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Beginner’s Guide to Plant-Based Eating

Beginner’s guide to plant-based eating

Featured Author: Emma Levez Larocque, Plant-Based R.H.N

Have you been hearing about plant-based diets and wondering what all the fuss is about?  

In this video we’re going to explore the topic of plant-based eating—what does the term actually mean? Is this way of eating truly healthy and sustainable? And why are some people shifting their diets to eat more plant-based foods?  

If you decide a plant-based shift is something you’d like to try out as you watch this video, the second half of this video shares some great tips on easy ways to get started! You can also download the beginner’s guide to plant-based eating:

Download the plant-based beginner’s guide

What is plant-based?

Before we dive in, let’s define our terms. It may seem obvious, but “plant-based” refers to foods that come from plants—like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds and legumes, and does not include animal-based foods like meat, dairy, and eggs. 

Popularity of plant-based

Have you noticed that there are more plant-based products at your local grocery store than there used to be? According to a 2021 report by Bloomberg Intelligence the interest in plant-based foods is increasing. Their research projects that plant-based products will make up to 7.7% of the global protein market—a value of over $162 billion—by 2030! 

Why plant-based?

What’s causing this shift? Why are plant-based foods becoming so popular? 

For the planet

Many people have started changing what they eat because they’re concerned about the environment, but does a dietary shift really make a difference? Let’s take a look at what the data says.  

Our World in Data published research about the Environmental Impacts of Food Production. They showed that one quarter of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions result from food and agriculture, and the main contributors to food’s emissions are livestock and fisheries, crop production, land use and supply chains, in that order. 

When comparing the carbon footprint of protein-rich foods, which account for the bulk of our dietary emissions, they found that the impact of plant-based foods is significantly lower than meat and dairy, across the board. Beef, lamb, farmed shrimp and cheese were the worst offenders, while plant-based protein sources, like tofu, beans, peas and nuts, had the lowest carbon footprint. 

The researchers on this project concluded that:

“Tackling what we eat, and how we produce our food, plays a key role in tackling climate change, reducing water stress and pollution, restoring lands back to forests or grasslands, and protecting the world’s wildlife.”
Our World in Data

What do you think? Would you be willing to shift your diet if it helps keep the planet healthier? 

For our health

But there are some other things to consider. Even if it’s good for the planet, is this a healthy way for humans to eat? Sometimes it can be mind-bending trying to make sense of all the information about constantly changing food trends! 

So let’s take it back to the basics. One thing a majority of doctors and scientists agree on is that eating more veggies is a good idea. But is it safe to focus your diet around plant-based foods, or eat plant-based foods exclusively?  

A growing number of studies are showing that a well-balanced plant-based diet is not just safe but can have significant health benefits.  

According to the Physician’s Guide on Plant-Based Diets, a peer-reviewed article by Registered Dietitian Julieanna Hever, plant-based diets have been associated with lowering deaths from heart disease, supporting healthy weight management, reducing medication needs, lowering the risk for most chronic diseases and more.  

And one thing we think is interesting is that this isn’t anything new! In five areas of the world now famously known as the Blue Zones you can find the longest-lived, healthiest people in the world. National Geographic and a team of researchers studying these areas found that one of the common behaviours of people living in the Blue Zones was a focus on unprocessed plant-based foods.  

As plant-based diets become more popular and are being linked with health benefits, more research is being conducted. As a result, a growing body of evidence is connecting meat consumption with a higher risk of common chronic health conditions like Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and even some types of cancer.  

And Health Canada has assessed this information. The new Canada Food Guide, revised in 2019, recommends that Canadians shift to eating plant foods – including plant proteins – more often. 

For the animals

Another consideration as you are thinking about the pros and cons of a plant-based diet is the animals. 

According to government-recorded statistics more than 825 million animals were raised and killed for food in Canada in 2021. We know that farmed animals like pigs, cows and chickens are as intelligent and sentient as the cats and dogs we share our homes with, but our society treats them very differently. Most farmed animals are raised in factory farms in cramped, poor conditions none of us would wish on our pets – so why do we look the other way when it comes to farmed animals? 

We’d love to hear what you think about all of this. If you’re considering shifting to a plant-based diet, what is your main motivation? Or maybe you have more questions? Tell us in the comments below. 

Learn more:

For the animals

For the planet

For our health

Tips for getting started

If you’re ready to start making a plant-based shift, you might be surprised at how easy it can be to get started. 

1. Start small and stack up successes

First up, we recommend starting small and stacking up successes. 

Moving toward a plant-based diet can be easier if it’s a gradual process. For example, you could start with one plant-based meal a day – like oatmeal loaded with berries, a veggie scramble, or avocado toast for breakfast. When you have that down, add in a second meal – like a bean burrito, a veggie soup or a great big meal salad for lunch. Then go on to dinner. This approach gives you time to try out some new foods and recipes and build the habits that lead to lasting change. 

Explore plant-based recipes
meal salad
veggie scramble
avocado toast
oatmeal with berries
veggie soup
bean burrito

2. Take a look at what you’re eating now

Another tip as you’re getting started is to take a look at what you’re eating now. You might find that there are already plant-based foods you are enjoying. Do you like falafel and hummus? Plant-based! Chana masala? Pasta with marinara sauce? Lentil stew? All plant-based! It’s easy to find recipes and products that can help you make plant-based versions of your favourite dishes. If you sign up for Plant University’s newsletter you’ll get weekly recipe ideas automatically delivered to your inbox.  

lentil stew
pasta with marinara sauce
chana masala
falafel and hummus

3. Take a cooking class or program

If eating more plant-based foods is a big switch for you and your family, you might consider taking a local cooking class or an online cooking program like Rouxbe. This is a good way to sample new foods and get inspired to start making beautiful and delicious plant-based dishes. Many people are surprised to find that it’s easy to get inspired by the colours and vibrancy of fresh plant foods!   

4. Arm yourself with knowledge

Our final tip is about arming yourself with knowledge.  

As you’re transitioning, take some time to do your research and make sure you’re providing your body with the fuel it needs to take full advantage of all the benefits of a plant-based way of eating. This will ensure that you can thrive on your plant-based journey. PlantUniversity.ca is a great place to get started. The site has a great selection of resources, including recipes, videos, blog posts, a shopping and eating guide, and a 21-day challenge to help you get started in creating healthy plant-based habits.  

Are you in the process of transitioning to a plant-based diet? We’d love to hear what’s working for you! 

Subscribe to stay updated
Download the plant-based beginner’s guide

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Farmed animal welfare issues in Canada part 3 – actions to protect farmed animals

Farmed animal welfare issues in Canada part 3 – actions to protect farmed animals

Today, for the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity platform, we’re going to explore the issue of farmed animal welfare in Canada. Animal welfare refers to an animal’s well-being, both physically and mentally.

In Part 3 of this series, we’ll look at actions we can take to help protect farmed animals and create change.

As individuals, every time we sit down to eat, we have an opportunity to stand up for a kinder world for animals.

If we have the access and ability, removing animal products from our lives and opting for a plant-based lifestyle is one of the most powerful actions we can take at the individual level. When we eat, every meal makes a difference. As we lead by example, we can inspire others to do the same, which amplifies our impact for animals!

But let’s not stop there, it’s incredibly important that we also advocate for system-wide changes to help animals.

We can do this by supporting changes to laws and policies that impact animals. These changes can make a difference for those animals who are stuck in our current animal agriculture system right now. We can also advocate for food system change that’s focused on moving away from our broken food system and toward one that is kinder, healthier and more sustainable.

One of the ways we can do this is to speak up against ag-gag legislation, which aims to make it an offence to document conditions in the animal agriculture industry.Instead of passing ag-gag laws, our government could be working to address the troubling conditions on farms, during transport and at slaughterhouses.

We can also advocate for stronger laws and enforcement to better protect animals and to close existing loopholes that make it difficult to prosecute animal cruelty.

How do we get started? We can call for our government at all levels to take responsibility for protecting animal welfare. We can’t leave it up to industry and the private sector to make the rules. Polling in recent years has reflected widespread public support for stronger government legislation to protect animals. We need dedicated government departments focused solely on animal welfare and, at the federal level, national animal welfare legislation. Science shows that animals are suffering in situations that are currently legal and governments should take an evidence-based approach to policy that aligns with this science. 

Finally, we can advocate for shifting government subsidies and incentives to support overall food system change. Current government subsidies, believed to be in the billions of dollars, enable the industrial animal agriculture system in Canada to continue, business as usual, despite the industry’s contributions to animal suffering and climate and health issues.

For example, animal agriculture businesses in Canada received more than $1.9 billion in subsidies in 2019.

But it doesn’t have to be this way and governments can shift these subsidies and incentives to support a move away from animal-based agriculture towards plant-based food systems. They can encourage innovation in plant-based agriculture and incentivize farmers to transition to plant-based farming.

These are a few examples of how we can take action individually to help animals and to support system-wide change. If this is the first video that you watched, you can check out Part 1 and 2 in the links below.

Check out the resources on the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity platform, including a plant-based recipe library; a video series featuring experts in making the world better for farmed animals through diet, advocacy, and more; and a 21-day plant-based challenge to help you along in your journey. Even shifting just one meal a day or week to plant-based can help make a difference.

At PlantUniversity, you will also find more advocacy tips and tools, including ideas for supporting improved public access to plant-based meals in schools, hospitals and other public institutions; to tips for writing opinion pieces and letters to the editor; or strategies for engaging with your elected representatives and decision-makers.

If you found this video helpful, please consider sharing it.

And don’t forget to subscribe to the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity platform and email list to stay up to date on new content and to help animals!

Learn more:

Learn ABOUT ANIMAL SENTIENCE AND INDUSTRIAL AGRICULTURE

Farmed Animal Welfare Issues in Canada – Part 1

Learn more about who farmed animals are and how they are treated in the animal agriculture system.

