VegNews Reports on KFC's meatless Chicken Buckets and other Wonders!

Browsing the latest issue of VegNews this morning, I learned that KFC now offers (at least in the United Kingdom) meatless chicken buckets.  Starbucks has vegan wraps, cakes, grain bowls and smoothies.  (I've got to check that out on West Portal!)  There's now a vegan Reddi-Wip! 

Vegan at Cybelle's on 9th near Irving

Anna and I just had a totally vegan (plant-based) lunch at Cybelle's on 9th Avenue between Judah and Irving, and it was delicious!  The manager served us and said that her daughter was vegan and wanted to enjoy all the dishes she'd enjoyed before she became a vegan.  That led to her creating these wonders--and others.  Anna insisted on treating this time, so we're going to go back in early September, when I'll treat to different things on the menu.  I'll also be eating hwere with Betty this Saturday night!

Shampoo and Conditioner labeled "Vegan"

I never stopped to think that some shampoos and conditioners might NOT be vegan.  Noodles I did think about.  I hope people don't think we eat these products.

"So who has a beef about calling food 'plant-based'?"

Today's business section of the SF Chronicle has an article by CAndice Choi called "So who has a beef about calling food 'plant-based'?"

I don't have a beef.  As they point out, "the v-words might have unappetizing or polarizing associations."  They also say "For many people, their notion of a vegan is someone who's wagging a finger at them if they eat any animal products."  The person saying that, Pat Brown, the CEO of Impossible Foods,  identifies as vegan but feels that the term to some people sounds like a cult.  Michele Simon, the executive director of the Plant Based Food Association, says that since vegan is used to convey what's not in a product, it can be associated with deprivation, but plant-based explains what's in a food.  The president of OWL, Glenda Hope, suggests that we say meat-free rather than meatless.  All interesting points!

Also in this article from today, I see that "Just Egg" is coming out in a few weeks.  It's a new liquid egg substitute.  It won't be labeled vegan and will be sold alongside cartons of eggs.

The CEO of Just, Josh Tetrick, points out that plant-based has become more associated with foods that actually taste good.

Coming up in September's Global Climate Action Summit

Even before I attend the final planning committee meeting this Tuesday, I want to make a note of this, 1:30-2:30 on Thursday, September 13:

What We Eat and How It’s Grown: Food Systems and Climate

One-third of global emissions come from food production, so what people eat and how it is produced is a key piece of the climate solution. At the same time, more than one-third of the food produced globally every year is wasted and often sent to a landfill where it produces even more emissions as it decomposes. Fortunately, there are many efforts underway to reduce emissions from farm to fork and beyond. In this session, join the farmers, producers, chefs, businesses, and experts improving production, challenging us to eat better, reducing organic waste and properly diverting it to end uses like compost and changing the global food system for the better.

Response from Olive Garden on Suggestions I Made on a Form

One of my main concerns is that people don't think having a lot of vegetarian options responds to the vegan cause or that taking something (like cheese) off a vegetarian dish should satisfy a vegan.  We vegans like to eat too!

So I mentioned adding pine nuts to pasta and I sent a couple of links to recipes.  I also mentioned dessert.  Fruit is nice--and probably the healthiest--but we vegans like pastry too, so I mentioned no-egg or dairy cake and the ice cream NOT from cows.

I got this response from their PR department:

• Olive Garden Guest Relations <olivegarden@epowercenterdirect.com>
 
• Today at 4:03 AM

To

• tina_martin@sbcglobal.net

Message body



Dear Tina,

Thank you for your email to Olive Garden.

We consider your feedback extremely valuable to the success of our business. Decisions about our menu are based on guest feedback and demand, along with an effort to keep our menu fresh and interesting. We have documented your suggestion to offer additional vegan items.

While we cannot meet all requests, we want you to know our guest's suggestions and recommendations are regularly reviewed.

We appreciate the time you took to contact us.

Sincerely,

Kela
Olive Garden Guest Relations

Olive Garden Comes Through!

