-owned, UK-based vegan businesses have announced closure within a 24-hour time period this week and as sad as I am to see them go, I’m also overwhelmed by feelings of gratitude for how these two businesses pushed veganism forward over recent years.

First news to hit my radar was the announcement that multi-award winning Hannah Banana Bakery was closed with immediate effect.

Owner and baker Hannah started the business back in 2011 and went on to absolutely change the landscape of free-from baking.

Her cakes and treats made fans out of people all over the UK and got more than a few rave mentions on this blog.

Hannah has announced this week that her business has come to an end immediately due to her decision to take on a different job.

The baked goods made by Hannah Banana Bakery were second to none and what Hannah did for families on the south coast is nothing short of amazing. Her cakes (and the excruciating and relentless hard work to get them made on time) allowed people to mark celebrations without feeling as though they were missing out.

Truth be told, they were getting better cakes from Hannah than they would ever have gotten from a non-vegan place.

Hannah Banana Bakery was one of the best and the UK is not the same without it. Thank you Hannah for being such a hard working vegan hero for so many years.

Sad news part two?

Legendary and groundbreaking retail dessert company Pudology is no more.

Watch this Facebook video from founder Lucy to hear the news.

Pudology is one of those brands that forged the way for the mainstreaming of veganism.

When Lucy started her plant-based dessert brand, she threw herself into it 100% and made enormous, groundbreaking strides.

Her amazing products got mainstream supermarket listings and gave hope to people all over the UK that veganism and deliciousness could go hand in hand.

Pudology dessert pots were widely available and vegans everywhere were delighted to have a world class, accessible product to call our own.

Lucy was always a wonderful supporter of events I hosted and never lost sight of the importance of giving back at a grassroots level. I gave away hundreds of her dessert pots over the years at potlucks and parties.

Pudology will be sorely missed but never forgotten.

What Lucy contributed with her gorgeous brand cannot be overstated. The UK supermarket landscape would not be swamped with vegan options like it is today without her personal sacrifices and invaluable contributions.

Thanks again to Hannah and Lucy. They made an indisputable difference in the fight to improve outcomes for animals and raise the profile of veganism in the UK.

Vegan meat company teams up with sandwich company

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Award-winning Oumph! is launching into a new segment in the UK, with vegan food-to-go products. The launch is thanks to a successful collaboration with Bristol based Real Wrap Co.

Distribution for the range starts September 30 into over 35 universities across the UK, as well as hospitals, schools, colleges and retail outlets.

The launch includes both cold and hot eats, focusing on global fusion and bold flavours, including a ‘Philly Style’ Sourdough Hot Pocket and BBQ Sriracha Baguette.

“We are extremely excited to be working with Oumph!”, says Chloe Somerville, Head of Brand at Real Wrap Co. “The demand for innovative plant-based food-to-go is growing daily, particularly with the rise of flexitarians looking to reduce meat consumption. For us, Oumph! has been the perfect meat alternative due to the amazing taste and texture, making it ideal for sandwiches and hot eats.”

Anna-Kajsa Lidell, Co-founder & Head of Progress Strategy at Oumph! and Food for Progress, comments:

“The Real Wrap Co. is a perfect partner for us, as they share our values in creating plant-based foods which focuses on food appeal. We’re pleased that our products will be reaching students and hospitals, to help a larger audience find tasty plant-based foods”.

The product range includes:

  • Madras Oumph! Sandwich with Red Onion, Lettuce and Mango Chutney
  • Mediterranean Oumph! Sandwich with Slow Roast Tomatoes
  • The Real Oumph! Baguette with BBQ Pulled Oumph!, Hummus and Sweet Pickled Veg
  • BBQ Sriracha Oumph! Baguette with BBQ Pulled Oumph!, Sriracha Vegan Mayonnaise and Coriander
  • Carribean Jerk Oumph! Baguette with Lettuce and Mango & Chilli Salsa
  • Indian Oumph! Sourdough Hot Pocket with Onion Bhaji and sweet Caramelised Onion Chutney
  • Oumph! ‘Philly Style’ Sourdough Hot Pocket with Jalapeno, Red Onion and Vegan Cheese
  • Indian Oumph! Sourdough Hot Pocket with Onion Bhaji and sweet Caramelised Onion Chutney

All of these plant-based options are completely vegan.

This is huge news for the UK and huge news for the advancement of accessible vegan food. Much love to Oumph! for working tirelessly on these advances. They don’t rest on past success.

Follow Oumph! on Instagram.

Importance of vegan supper clubs

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Hey vegans.

Yes, we have SO much vegan food on our doorstep these days but we need to make more of an effort to get along to pop up supper clubs.

Super clubs and limited dining experiences are not only exciting food opportunities that you just can’t get anywhere else, but they are often crucial in helping independent chefs and business people kickstart their food career (or even keep an existing business alive).

A successful run of supper clubs can help a chef get cash together to buy new equipment. If you are already running a successful vegan café, money can be so tight that you need to find creative ways of raising funds outside of normal opening times.

This is one of the reasons why we see independently owned vegan businesses renting out their spaces after hours to pop up events. These little bits of cash injection can be the difference between buying a new piece of electrical equipment or not. That cash flow can help cover bills and expenses during slow weeks.

A pop up gives a chef the space to test new recipes. This makes it exciting for diners who will be exposed to new and exciting dishes as the food creators really put their best into impressing supper club guests.

Supper clubs are also valuable social spaces for local vegans to come together.

Yes, we can go to most mainstream restaurants now and expect to be catered for very well but sometimes it’s refreshing to be surrounded by likeminded people who are only eating vegan food.

Living as a vegan in a non-vegan world can be exhausting so supper clubs and pop ups act as a form of respite.

Eat well and support independent business!

Yes. Supper clubs are a win-win situation.

Yoga and vegan food retreat

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Join my buddy Louise Wallis for 3 days and 2 nights of yoga (and delicious vegan food) in an idyllic Dorset location this November.

Enjoy energising Vinyasa Flow Yoga in the morning, gentle Yin Yoga in the afternoon, and blissfully relaxing Yoga Nidra before bed. Take a dip in the indoor heated pool, walk to the beach, or sit around the wood burner and relish every moment.

This weekend retreat marks the official end of Summer, and celebrates two festivals: World Vegan Day (1st Nov) and Day of the Dead (2nd Nov). Louise, your retreat host, is the founder of World Vegan Day. This celebration has grown exponentially since its creation in 1994. This year it will be 25 years old.

The food at Bonhays (the venue) is an event in itself. Expect a taste-fest of wholesome vegan delights cooked up by resident Chef, Evie. On Friday evening she will pull out all the stops for World Vegan Day with an extra special meal, and on Saturday night, enjoy Mexican-inspired cuisine.

The retreat includes:

  • 3 x days and 2 x nights full-board stay in a beautiful eco-Retreat
  • Exclusive use of the venue & all facilities, including heated pool
  • 6 x Yoga / Meditation / Relaxation classes
  • Delicious vegan meals prepared by resident Chef
  • Complimentary gift bag
  • Free WiFi and parking

This retreat is going to be EXTREMELY popular so book early.

Click here to discover prices and get booking!

Moo Free named Most Ethical Dairy Free Manufacturer

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Moo Free has been named “Most Ethical Dairy Free Manufacturer” at the 4th annual Food & Drink Awards hosted by LUXlife.

The family owned, UK based free-from manufacturer, which was founded in 2010 by husband and wife team Mike and Andrea Jessop, scooped the award in recognition of its hard work in ensuring all aspects of the business are based on the highest ethical standards.

All of the organisation’s chocolates are organically certified and vegan certified meaning that you can be sure that no animals were harmed during the manufacturing process. Each product is made using natural, high quality ingredients including single origin, organic cocoa mass from plantations in the Dominican Republic.

What’s more, Moo Free’s factories send zero waste to landfill and none of its chocolates are made using any animal derived products. And because all of the company’s chocolates are made from raw ingredients in its own free-from factories, they are 100% dairy free, gluten free and soya free.

Moo Free believes that everyone should be treated equally and this is reflected in its work force. Men and women are paid equally, relative to their role and skill level, while the organisation works with several charities to provide employment for people who have difficulties finding a job and as a result around 20% of its workforce is autistic.

This was one of Mike and Andrea’s key motivations when they founded Moo Free and their goal moving forward is to set up a charity to help support children with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) and their parents. These children often desperately need a diagnosis in order to receive the educational and emotional support they deserve, while their parents often need support, advice and a shoulder to lean on.

Mike and Andrea said:

We would like to thank all of our amazing staff and everyone who works with us that helps us to maintain our high ethical standards. A big thank you must also go to our wonderful customers and supporters, we couldn’t do it without you! When our customers buy our chocolates they are making a difference to so many lives. It enables us to help support and employ lots of wonderful people, many with ASD, in an area where opportunities are limited.