Read more

LEARN HOW TO TAKE ACTION FOR FARMED ANIMALS

Farmed Animal Welfare Issues in Canada – Part 2

Learn about the laws in Canada and how they fall short, as well as how they can be improved.

Read more

Farmed animal welfare issues in Canada part 2 – farmed animal protection laws in Canada

Farmed animal welfare issues in Canada part 2 – farmed animal protection laws in Canada

Today, for the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity platform, we’re going to explore the issue of farmed animal welfare in Canada. Animal welfare refers to an animal’s well-being, both physically and mentally.

In Part 2 of this series, we’ll explore the laws that relate to farmed animal welfare in Canada and how they fall short, as well as how they can be improved.

Every level of government in Canada including the federal, provincial and municipal, is responsible for the protection of animal welfare. Unfortunately, existing laws used to prosecute animal cruelty are not comprehensive and there are many gaps and exemptions. The laws are difficult to enforce and they still permit certain farming practices to be exempt from the law because they are seen as quote “reasonable and generally accepted practices of animal management”.

These gaps and exemptions mean that hundreds of thousands of animals continue to suffer on farms, during transport journeys and at slaughterhouses. This leads us to the question of who decides what “reasonable and generally acceptable practices of animal management” are to begin with?

In Canada, this has largely been left up to the animal agriculture industry itself to decide. The National Farm Animal Care Council is a largely industry-dominated organization which creates standards of practice for the care of animals on farms. These standards, called codes of practice, have become guidelines for what is considered acceptable practice in the industry. However, they aren’t legally required or proactively enforced by government.

The current codes still allow for concerning practices to be considered reasonable and acceptable, such as the use of electric prods to move animals; painful procedures without the use of pain control and the stressful separation of mothers and their babies at ages much younger than would occur naturally. For example, the dairy code of practice recommends separating mothers and calves shortly after birth.

The codes of practice also allow animals to be deprived from engaging in behaviours that are instinctual for them, such as pigs not being given materials to build nests with. This can lead to frustration and self-harm, such as chewing on bars and breaking teeth.

As animal farming has industrialized over the years, animals are increasingly being kept indoors and out of public sight.

Branding and labeling on products in grocery stores make it appear as though farmed animals are living happy, idyllic lives, but this couldn’t be further from the reality.

In recent years, numerous undercover investigations in Canada have shed light on the hidden reality of today’s industrialized animal agriculture system. But, instead of addressing the problem of how farmed animals are kept and mistreated, governments are increasingly passing what are known as “ag-gag” laws, which make it an offence to document conditions in the animal agriculture industry. These ag-gag laws are intended to deter whistleblowers and prevent undercover footage from surfacing.

This further undermines transparency, accountability and public trust. When these issues come up, the animal agriculture industry and the government are more concerned with making the public more trusting, than with changing the conditions that farmed animals experience.

Now that you’ve learned more about the laws that relate to farmed animal welfare in Canada and the gaps and flaws that exist, we encourage you to watch part 3 of this series, which will go into detail about the actions that we can take to help protect farmed animals and create change.

If you found this video helpful, please consider sharing it.

And don’t forget to subscribe to the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity platform and email list to stay up to date on new content and to help animals!

Learn more:

Learn ABOUT ANIMAL SENTIENCE AND INDUSTRIAL AGRICULTURE

Farmed Animal Welfare Issues in Canada – Part 1

Learn more about who farmed animals are and how they are treated in the animal agriculture system.

Read more

LEARN HOW TO TAKE ACTION FOR FARMED ANIMALS

Farmed Animal Welfare Issues in Canada – Part 3

In part 3, we look at actions we can take to help protect farmed animals and create change.

Read more

Eating a plant-based diet for 1 year saves enough emissions to power a home for 6 months!

Switching to a plant-based diet could save up to 816kg of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2e) per year, says a report by the Vancouver Humane Society – enough emissions to power a home for six months!

Read report
@vancouverhumane Eating plant-based saves as much emissions as cutting an entire home's energy use in half! #PlantBased #Environment #Sustainable #EcoFriendly ♬ original sound – Vancouver Humane Society

The report details how eating more plant-based foods can help individuals in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland to cut down on grocery costs, reduce emissions, and save animal lives. 

Image: Vancouver Humane Society, A Transition Toward Plant-Based Diets: A study amongst BC residents in the Lower Mainland

A switch away from beef carries the greatest environmental impact – in the typical Lower Mainland diet, swapping beef for lentils reduces greenhouse gas emissions by nearly twice as much as swapping out all other animal products combined. 

In addition to emissions savings, switching to a plant-based diet could reduce your annual grocery bill by $600 and save the lives of sentient farmed animals.

Will you be choosing more plant-based meals for the planet?

If you’re looking to reduce your carbon footprint by eating more sustainable plant-based foods, check out these recipes from the Vancouver Humane Society’s Plant University platform!

All recipes

Farmed animal welfare issues in Canada part 1 – who they are & and how they’re treated

Farmed animal welfare issues in Canada – who they are & and how they’re treated

Today, for the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity platform, we’re going to explore the issue of farmed animal welfare in Canada. Animal welfare refers to an animal’s well-being, both physically and mentally.

In Part 1 of this series, we’ll learn more about who farmed animals are and how they are treated in the animal agriculture system in Canada. This topic may be upsetting, so please consider taking some time for self care after viewing.

More than 830 million land animals are raised and killed for food in Canada every year. The sheer number of farmed animals raised, along with the standard harmful practices they face on a daily basis, makes the treatment of farmed animals one of the most pressing topics to learn about and work towards improving animal protection.

This number of animals is only an estimate as it doesn’t include aquatic animals, who are typically measured by weight instead of individual lives. It also doesn’t include those who are treated as by-products, such as male chicks who are deemed to be of no value to the egg industry because they don’t lay eggs, and as a result are killed soon after hatching.

But who are these animals? Most people don’t have a lot of experience around farmed animals, but the truth is they are very similar to the dogs, cats and other companion animals we open our homes and hearts to.

They have distinct, individual personalities and a variety of interests. They can form strong bonds with other animals and are curious and enjoy exploring the world around them.

For example, chickens are intelligent animals, with research showing they can understand basic math and can count. They’re also capable of experiencing a wide range of emotions and can show empathy for others. 

Cows are socially complex animals. Studies show they rely on each other for comfort and have strong social bonds, especially between mothers and their calves. Mothers will protect their young in unfamiliar situations and both will show signs of significant distress when separated from each other.

Pigs are sensitive animals, who are aware of the emotions of other individuals. They have an excellent memory and can anticipate future experiences. They’re also incredibly playful and can learn games quickly and engage in play behaviours similar to what we see in dogs. 

Farmed animals are thinking, feeling beings. But the industrialized animal agriculture system treats them like products.

Today, the animal agriculture industry is characterized by large numbers of animals who are kept in cramped and barren conditions, unable to behave naturally or socially.

For example, egg farms often have tens of thousands of animals. The vast majority of egg farms in Canada keep hens confined to cages where each hen typically has less space than a standard sheet of paper. Unsurprisingly, this leads to significant frustration among the hens, who act out by plucking at each other’s feathers.

In addition to the unnatural living conditions, farmed animals will also experience stressful and painful practices that are considered standard on farms, such as de-beaking, or the removal of part of a hen’s beak to try and prevent them from pecking at and injuring each other. Farmed animals often experience rough handling and the use of electric prods to make them move. They may also be subject to inhumane methods of euthanasia, should they become injured or ill while on the farm.

Transport journeys are also very stressful for farmed animals. Loading of animals onto transport trucks often leads to injuries, including broken limbs.

For example, approximately 20% of caged egg-laying hens experience broken bones during the loading and transport process. The length of transport journeys is also a concern, with some species being transported for up to 72 hours straight, without food, water or rest, which is much longer than what’s permitted in Europe or the U.S.

Farmed animals are often transported in all weather conditions, without adequate protection from extreme heat and cold. Reports of pigs seen suffering from dehydration, on transport trucks during the summer heat, has sadly become all too common across Canada.

By the government’s own estimates, 14 million animals suffer injuries and 1.6 million die during transport journeys every year.

It goes without saying that slaughter is inherently stressful for farmed animals – from frightening sights, smells and sounds; to rough handling and fast-paced slaughter lines that put both animals, and workers at risk of injury. This creates the potential for inhumane slaughter practices. There are many animal welfare concerns at this stage.

For example, chickens are most commonly slaughtered by being hung upside down by their legs on an assembly line, before being moved through an electrically-charged bath intended to stun them and render them unconscious before being killed. This fast-paced process, during which upwards of 175 or more birds are slaughtered per minute, can easily lead to failed stunning and significant suffering as a result.

Now that you’ve learned a bit more about who farmed animals really are and how they are treated under today’s animal agriculture system, we encourage you to take good care of yourself as you process all of this information. When you’re ready, you can check out part 2 of this series, which will explore the laws related to farmed animal welfare in Canada. Part 3 will outline actions we can take to help protect farmed animals and create change. 

If you found this video helpful, please consider sharing it.

And don’t forget to subscribe to the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity platform and email list to stay up to date on new content and to help animals!

Learn more:

Learn ABOUT animal welfare laws in canada

Farmed Animal Welfare Issues in Canada – Part 2

Learn about the laws in Canada and how they fall short, as well as how they can be improved.

Read more

LEARN HOW TO TAKE ACTION FOR farmed ANIMALS

Farmed Animal Welfare Issues in Canada – Part 3

Learn about actions we can take to help protect farmed animals and create change.

Read more

Win a $300 Vegan Supply gift card!

Win a $300 Vegan Supply gift card!

@vancouverhumane ✨ Recipe making contest & Giveaway ✨ Want to win a $300 gift card to Vegan Supply, or other fun prizes? Here’s how: ✅ FOLLOW @vancouverhumane ✅ POST a video or photo of you making, presenting, or taste testing a recipe from plantuniversity.ca – be sure to tag #PlantUniversity ✅ TAG at least two friends in the comments of this post or your recipe post Prizes: ???? $300 gift card to Vegan Supply and featured on plantuniversity.ca ???? Easy Animal Free cookbook and featured on plantuniversity.ca ???? 5-10 more people’s entries will be featured on the site! Contest open to those residing anywhere in Canada! Contest closes at 11:59PM PST September 30, 2023 Winners will be contacted by the VHS via DM #vegan #vancouvervegan #canadavegan #contest #veganrecipes #britishcolumbia #plantuniversity #recipesoftiktok #vegansupply #giveaway #vegangiveaway #vegancontest #contestalert #canadacontest ♬ original sound – Vancouver Humane Society

Want to win a $300 gift card to Vegan Supply, or other fun prizes?

Here’s how:

✅ FOLLOW @vancouverhumane on TikTok or Instagram.

✅ POST a video or photo on either TikTok or Instagram of you making, presenting, or taste testing a recipe from plantuniversity.ca. Be sure to tag #PlantUniversity.

View recipe library

✅ TAG at least two friends in the comments of your recipe post.

Prizes

???? $300 gift card to Vegan Supply, a personalized signed copy of Easy Animal Free cookbook, and featured on plantuniversity.ca

???? Easy Animal Free cookbook and featured on plantuniversity.ca

???? 5-10 more people’s entries will be featured on the site!

Contest open to those residing anywhere in Canada!
Contest closes at 11:59PM PST September 30, 2023
Winners will be contacted by the VHS via DM

More recipes to try

Chat with a vegan: Dreena Burton, cookbook author and fascial stretch instructor

Chat with a Vegan: Dreena Burton, cookbook author and fascial stretch instructor

As part of our “Chat with a Vegan” series, Emma Levez Larocque sat down and spoke with Dreena Burton. Dreena is a plant-based cookbook author and a yoga and fascial stretch instructor based in Vancouver, British Columbia. We hope you find her experience and advice helpful no matter where you are on your own plant-based journey.

You can follow Dreena across multiple platforms:

If you’re interested in learning more after reading this blog post, you can find great resources on the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity Platform and subscribe to get free plant-based recipes and be notified when the next interview is posted.

Skip to video

How did your vegan journey begin?

I kind of just went through this period in my teenage years where I noticed I wasn’t feeling so good, and that’s when I really started to pay attention to what I was eating.

I was constipated a lot. My digestion didn’t feel good. I was starting to have joint pain problems in my early twenties and I came across a couple of books that opened my eyes. One was Diet for a New America by John Robbins and the other was Fit For Life. Both really opened my eyes to dairy, big time to dairy, and also to not eating meat, and phasing it out. So that’s how I moved into it, was phasing it out. There’s that magic time of about, I think a month, they say to really let the body change and adapt and your palate to open. And that happened for me.

It’s been over 25 years, but I can’t imagine having lived any other way. It was so obscure at the time. And I think living out West gave me a little more opportunity to feel that was accessible because there was more interest in it in the area that we live.

How did you get started writing cookbooks?

I was led into my cookbooks, I’d say largely, from moving out West. And at the time, my husband’s father had had a heart attack and his cardiologist in St. John’s recommended a plant-based diet, which was really unheard of.

I had been working in a marketing position in St. John’s and my heart was not in it at all. I was just like, I cannot see myself doing this for the rest of my life. People said to me, you know, when you talk about food, you light up. I was like, of course I do. Loved it since I was a kid. I knew my parents-in-law were needing help with recipes, and that’s when I just started to sketch things out myself. I wanted to create recipes that I felt like they could use, and they were healthy, whole foods, very low in fat for what health conditions they were going through.

That was the start of it for me. And then I kind of grew with it with every life change in a way, because the next book involves after having our first daughter and trying to incorporate more foods to feed her and those concepts.

How did you start teaching yoga and fascia classes?

 I felt great in my body through food, through diet. That removed a lot of pain and discomfort in my body up until about my 40s. And then things started to change where I was feeling like my joints were hurting and my body just the things I love to do like cooking, for instance, even caused me pain. I thought maybe I’m just missing something like alignment, how to align your body.

So I took yoga and I wasn’t sure if I was going to teach. To me, it was just to learn, but something kind of pulled me into wanting to teach.

So, I just kind of kept on that journey in the background and I was teaching at a studio. But the joint stuff didn’t go away and it was irritating to me because I felt like I’m doing everything right.

And then I came across this work to change your fascia, which really has changed my life because I don’t have the pain anymore. When I talk about fascia work, this is working at the tissues on a deeper level from the inside out. It’s a movement practice, but it’s not yoga.