I have a friend who likes the Olive Garden, and she just alerted me to their "new vegan menu."

The last time we ate there was just a couple of months ago, when I'd found something on a vegan blog saying that Olive Garden had items that were vegan, but the server was totally unaware. 

This time the messages is directly from the Olive Garden!

https://www.olivegarden.com/nutrition/vegetarian-and-vegan-options

I've just written them this:

I'm very happy to see that you're offering vegan dishes, and your way of describing your willingness to meet the needs of vegans is very heartening.

You also clearly understand the difference between vegetarian and vegan. 

One suggestion:  Please understand that if vegans order something that is usually vegetarian--say, with cheese--there should be something like pine nuts substituted for the missing cheese.  Vegetables are wonderful, but nuts help out too in providing more protein, flavor, and "bite."

Do you have vegan desserts?  Nowadays, it's easy to get vegan ice cream at any supermarket, and cakes can be made (to my surprise!) without eggs!

The New Status and Board of Directors for Factory Farm Awareness Coalition

I just got this in my inbox, and since I couldn't find it at the home page for FFAC, I'm pasting it here:

Hi Tina, Since FFAC was first founded, we have had a fiscal sponsor (basically a parent non-profit). Now we are finally striking out on our own and becoming an independent 501c3! It is a great honor to introduce FFAC's new Board of Directors, which includes myself and: Dr. Verena Rossa-Roccor, Board Chair Verena holds a medical degree and worked as a psychiatrist before going back to school for a degree in public health.  Clare Ellis, Secretary Clare is the publisher of Stone Pier Press, an environmental publishing company with a food focus. Clare has been a journalist, editor, marketer, and entrepreneur. Nina Webster, Treasurer Nina Webster is the First Vice President for Commercial Banking of New Resource Bank, now a part of Amalgamated Bank - combined, it is the largest socially responsible bank in the U.S.  Eva Kalea, Data & Analytics Eva is the creative director at The Cliffs, an indoor rock climbing company based in New York. She leads The Cliffs' creative and marketing teams and is an advocate of diversity in climbing, conservation, and sustainability in climbing gym operations. ...As if that weren't enough excitement for one email, we are also welcoming three new directors to our staff!   Monica Chen, Bay Area Director We are grateful for the great work of Sonja Huang, our former Bay Area Director, and welcome Monica to our team as the new Bay Area Director.  Monica has a Master’s in Education and has enjoyed working with students of all ages.  In addition to classroom teaching, she has worked in environmental education and served as an instructor for the Prison University Project at San Quentin.  Stephanie Domingo, Chicago Director Rachel Shippee, our former Chicago Director, is now FFAC's Development Director. Stephanie will be taking the helm as the new Chicago Director. After graduating from the University of Iowa with a B.A. In philosophy, Stephanie underwent an AmeriCorps position as a RefugeeRISE member working with refugees in Eastern Iowa. Stephanie is passionate about social justice, and is excited to work with FFAC in Chicago! Hannah Kinder, Institutional Campaigns Director Hannah is pioneering a new position at FFAC as Institutional Campaigns Director. She will work with schools & corporations to increase plant-based options and implement Green Monday. Hannah earned her B.S. in Environmental/Evolutionary Biology and Ecology from Appalachian State University. In college, she researched the environmental and political issues associated with pig farms in southeast North Carolina. Previously, she served as College Outreach Coordinator for an animal advocacy organization, coordinating national projects, managing student activists, and giving presentations to aid professors in their curricula. Welcome to all of our new employees and directors, and thank you to our incredible supporters who have made this next stage in our growth possible! Sincerely, Katie Cantrell

Perennial Has No Room for "In the Balance"

I was excited about the exhibit Tara Duggans wrote about the Sunday before last.

Dear Ms. Duggan,

Thank you for the article on the future of food "A design perspective on the table."  I want to go tonight to see the food cubes representing the carbon footprint of what we eat "In the Balance" at the Academy of Science, but it's not on their web site,a dn when I called a few minutes ago, they had no idea what I was talking about!

I left  a voice message with Lipton Richy and filled out a form, and now I'm turning to you!

Thank you,

Tina Martin

I never got a response from Tara Duggan, but I did hear from Richy, who said there was no real display.  The cubes were just sitting on the table.

So today I finally had the chance to call Perennial, and the nice woman who talked to me said they just didn't have room for "In the Balance."

I'd like to find a place where it CAN and WILL be on display.

Here's Yunwen Tu's web site:

http://tuyunwen.com/food-carbon-footprints-1/

Cha-Ya in Berkeley

Does the Perennial Have "In the Balance" on exhibit between 10:30 AM and 2:00 PM?

Tara Duggan reported that "In the Balance" was on exhibit at the Perennial Restaurant, which serves dinner but also has in its space (I think) the associated Smoke Bread between 10:30 and 2:00.

Good morning!

Thank you for having "In the Balance" on exhibit.

If I came to your restaurant during the Smoke Bread hours 10:30-2:00 pm, could I see it?

Thanks for your efforts towards sustainable eating.

Tina Martin

FBI Infiltrating Vegan Pot Lucks

This was news in 2008, but I didn't know then!

https://www.treehugger.com/corporate-responsibility/are-vegans-plotting-to-disrupt-the-republican-convention.html

Vegan Meals on Rails

I just found out that the FBI was trying to infiltrate vegan groups!

Other news:  The United Kingdom is urging companies to provide vegan food on trains.




https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/jul/31/uk-rail-companies-urged-provide-vegan-food-trains

An Open Letter to COK, authors of "Guide to Promoting Veg Eating with Restaurant Outreach

Dear Compassion Over Killing staff,

I read your "Guide to Promoting Veg Eating with Restaurants" with great interest.  Thank you for all this good work!

I have a questions about motivating newspapers--specifically in the food section--to include vegans by ALWAYS asking the restaurant what their vegan entree is.  They don't even have to try it if they don't want to.  But I think newspapers could take a much more active role in acknowledging vegans if every restaurant review included at least a mention of the vegan entree--naming it or reporting the absence of one.  If restaurants were always asked, they'd get the message.  

I've made contact with the new food editor of the SF Chronicle, but he responded that they could always report on the vegetarian entree, and that's not nearly as hard to find on the menu as a vegan one.  Too many restaurants think that they can just leave off the cheese and call it vegan, so what newspaper food critics (like the rest of us) need to do is ask for a specifically vegan dish--preferably one printed on the menu.  (You acknowledge this dilemma when you speak of having a cruelty-free version of everything on the menu, not just a pasta dish and portabella mushroom sandwich.)

By the way, do you know of any newspapers who have a regular vegan column in the food section or who are already doing what I'm recommending?

I noticed that the Guardian has someone regularly sharing vegan recipes--Meera Sodha.

But I'm particularly interested in getting newspapers involved in supporting vegans as well as vegetarians and eaters of animals when they review restaurants.

Thank you for reading this far!

Tina Martin

Vegan Shown to Be More for the Cube in Yunwent Tu's "In the Balance"

I always look through the Food Section in search of something vegan, but when I saw  Tara Duggan's "A design perspective on the table," I dismissed it without reading it.  

After getting a message from Glenda Hope, the president of OWL, I got it out of the recycling bin and read it.  It's very exciting.  I especially like the idea of the cubes to represent the carbon footprint of each food, showing how much more we can get from plants for the same "cube" of beef.  They had some kind of signage for this in Berlin at the COP 23 last fall, but I don't think they used cubes.

I asked Glenda whether OWL could take a field trip to see this at the California Academy of Sciences.  It's on exhibit at Perennial Restaurant, which Tara Duggans calls  the "environmentally focused restaurant," but they serve MEAT there!!!

https://www.sfchronicle.com/recipes/article/Woven-jerky-and-homemade-meat-as-the-food-design-13141693.php

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy says "Big Meat and Dairy Are Heating Up Our Planet"

I saw a letter to the editor in the SF Chronicle on August 10, 2018, making the connection between climate warming (all the fires) and the "Beggie burger so meat-like, it's making its way into mainstream."