In addition to all of the above, Moo Free is one of the chocolate brands recommended by Food Empowerment Project’s Chocolate List. This list helps consumers locate companies not sourcing their chocolate from child labour and unfair working conditions.

Yay for Moo Free! Visit their website and follow them on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

The power of saying “No thanks, I’m vegan’

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Did you know that I write a monthly column for Vegan Life Magazine? The following is one of my past columns. If you want to subscribe to the mag, you can find out more online here.

The power of saying “No, thanks. I’m vegan”

We’ve all been there. That awkward moment when you are out with friends, work colleagues, family members or even people you don’t know all too well and somebody offers you something to eat or drink that isn’t vegan.

There can be an uncomfortable silence and you can often feel a huge desire to not want to offend people or come across as a difficult vegan.

Well, I’m here to tell you it’s OK to say no to non-vegan offerings with a friendly confidence.

Actually, it’s more than just OK.

Learning to love saying “I’m vegan” gives you confidence in your beliefs, affords people a super quick insight into the type of person you are (i.e. kind!) and acts as a form of outreach to help spread your compassionate message of caring for animals.

For some people, becoming confident and comfortable with the decision of going vegan and being vocal about it takes time. One of the best ways to become assured of your own veganism is to talk about it and this can include something as simple as turning down non-vegan food.

I strongly believe a confident vegan is an attractive friend prospect to most people, not just other vegans.

When it comes to picking my friends and the people around me, there is nothing more important or admirable than a person who believes strongly in something positive and takes an unwavering stand on that topic.

You are going to look like a person of your convictions to those around you if you employ a zero-tolerance approach to non-vegan food items. I’ve been vegan for twenty years and one of the things my friends say they love about me is my commitment to the causes in which I believe.

A confident person who can be unapologetically vegan with a smile on their face is not only an admirable person, they are also the best form of activism.

When a kind and approachable vegan stands firm and friendly in their convictions, it is the best advertisement for veganism. When people see you sticking to your beliefs yet still getting on with life and enjoying the company of those around you, it can be the inspiration they need to start thinking about taking that step themselves.

It’s not being preachy to say “No, thanks. I’m vegan.” It’s being true to yourself and it is just one of the ways you are working to improve outcomes for animals.

The majority of vegans you know haven’t always been vegan, so they must have had a first time hearing about the lifestyle.

Think of how many people’s first time you can be if you find a way to say no to non-vegan food. By politely but assuredly turning down non-vegan food and drink, you might just be positioning yourself as the seed that will one day sprout and take someone on their compassionate journey.

Seeds sprouting into compassionate journeys? Yes, even my metaphors are vegan.

Of course it isn’t always plain sailing when you are the only vegan in your social group. People can sometimes take your vegan stance as an attack on their choices or even come to see you as a ‘sanctimonious inconvenience’ (yes, that happened to me and still stings).

It can be a tricky balancing act to manoeuvre within certain groups of friends and family, but it is completely OK to stand your vegan ground even when some individuals will see your lifestyle choice as a challenge.

It’s completely understandable how the concept of veganism will be met with some resistance when you consider how ingrained the use of animals is in our society. Heck, they are even in our money!

But that is exactly why we are vegan. We want to help enact a change in these attitudes and practices in order to cause less harm. A little social awkwardness is surely a small price to pay as we find our vegan feet and save the planet.

You can gently yet firmly reassure people that your choice to not consume animal products is based on how you feel about the world around you (and animals!) and is not an attack on their personal consumption of ribs, rumps and legs. You can do this in a good-natured way that doesn’t have to lead to offense being taken.

It’s your decision and your life being affected, not theirs. Being self-assured and happy with your choices is one of the best parts of living vegan. Learn to enjoy it.

You can follow me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Vegan pop up grocery store in Colchester

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Colchester. You have a super fabulous vegan pop up shop.

Get involved!

Vool is the brainchild of my buddy Annastasia who started the project in November 2017 after realising rates were too high to open a vegan shop in Colchester.

Annastasia wanted to make it easier for vegans and the vegan-curious to access those harder to find goodies and groceries. A year of fairs, festivals , and a weekly pop-up at the Good Souls Bakery followed and now Vool has become a major part of Annastasia’s (and Colchester’s) life!

Check out some of these photos showing the gorgeous groceries being sold by Vool.