Everything that we’ve done in our life has shaped the quality and health of our connective tissue. And we want to keep it healthy because if it’s not, it’s dense and dry and not pliable as it should be. It restricts the movement of the limbs. So this is why you have pain. When you can free up the fascia, then the limbs move better. You feel better in your body. And so it’s a really simple formula where you move to create the change from the inside out. It’s the most interesting form of movement that I have.

After a couple of months, I noticed, wow, I can turn my head again. I was like, wow, my tissues feel really different and I’m feeling good in my body again.

So when I started to feel shifts in my body, I can’t explain it other than I felt a draw to it. Just like when I started writing recipes, I felt a draw to it and I’m feeling that with this work.

I’ve had classes that I’ve been running online and now I’m soon to launch a site called Fascia Flo and running zoom classes and video recordings for people to also take.

How do you think healthy veganism and movement are connected?

I feel they’re so interconnected. I feel like you really cannot live well with only one. So let’s say that, because eating a vegan diet, if you’re not really paying attention to the health properties of that vegan diet, if you’re relying a lot, a lot on, we all eat some processed food. If you rely a lot on processed food, then you’re not going to feel good for it.

But similarly, if you’re not moving your body, then you’re also not going to feel good for it. And some people move their bodies all the time and don’t really pay attention to healthy diet. And that, you know, can cause stagnation and issues later on. And also people eat super healthy, but don’t really pay attention to the movement.

We are animals, after all. Species all follow a certain way of eating and they all move. We’re not meant to be as sedentary as we are, and you know, we have to work, we have jobs, we have these things, but we also have to pay attention to what we need to do to balance that out when that is part of our life.

I think when you’re following a plant based diet, you tend to then pull in all these other elements of wellness along the way. If you stay with it, right over time, you want to learn more about this part of wellness. All these little things start to kind of come in and movement’s part of that to me.

What inspires you?

I feel like learning inspires me. I mean, that sounds kind of corny in a way, but I’ve never really idolized people. I’ve looked up to people like I, I would love to meet Dr. Campbell one day. And people who’ve, who’ve taken a different path. even though it was so challenging for them to do so, that’s very inspiring. But also just seeing, you know, people do the things they want to do despite their challenges.

That growth of a human that’s possible is what’s inspiring, and knowing that it doesn’t stop, you know, you remember being in your twenties thinking you know everything, and then you get to your thirties and you think you still know quite a bit. And then you get to your forties and you’re like, I don’t know, I think I’ve got tons to learn. And so you really can keep learning and it’s exciting to keep learning.

This interview from PlantUniversity’s “Chat with a Vegan” series was hosted by Emma Levez Larocque of Plant-based RHN and featured Dreena Burton.

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The best plant-based chocolates from the staff of the Vancouver Humane Society

The best plant-based chocolates from the staff of the Vancouver Humane Society

Delicious chocolates that are also compassionate to animals and the planet are becoming more and more accessible. There are a plethora of plant-based chocolates on the market these days – long gone are the days where one looking to find more humane alternatives to their favourite treats would have to stick to just dark chocolate.

The Vancouver Humane Society team is sharing some of their favourite plant-based chocolates that are arguably even more delicious than their dairy-based counterparts!

After reading, check out this blog post for more tips on going dairy free.

All chocolates can be found at Little Vegan Treats, a BC-based online company that is passionate about finding exciting, satisfying treats, showcasing just how delicious it is to live a vegan lifestyle.

Caroboo Orange Bar
I tried the Caroboo Orange Bar a while back and I really liked it. It reminded me of those chocolate oranges that you smash against a table and then you get little segments. We used to have those at Christmas when I was a kid so it was really nostalgic.
Ishtmeet
HIP Chocolate Bar
I first tried HIP chocolate bars last year and they are so smooth and creamy. I love that they come in several different flavours and my two favourites are Cookies No Cream and Salty Pretzel – the savory and sweet flavours pair together perfectly! I also love that the HIP is part of 1% for the planet.
Claire
Love Raw Nutty Choc Balls
Growing up, I always loved having Ferrero Rocher around the holidays. After I went vegan, I assumed that I would need to find a new tradition. That’s why I was so excited to find the Nutty Choc Balls from Love Raw at a Little Vegan Treats pop-up in Vancouver—they are absolutely decadent and capture all the nostalgia from of my favourite holiday chocolate!
Chantelle
Vego Hazelnut Bar
I love Vego hazelnut chocolate bars. These yummy chocolate bars mix chocolate with hazelnut paste and whole, roasted hazelnuts to create simply the most divine treat on the market! We always have one in the pantry for snack attacks!
Brooklyn
Doisy & Dam D&Ds
I love Doisy & Dam D&D’s crunchy outer shell and nutty and decadent flavour. M&Ms were one of my favourite chocolates as a kid. I would eat them with popcorn when watching movies, so I’m excited to finally have a plant-based version that satisfy tastebuds and align with my values!
Heather
Buttermilk Peanut Nougat Bar
I ordered the Buttermilk peanut nougat bar a while ago. It was sooo good. It tasted just like a snickers bar and was very milk chocolate-like! Now I will think about it all day long!
Katrina

Chocolate recipes to try

Silky chocolate pudding

Silken tofu paired with dates, chocolate and maple syrup are blended up for the ultimate protein-packed pudding.

