Below is episode 1 of The Vegan Herald’s Weekly Vegan Podcast, airing every Sunday at 10am PT. Future episodes can be found by clicking here.
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Sep 10
Winners of the 2022 World Plant-Based Awards Announced
The winners of the 2022 World Plant-Based Awards were announced this week during a special ceremony at the Plant Based World Expo North America, which took place in New York City.
For the awards the judging panel considered 140 entries from 20 different countries, spread out across 17 different categories.
“The competition this year was exceptionally close”, says Dan Bunt, marketing manager for FoodBev Media which helped facilitate the event. “I hope all finalists and entrants are proud of their accomplishments; I look forward to all the companies’ successes in the future. ” Bunt adds that “The third annual World Plant-Based Awards were a great success and credit must be given to the incredible team behind the scenes at Plant Based World Expo North America.”
A full list of winners and finalists in each category follows below.
Sep 09
Study: Increasing Consumption of Plant-Based Foods May Mitigate Obesity-Induced Inflammation
New research published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition has found that increasing the consumption of plant-based foods “may mitigate obesity-induced inflammation and its consequences.”
“Evidence investigating associations between dietary and nutrient patterns and inflammatory biomarkers is inconsistent and scarce”, states the study, which was conducted by researchers at the University of Adelaide, Flinders University and the Cancer Council Victoria, all located in Australia. “Therefore, we aimed to determine the association of dietary and nutrient patterns with inflammation.”
Overall, 1,792 participants from the North-West Adelaide Health Study were included in this cross-sectional study. Researchers “derived dietary and nutrient patterns from food frequency questionnaire data using principal component analysis.” Multivariable ordinal logistic regression determined the association between dietary and nutrient patterns and the grade of inflammation (normal, moderate, and severe) based on C-reactive protein (CRP) values, and “Subgroup analyses were stratified by gender, obesity and metabolic health status.”
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Sep 09
Study: Promoting Plant-Based Products in Veganuary Leads to Large Increase in Sales With Lasting Effects
Promoting plant-based products during Veganuary leads to a considerable increase in sales, “with evidence of lasting effects”, according to a new study.
Veganuary is a non-profit organization, launched in 2014, that encourages people worldwide to try vegan for January and beyond. During the 2022 campaign more than 620,000 people took our pledge to try a vegan diet, while more than 1,540 new vegan products and menu options were launched in our key campaign countries.
Published in the peer-reviewed journal Public Health Nutrition, a new study set out to “explore changes in plant-based and meat product sales during and after implementation of a multi-component in-store intervention implemented by a major UK food retailer. Secondary objectives included exploring differences by store format and area affluence.” The study is titled Does promoting plant-based products in Veganuary lead to increased sales, and a reduction in meat sales? A natural experiment in a supermarket setting.
Sep 07
Haarlem Becomes First City to Ever Ban Meat Advertisements
Haarlem, a city outside of Amsterdam in the northwest Netherlands, has officially passed a ban on advertising meat and products containing meat.
Haarlem, with a population of around 160,000, placed the ban because of the impact meat and meat production has on the growingly dire climate crisis. Meat ads will be banned in all public places including on billboards, screens and buses. Harleem has already placed a ban on advertising other environmentally harmful things such as petrol powered cars and flying,
“Meat is just as harmful to the environment,” says Ziggy Klazes, a GroenLinks Party councilor. “We can’t tell people there’s a climate crisis and encourage them to buy products that are part of the cause.” Klaze says that although the council passed the new law last week, it will take effect in 2024.
Sep 07
Panda Express Launches Vegan Orange Chicken Nationwide at Over 2,300 Locations
After conducting a months-long trial period at certain test locations over the past year, Panda Express has officially announced the launch of their Beyond The Original Orange Chicken at all of their over 2,300 locations across the United States starting today.
“Our team has been overjoyed by the undeniable excitement and incredible demand generated when we first introduced Beyond The Original Orange Chicken last summer as an innovative twist on our most iconic dish,” says Andrea Cherng, Chief Brand Officer at Panda Express. “After nearly 40 years of creating original American Chinese dishes, quality and innovation remain at the core of who we are. We’re continuously exploring creative ways to present our guests with the comfort and crave-ability they can expect from Panda while appealing to their evolving preferences and tastes.”
Beyond The Original Orange Chicken was first introduced as a limited launch across Southern California and New York City in 2021, selling out across several locations in less than two weeks. Due to its high demand, Panda chefs wok-fired more than 1,300 pounds of Beyond The Original Orange Chicken in just the first day alone. After the successful initial launch, Panda brought this new fan-favorite entree to 70 locations in ten markets. Now, it’ll be at all 2,300+ locations.
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Sep 06
Daiya Launches Plant-Based and Allergen-Friendly Flatbreads
Daiya has announced the launch of “the first-ever plant-based and allergen-friendly flatbread.”
Inspired by an Italian trattoria experience, Daiya’s newest plant-based innovation line features “three delicious flavors that are sure to delight new and existing customers, marking the brand’s continued push for tasty and convenient plant-based choices for all.”
The new flatbreads “feature Daiya’s award-winning Cutting Board Cheeze Shreds on top of a thin gluten-free crust.” Bringing to the table “complementary flavors that are sure to level-up any at-home meal,” the flavors include: