ukvegans

London Vegan Festival

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:58:23 GMT

I've just been reminded that it's the London Vegan Festival this Sunday (7th September), Kensington Town Hall, from 11am-8pm. Apparently there is lots of free food and chocolate. I've never actually been due to it always clashing with something else, but the opportunity for free chocolate is not to be passed up! Also it is pleasantly close to Whole Foods so I can nip in there for the Chocolate Spread I Can't Live Without before going. Yay!

If you want to grab me and say "Hi, you're baratron from livejournal!", I look like the picture in the photo. I will also have a small herbivorous stegosaurus and a blue walking stick with me, and strange coloured Vegetarian Shoes fake Doc Martens (can't predict now whether they'll be blue or purple, depends on my mood on the day :P ). I would rather you don't actually call me baratron because that is the name of a foul and arcane piece of lab apparatus, and my actual name is helen-louise.

Animal Free Shopper problems?

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 14:44:05 GMT

Is anyone else having severe trouble accessing the Animal Free Shopper online? I have a functioning login for the Vegan Society's online shop, but I simply cannot get this to be recognised by the Animal Free Shopper site. It's a pain in the arse when I need to know urgently which type of rice krispies are vegan because I'm cooking for people who might be stricter than I am!

URGENT: Homes required for unwanted greyhounds

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 08:16:25 GMT

Hi all, just thought I'd post here on the off chance that some of you might be able to help out or might know someone that could.

Walthamstow greyhound tracks have now closed FOR GOOD. Hooray! However, this means that there are a lot of dogs who need rehoming. If I lived in a pet-friendly establishment then I'd jump at the chance to own one of these gorgeous animals; however, I do not.

Below is a copy of the email that I received this morning. I'll be crossposting it all over the goddamn place...
---------

Following the closure of the Walthamstow greyhound stadium in the UK last Saturday, Greyhound Crusaders/SWAP team UK have been in touch with the person who is in charge of re-homing all the unwanted greyhounds. We have been informed that there are 160-170 greyhounds needing forever homes. 100 of those greyhounds are being kept at a trainers kennels and the rest are being taken in by Retired Greyhound Trust kennels. £150,000 has apparently been given to help the re-adoption of these greyhounds.
Forever homes are now needed. We are not appealing for rescue places at rescue centres as we have been told that the greyhounds are already in rescue and need to go straight to forever homes.
If you would like to adopt a greyhound please email us at greyhoundcrusaders@googlemail.com or southwestanimalprotection@yahoo.co.uk and we will put you in touch with the re-homing co-ordinator. Homechecks will be carried out. If you have cats please advise the rescue as cat friendly greyhounds will be found.
Greryhounds make the most wonderful companions, they are couch potatoes and contrary to popular myth they do not need loads of exercise, two twenty minute walks a day are recommended. Many are wonderful with children and can be great fun to have around.
The mere fact that these greyhounds who are now redundant and are being put up for re-adoption by their owners/trainers prove that these racing dogs are viewed as disposable commoditites!!!

Please, if you have room in your home for another dog please consider adopting a greyhound today.
Please send this very special appeal to all your contacts across the UK for maximum coverage. Please also see the appeal below from Greyt Exploitations.
Many thanks for your support.
Greyhound Crusaders/SWAP team UK
We all make the difference

Your most unusual responses to: "I am Vegan"

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 09:30:49 GMT

What are they?

Just to depress you...

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 22:19:05 GMT

You've probably all seen this: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/7551125.stm

Ever feel like you just want to scream at the stupidity of it all?

Honey

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 10:15:47 GMT

Ok I get the picture, enough about bee cruelty now. What are the alternatives and where can I get them? What Agave nectar like?

Vegan Doughnuts?

Sat, 09 Aug 2008 20:12:06 GMT

I haven't been in the UK for a long long time. I remember that the in store bakeries of the various supermarkets would change the recipes of their doughnuts from time to time and sometimes they would be vegan. I miss those British doughnuts, all we can get here in the US are donuts, and NONE of those are vegan (I hear that US style donuts are taking over there, too).

Now, I have a friend who is traveling to Sheffield soon, and has offered to bring stuff back for me, but I can't find any clue online as to whether Tesco, Sainsbury, or Asda's in store bakery doughnuts are vegan at the moment. Does anyone know?

Soy Milk machines

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 11:27:45 GMT

Hello everyone, I've just joined up to this community!

I thought that perhaps I would ask whether anyone here owns or has used a Soy Milk machines where you put in dried soy beans and it makes soy milk.

I know that there is a lot of undrinkable soy milk out there, so am pretty cautious about buying the wrong one, and all reviews on the Internet seem to be from manufacturers promoting their own products.

Questions from a n00b

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 12:27:59 GMT

I've been toying with the idea of becoming vegan lately - collecting recipes, browsing communities and websites, all that good stuff. It's left me a little curious about people's experiences.

What made you decide to become vegan? How did you approach it - dive right into the deep end or phase things out one by one? Did you create a nice stockpile of vegan food first or did you end up living off of chips and baked beans for a few weeks? What advice do you wish you'd been given when you were just starting out?

At the moment I've been vegetarian for the past six years, but I'm becoming horribly lazy about it - even eating fish occasionally. I'm wondering if going vegan, at least for a little while, will kick me back into being healthy and more conscious about the impact of what I'm eating.

Vegetarian Shoes

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 09:49:30 GMT

If anyone's looking for a bargain, I've just listed some 'Bump' shoes from Vegetarian Shoes in a size 8 on eBay here.

vegan living in halls

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 14:29:55 GMT

Hello everyone! I'm just getting ready to (finally) move out and go to uni, and I'm going to be living in halls at St Andrews University.

As this is my first time living alone and on a budget, I was wondering if you kind folks would be willing to share cheap and healthy recipes with me, preferably quick, as I am a lazy student. I'm not a fussy eater when it comes to vegetables or anything, the only constraints are time and money and the fact that I'm going to be cooking in a crappy shared kitchen in halls.

Also, if anyone from St Andrews or the wider Fife area could tell me where I can find decent vegan food outwith Tesco/Asda. I'm moving down from Aberdeen, so I'm used to having a bunch of awesome places to shop and I have no idea really what St Andrews has to offer. I was a part of the Aberdeen Uni Vegan and Vegetarian Society, does anyone know if St Andrews Uni has one? I haven't seen anything on the student association website... but you never know.

thanks for any/all help!

Guess I'll Take Sandwiches Then

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 12:35:10 GMT

A whole group of us are going on a business trip to the US in September, on US Airways. Our secretary booked a vegan meal for me when she booked the trip on Trailfinders, but they've just called her back to say that the airline have contacted them to say that they don't do vegan meals.

It's not so much that that's pissed me off as their explanation, which is basically:

We now have a stock of vegetarian meals on board for vegetarian passengers, so vegetarian passengers aren't required to book a meal in advance. Because of that, we do not take bookings for vegan meals.

Our secretary was unable to establish whether or not they meant that they couldn't confirm that they would be able to offer me a vegan meal, or whether they would offer me a meal, but couldn't confirm that it would be vegan. I suspect the latter, and think it sounds like maybe they've got a bit confused over the whole vegan/vegetarian thing.

I have no problem with them stocking vegetarian meals. I guess maybe it doesn't occur to many vegetarians to book a vegetarian meal in advance. But I don't see why catering more flexibly to one type of customer requires them to completely stop catering to me. I've flown quite a few times over the last fifteen years, and this is the first time this has ever happened. Kenyan Airways managed to come up with vegan meals. I can't see why an airline from the richest country in the world can't.

But like I said, I'll bring some sandwiches. Just got to hope that they don't get confiscated by security.

Red dye in clothing

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 19:29:56 GMT

Hi, thanks to everyone that helped with my question about vitamin A, I just want to ask though if anyone knows if most clothes in high street stores that are red or have red in them are made with cochineal and so non-vegan?

fword rage

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 20:07:39 GMT

is anyone watching gordon ramsay right now?! my partner had to turn it off for fear i might break the tv! '50 vegetarians wanting to convert to meat eating'...'we'd better not fuck it up for them!'

wtf?!?!

Peppers

Fri, 25 Jul 2008 17:07:19 GMT

Are wrinkly peppers still ok to eat?

Animal Free Shopper (Vegan bible)

Mon, 21 Jul 2008 19:36:17 GMT

Am I right? is the animal free shopper available in the 8th edition now?

Becoming vegan, help wanted

Sun, 20 Jul 2008 15:01:22 GMT

Hi to all. I am looking for some help in going vegan. Like what sort of meals I can cook up easily, I am a man, bear in mind:) But I don't mind a cook up. It is just that sometimes I get in from work and want something easy and quick to make that is not beans on toast or a salad. I am not particularly skilled in the kitchen yet and have no vegan wife who is a great cook, so I turn to you folks...

What sort of things do all you vegans cook for your nightly/weekly meals?

Any other tips in being vegan would be well apprieciated, except for the nutrition stuff which I have had drummed into me already.

By the way, I am not a fan of buying expensive health food shop alternatives. I like fresh and healthy food.

Thanks in advance

g

shopping guides, & vegan bristol

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 01:58:43 GMT

I'm moving to Bristol from NYC this fall (partner is going to grad school at the University of Bristol, & as I have EU citizenship, I will be finding a way to pay our rent ;). I lived in the UK for 2 years (in York) about 10 years ago, but I wasn't vegan then. I know in the US there are tons of vegan shopping guides available & I've seen a bunch online for the UK. At the risk of sounding silly, is there a shopping guide you find more useful than the others? Either because it's more accurate, or more user-friendly (more portable, easier to browse, whatever)? I definitely have to learn new ingredient lingo (like E-numbers!) & would love to hear more about your own personal favorite "who knew it was vegan?" brands likely to be found in supermarkets & convenience stores.

I've of course seen the Vegan Bristol site, but would love to hear anything folks want to share, either on places listed there (ie. "Don't listen to this review, this place is actually terrible" etc.) or more generically--like stores that have a particularly good selection of vegetables &/or ethnic ingredients, etc. If it helps, we're currently looking to find a flat maybe in Easton, Southville, Bedminster, or... somewhere else I've forgotten the name of right now--& open to other suggestions, of course. Anyone belong to any vegetable box schemes? Anyone involved in local vegan/AR groups (or the Bristol Vegan Fayre)? If so, what's it been like? etc. etc.

(& if any folks who know Bristol would be willing to let me pick their brains about life there in general--especially if anyone knows of any cat-friendly flats!!!--please do let me know as well.)

Thanks for any suggestions! Moving overseas as a professional & as part of a couple w/companion animals is v. different from when I was a student--& any info I get helps to calm my pre-moving anxiety!!

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 22:31:28 GMT

I'm off to France on Saturday, and I know it's hardly the most vegan-friendly place in the world, but does anyone have any useful hints or tips for finding food there? I'm planning to take a small amount of food in my rucksack, and it would help to know whether I'll need to take soya milk and lentils if they're going to be difficult to find, or if I can concentrate on taking biscuits and other nice snacks. My French is good enough that I can explain what I do and don't eat, but even though I studied the language for years, I've never actually been there, and I'm coming to realise that I know close to bugger all about present-day France.

I'll be in self-catering accommodation, and will be able to get to a supermarket, so I should be able to pick up enough fruit, vegetables, and carbohydrate-y foods to stop myself from starving, however, I'm not so certain of being able to find protein (peanut butter is out of the question because I'm allergic). Since I'll be working on a conservation project and doing some vaguely physical tasks it would be good to have a more balanced diet.

I'm not expecting anyone to tell me that there's a nice little veggie restaurant in the village I'm staying in (a place called Fressin, near Calais, if you're interested), but I would very much appreciate any knowledge anyone can share about things to watch out for - whether it's a "you should try this" or a "be careful about x".

Vitamin A

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 17:27:24 GMT

Hi, I have the VEG 1 multivitamins from the vegan society. I notice a lack a vitamin A, does anyone know a good vegan source for vitamin A or if there are and vegan multivitamins that include it?

Sensitive vegan soaps/shampoos?

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:17:21 GMT

Hey,

I have excema (had it all my life), and while it's usually not so bad, lately it's really started flairing up. The doctor has suggested I start using sensitive soaps and shampoos. However the only ones I could find after a quick look around all seemed to be from animal testing companies (like Dove).

Could anyone here be so kind as to point me towards some sensitive soaps and/or shampoos that are both vegan, and non-animal tested? I don't mind if it's from normal shops or online shops, either is fine. Thanks so much :)

matt and nat - tk maxx

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 08:16:19 GMT

hi people. i am a massive fan of matt and nat bags as a delicious ethical vegan designer range of bags.. but obviously that designer tag comes with a designer price...

..HOWEVER i'd noticed some tk maxx stores had started having the odd one in, although none that i was hugely in love with... until THIS WEEKEND! i went to the tk maxx in wolverhampton and noticed they had a couple in, so thought i'd check out the tk maxx in birmingham and they had a LOT! i bought two - the metro in a gunmental grey which i've lusted after for months, and another much larger holdall as well. the metro was 19.99 instead of 70ish? and the large bag was 29.99 instead of 90.

it made me a happy vegan bunny, and thought it might make some of you happy too!

Lovely vegan-friendly pizza place in Edinburgh

Sat, 12 Jul 2008 18:34:01 GMT

I've just discovered a delightful Italian restaurant in Edinburgh which does yummy pizzas for delivery, and which can not only make them vegan, but put any veg you fancy on them, all for £6.20 per 12" pizza plus a pound delivery. I got them to tell me all the veg they have this time, wrote them down on the menu for future reference, thought it over, and got red onions, mushrooms, olives, aubergines, fresh tomatoes and courgettes. Very fresh veg, and fresh herbs sprinkled on top as well.

The place is called The Italian Connection, at 84 Bruntsfield Place, 229 0706. Delivery to Southside took 30-45 minutes.

Judean People's Front? We're the People's Front of Judea!

Sun, 06 Jul 2008 14:18:29 GMT

Hello there fellow plant-eaters, I'm here to plug a new community that a friend of mine has just set up: veggie_scotland.

It has been set up as a more local group for veggies of all types living in (or otherwise interested in) Scotland. So it's a slightly different focus from this community, but we're not going all separatist on you - it's kind of like our political system, where there are some issues for a devolved assembly, and others for Westminster (although with any luck our only West Lothian question will be "are there any good organic veg box schemes round here?").