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OH MY fudgesicle shake

Perfect for when you’re craving something sweet but wanting a healthy snack, this will be your go-to warm weather treat!

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Looking for more inspiration? See all plant-based recipes in the Plant University recipe library and subscribe to receive free weekly recipes!

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Chat with a vegan: Derek Simnett, nutritionist, YouTuber, and athlete

Chat with a Vegan: Derek Simnett, nutritionist, YouTuber, and athlete

As part of our “Chat with a Vegan” series, PlantUniversity’s Brighde Reed sat down and spoke with Derek Simnett. Derek is a Certified Nutritional Practitioner based in Parksville, British Columbia. He also runs a YouTube channel called Simnett Nutrition where he talks about how to live a healthful vegan life. We hope you find his experience and advice helpful no matter where you are on your own plant-based journey.

You can follow Derek across multiple platforms:

If you’re interested in learning more after reading this blog post, you can find great resources on the Vancouver Humane Society’s PlantUniversity Platform and subscribe to get free plant-based recipes and be notified when the next interview is posted.

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Why did you go vegan?

So, I went vegan because of my love for animals. So, it started out as me learning about the animal agriculture industries and how terribly the animals were treated, and I just started to wanna honour my love for them. So, I started to eat more grass-fed meat, and I started to find the free-range eggs and that sort of thing.

Not only did that become expensive, but I started to learn that I wasn’t really saving any animals’ lives. In the end, they were maybe having a slightly better life, but also, there’s some loose regulations around those terms. Let’s say that. So, as I continued, I just started to eat less of them.

I started to feel better and eventually they just completely got off my plate. There was definitely a time where I could not look at what was on my plate and not see the animal that it once was. And I knew once that started happening, every time I thought, ah, I need to completely give this up.

And along with feeling better and starting to perform better, I just thought, ah, this is definitely the way.

Did going vegan inspire you to start a YouTube channel?

I started my YouTube channel to actually bring traffic towards the nutrition consulting services that I was offering at the time. Because I figured what a better way to let people know who I am and give a little bit of free information out there, you know, then start a YouTube channel.

So that’s what I did, but the YouTube channel kind of took off and I decided I really wanted to do that because I figured I could reach a larger audience than doing the one-on-one consulting. And that is how, that’s how it all started. So, it, yes, it kind of did in a sense. I wanted to show people how to live a healthful vegan life.

What do you talk about on your YouTube channel?

My YouTube channel is mostly focused on helping people make healthy, plant-based foods taste good. We can talk all day about the, you know, the minutia and the details and this study says this and this and that, but really, we know that we have to be eating more whole plant foods and a lot of people just don’t know how to make them taste good or they don’t know how to cook them.

And that’s where a lot of people stumble. So, I do that, but I do talk about how much we should be eating, proper supplementation, and that sort of thing as well.

How do you stay in shape as an athlete?

It’s funny hearing someone call me an athlete, but yeah, I guess I am, you know, I do that, I do activities every day. I live a healthy and active lifestyle, so I do definitely go to the gym every single day or at least, you know, five or six times a week. But another big part of me staying, uh, healthy and fit is to exercise outside of that.

And it’s just going for bike rides, you know, jogs. I try and do some sort of movement every day, if not twice a day if I can. The gym is like my main thing though. And there I do a lot of calisthenics and weight lifting.

How do you think being vegan impacts your training?

The one thing that I noticed right away when I went vegan, I was a runner at the time and I had a lot of joint pain in my ankles and just really all over my body. And I noticed quickly that I didn’t have that and I also recovered a lot faster and I could then go for longer runs sooner.

So that was sort of the first thing I noticed. And now I feel like it’s the same thing. I recover really quickly. My muscles hardly ever get sore, so I’m able to continue to train quite often. I don’t get sick very much. So, I think just, you know, a bunch of different reasons.

What’s a day of eating like for you?

Well, I wake up, usually I’ll have warm water or some lemon water, and then I’ll have a bit of toast and peanut butter or maybe just some fruit. Then usually after that I’ll go to the gym. Sometimes I’ll have a cup of coffee in between that, if I don’t have that jump in my step that I like to have.

And, then after that come home, I’ll have a smoothie or just some leftovers, and then I’ll have usually a small lunch, which could be something just like, oh, probably more, more leftovers, like a small stir fry or something like that. And then for dinner, basically the same, but such a wide variety of foods, whether it be, you know, pastas, like I said, stir fries, lots of tofu, tempeh, beans and lentils.

We absolutely love cooking a bunch of stuff in the Instant Pot. So that’s one of my favorite things to do, make stews and chilis and that in there.

What do you eat after a very heavy workout?