Scroll down to "Impact on Climate"

https://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/letterstoeditor/article/Letters-to-the-Editor-DMV-needs-reform-13145044.php

The Vegan Choice the Sunday after the Bar Mitzvah

I made a donation to a fundraiser the great-nephew of a friend was making part of his bar mitzvah, and as a result, the family invited me to the event in LA  (where I can't go because of two plays I have tickets for that weekend).  Here's what she wrote:  

We have a traditional Sabbath meal Friday night, and then Saturday in the synagogue where my son chants from the Torah, and then Sunday at the restaurant an organic, vegan restaurant everything locally sourced. 

Can you guess what restaurant they chose for the Sunday lunch?

Gracias Madre!

Meera Sodha, a Regular on the Guardian Staff

I really want to know which newspapers (if any) have a regular vegan column and/or restaurant critic asking about vegan entrees.

This is what I asked (probably not addressing the right people):

Could you let me know whether you have a regular vegan column?  I see the Meera Sodha appears regularly with recipes, and I think that's wonderful.

When you review restaurants, do you always ask about a vegan entree to be sure that the restaurant offers one or is reminded of the importance of having one?

A Vegan Pot Luck at A Grape in the Fog

Sunday evening we celebrated the birthday of a vegan friend, Julie Simone, with a pot luck dinner at the restaurant and bar A Grape in the Fog.

I remember a time when I thought vegan dishes were as limited as meat-heavy restaurants make them seem to be.

I've learned a lot in the past couple of years, and it's good to know that plant-based dishes are delicious as well as kinder to animals and to the planet! 

Sistah Vegan

Here's a summary of a book I just found out about, Sistah Vegan

Sistah Vegan is a series of narratives, critical essays, poems, and reflections from a diverse community of North American black-identified vegans. Collectively, these activists are de-colonizing their bodies and minds via whole-foods veganism. By kicking junk-food habits, the more than 30 contributors all show the way toward longer, stronger, and healthier lives. Suffering from type-2 diabetes, hypertension, high blood pressure, and overweight need not be the way women of color are doomed to be victimized and live out their mature lives. There are healthy alternatives. Sistah Vegan is not about preaching veganism or vegan fundamentalism. Rather, the book is about how a group of black-identified female vegans perceive nutrition, food, ecological sustainability, health and healing, animal rights, parenting, social justice, spirituality, hair care, race, gender identification, womanism, and liberation that all go against the (refined and bleached) grain of our dysfunctional society. Thought-provoking for the identification and dismantling of environmental racism, ecological devastation, and other social injustices, Sistah Veganis an in-your-face handbook for our time. It calls upon all of us to make radical changes for the betterment of ourselves, our planet, and by extension everyone.

Labor Unions Show They Care

I was pleased to see that the AFT 2121 asked about our food preferences and had the vegan option, which I hope will someday be the default for the good of the environment and the welfare of animals.

Praising An Affair to Remember Catering

Dear Danielle and Other Staff Members:

I recently attended a lovely 70th birthday party catered by An Affair to Remember, and I was favorably impressed.  

I was particularly happy to see that you had ample vegan items and someone was letting the guests know!

You're doing a service not just to people with dietary restrictions, but also the environment and animal welfare. 

 You probably know that the kindest thing we can do for animals and for the environment is to move towards a plant-based diet, and you furthered that cause by making such delicious items.

Here's an article worth reading if you haven't already.  

Many thanks,

Tina Martin

Avoiding meat and dairy is ‘single biggest way’ to reduce your impact on Earth

Avoiding meat and dairy is ‘single biggest way’ to reduce your impact on Earth By Damian Carrington Biggest analysis to date reveals huge footprint of livestock - it provides just 18% of calories but takes up 83%...