Vool is on Colchester Market every Friday, there is an online shop offering worldwide delivery, and the Shop-in-a-Suitcase makes a regular appearance at Colchester Vegan Drinks.

This is some real frontline grassroots vegan stuff going on here. Annastasia is getting vegan groceries into her community by any means necessary and helping people go and stay vegan. She actually carries vegan groceries around in a suitcase!

Follow Vool on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Ottawa International Vegan Film Festival 2019

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The 2019 Ottawa International Vegan Film Festival has announced its list of 26 nominated films.

The event will showcase a collection of the finest vegan-themed short and long format films from this year. The awards will be announced at the Festival’s Premier event on October 6, 2019 at The Chamber Theatre in Ben Franklin Place in Ottawa.

The Door

The Festival received 40 film submissions in 2019, up from 28 last year. The films that have been selected have been submitted from 14 countries around the world. 60% of the films are from female directors.

Category and Films:

Lifestyle Category:

· Apollo: Rise of the Poly-Vegan Soldier (New Zealand)

· A Strange Trial (Switzerland)

· Gold Doesn’t Rust: Animal Testing and its 21st Century Alternatives (USA)

· Let us be Heroes – The True Cost of our Food Choices (Singapore)

· Pig Man (New Zealand)

· The Hunter and the Girl with Pokemon (Belgium)

· Bad Vegan: The Original Recipe (Canada)

· Double Decade Vegan (Australia)

Health and Nutrition Category:

· H.O.P.E. What You Eat Matters (Austria)

· Code Blue: Redefining the Practice of Medicine (USA)

· Multiple Seasons (USA)

Animal Welfare Category:

· Casa de Carne (USA)

· Reclaim (Canada)

· Cow’s Milk? (Germany)

· Cows Come Home (USA)

· Bucking Tradition (USA)

· Coming Closer (USA)

· The Cube of Truth (New Zealand)

· Why Not Me (USA)

· The Door (Denmark)

· Hami Shelter (Iran)

Environmental Protection Category:

· Diet Change Not Climate Change (Germany)

· The Farm in My Backyard (Canada)

· The Man of the Trees (Italy)

· #Powerplant (Netherlands)

· Planet Vegan: Episode One (USA)

Tickets for the festival can be purchased online here.

Vegan pop up for Tottenham

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Tottenham Social Pop Ups is an ongoing series of seriously tasty food events at Craving Coffee on Markfield Road, Tottenham.

The next best reason why you should get along is taking place from Thursday September 12 until Saturday 14, 2019.

Superstar vegan food traders Marli’s Kitchen are running their soul menu takeover and the menu sounds exquisite. Check this out.

These Tottenham Social nights have been running since June 2015. Craving Coffee have been inviting street food traders to take over their kitchen with diverse cuisines from around the globe while their Tottenham Social bartenders serve a range of bespoke cocktails craft beers, choice wines, and boutique soft drinks.

The Marli’s Kitchen return is set to be hugely popular. They are a vegan food trader on mission to get carnivores eating vegan food, and to satisfy vegan cravings for junk food with a conscience.

Details you need:

  • Thursday September 12 until Saturday September 14, 2019
  • Fully licensed bar 5pm – 11pm
  • Happy Hours 5pm – 7pm
  • Food 6pm – 10pm
  • Book via tottenhamsocial@gmail.com
  • Walk-ins welcome!

Book to avoid disappointment.

Be sure to follow Marli’s Kitchen on Instagram.

5 best vegan beers at Hackney Downs Night Market

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Do you need a night out with stunning vegan street food and refreshing vegan beer?

Get along to the final Hackney Downs Night Market for 2019 this Friday September 13 from 6pm. They asked me to help turn it vegan!

Not only do we have a fabulous vegan food line up (read about it here), but we also welcome All Good Beer who will be on hand pouring irresistible vegan beer.

What beer should you look forward to drinking? I asked All Good Beer to tell me their top 5 for this Friday night.

Elliot from All Good Beer said:

The two beers on tap will be from Cloudwater brewery who are based in Manchester. They modestly picked up the ratebeer.com award for being the #2 brewery in the world!

We’ll also have cans available from our personal favourite brewery, Verdant Brewing Co. who hail from Falmouth in Cornwall. They were voted #1 brewery in the UK so our vegan beer selection on the night is not too shabby at all!

Make sure you RSVP and invite friends over on the Facebook event for Hackney Downs Night Market.

You should also follow All Good Beer on Instagram.