Usually a smoothie is what makes me feel the best. I’ve tried to switch it up and eat other things, but I know that smoothies always make me feel best. For a post-workout smoothie, I’ll have a few bananas in it, and then I will have a cup or so maybe two cups of frozen berries.

I’ll have some ginger. I will have some turmeric in there, a little black pepper to help with inflammation and recovery. And I’ll have a scoop of plant-based protein powder and then some sort of source of omega threes like usually either flax, chia or hemp seed in there. And then I try to get some greens in.

Cilantro is one of my favourite. I know people find that weird in a smoothie, but it’s one of my favorite things to have in there. But also, like parsley. And if I don’t have that, handful of kale or just any sort of mixed green.

Check out this smoothie recipe

What’s your favourite vegan protein?

So as far as food sourced protein, that would definitely be tofu or tempeh. I just never seem to get tired of those. Another one that I’ve been eating a lot lately is actually from a British Columbia-based company called Big Mountain Foods. And I’m not sponsored or anything by them, but I love this product that they have.

And it’s actually a soy free tofu, and I believe that they’re the first company to do this least in Canada and they’re making a tofu out of fava beans. And it’s amazing. It’s a really high source of protein and it’s very similar to tofu.

What’s your favourite hack to make cooking easier?

Definitely making large batches of the calorie rich sources of food at one time. If I’m going to have rice and you know, broccoli and maybe some tofu or tempeh for dinner, I will make a whole bunch of rice rather than just making enough for that meal. And then I have some for the next day. And the same thing goes if I’m cooking potatoes or sweet potatoes, squash, lentils. The Instant Pot has been a huge help for us. I don’t like to meal prep because I get tired of eating the exact same food over and over again.

I don’t like to see this thing sitting in the fridge that I know I’m going to eat like four days from now. But, I know if I have something that I can just take a scoop or something of, and then kind of create a meal around that, that’s always really nice for me. So that’s probably the best hack I have.

What advice would you give to a new vegan?

The biggest mistake that I see new vegans make is they just don’t eat enough calories. It’s because whole plant foods are just not as calorie dense as the animal foods.

So, what I usually recommend or I suggest to people is that they check out a total daily energy expenditure calculator. It’s a lot of words, but it’s a T D E E calculator and that takes in both your basal metabolic rate, but also the energy that you expend throughout the day, whether it be at work or at your activities.

You have to plug in like your age, your height and all that sort of thing, so it’s quite accurate. Then if your goal is to, you know, gain weight, obviously you want to be a hundred, 200 calories above that, if you want to lose weight, a hundred to 200 calories below, and then go into a program like Chronometer or MyFitnessPal and track your calories from there. You shouldn’t have to do it for long because you really can get a good idea of how much you’re eating after just a few days of doing it. But I think that’s a really good way.

And then also you can see sort of the nutrient breakdown to see if you’re getting all your nutrients. But I don’t track very closely myself. I just make sure that I eat enough foods from a variety of plant sources every day. Include a few higher protein sources like tofu, tempeh, lentils, beans. That sort of thing.

And yeah, that’s kind of my best advice.

This interview from PlantUniversity’s “Chat with a Vegan” series was hosted by Brighde Reed of World Vegan Travel and featured Derek Simnett of Simnett Nutrition.

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New study shows that plant-based is the future of schools

A new study released shows that one simple change in institutions can make a big impact. 

The study was conducted by Food for Climate League and in partnership with Better Food Foundation, Sodexo, and Boston College. It sought to determine the impact of serving plant-based meals as the “default” at Tulane University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Lehigh University.  

Making plant-based meals the default refers to individuals being served the plant-based meal automatically and having to ask for an animal-based option, instead of the other way around. This strategy helps nudge behavioural change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while still providing consumers choice and keeping consumer satisfaction. 

Key findings from the study: 

24%
reduction in greenhouse gas emissions per day

The number of plant-based options served increased from 30% – 81.5%

With over 235 million university students worldwide who consume around 148 billion meals per year, these results show that a plant-based default can have a huge impact on achieving sustainability goals. 

Making plant-based dishes the default has been shown to be an effective strategy for widespread behaviour change across schools and also other institutions. Another study found that when plant-based is the default instead of part of a separate menu, individuals are 56% more likely to choose that option. For example, in New York City hospitals where plant-based is the default, over 50% of eligible patients are choosing the plant-based option. 

“Having plant-based foods isn’t a buzz or trend, it’s a need and demand that we deliver with creativity and flavour,”

said Brett Ladd, CEO for the Sodexo US Campus Division. 

Learn more about the study: 

https://betterfoodfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Exec-Summary_Serving-Up-Plants-by-Default.pdf

https://vegnews.com/2023/5/students-plant-based-default-school-emissions?mc_cid=d9b34d5d56&mc_eid=ac0251826b

https://us.sodexo.com/media/news-releases/landmark-sodexo-study-in-college.html

Interested in introducing or expanding plant-based menu options at your school, workplace, business or in your community? Learn more about supports we can provide and get in touch! 

Marketing tools and tips
Take the plant-based pledge
Plant-based poll

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