(l-r) Chris Duffy, Otis Duffy, Jacinta Fitzgerald, Rachel Duffy, Beth, and Dave. Vegan Vibes for Indulge. Photo/Andrew Warner
This month the Bay of Plenty welcomes its first vegan food and lifestyle festival, dedicated to showcasing the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle to vegans and non-vegans alike. Karen Clarkson talks to festival creator Rachelle Duffy about the growth of the vegan lifestyle, as well as some of the local business owners who will be featuring their speciality vegan produce and products at the event
Once cointed the 'alternative hippie lifestyle' reserved for devout animal advocates, veganism is now growing in popularity with more people around the world converting to a diet free from cheese, meat, fish and eggs, including celebrities like Bill Clinton, Ellen Degeneres, Gwyneth Paltrow and Serena Williams.
"I think there is a growing number of food choices available to us these days and there is really no reason why people can't explore and choose a lifestyle that has less demands on animals and the environment," says Rachelle Duffy from Little Big Events.
Rachelle is the festival creator and director of Vegan Vibes - the Bay of Plenty's new lifestyle and food festival taking place at Soper Reserve in Mount Maunganui on September 24.
The festival will feature gourmet vegan cuisine from New Zealand's top food trucks, including a vegan beer brewed especially for the event from local award-winning craft brewery Mount Brewing Co Brewery. There will also be local vegan fashion, health and beauty products for purchase and the opportunity to attend intimate and educational workshops to hear stories from other people who have incorporated vegan principles into their lives or businesses.
According to Roy Morgan Research, the proportion of Kiwis who say the food they eat is all, or almost all, vegetarian has grown 27 per cent from 2011 to 2016. Rachelle has also seen the growing awareness and interest in benefits of a meat-free or vegan diet.
"Organising hundreds of artisan food and lifestyle events in the Bay of Plenty, Waikato and Auckland over the last six years, we have seen a growing trend towards families exploring the benefits of a plant-based diet, and moving towards a full-time or part-time vegan diet. People are also engaging online more with wholefood, vegan and organic-focussed blogs and social media and we have seen a number of new businesses that have opened in the Bay on the back of this movement, many of which are stallholders at Vegan Vibes," says Rachelle.
The format of Vegan Vibes has been created for everyone in mind, from full-time dedicated vegans to those just wanting to try great food and drink that has a limited impact on the environment.
Our team consists of only one full-time vegan, so whether you are vegan or not, we encourage everyone to come along. Vegan Vibes will provide everyone within our lifestyle-focussed community a chance to see the amazing products now on offer within the Bay of Plenty and learn why millions of people, including health advocates, celebrities and top sports people, are moving towards this sustainable lifestyle.
The festival also welcomes special international guest Kristin Lajeunesse - the food blogger and author of award-winning website Will Travel for Vegan Food, who has appeared on The Lisa Oz Show (Dr Oz's wife) discussing her choices to become vegan.
"We are super-excited to have Kristin join us at the festival, who will be sharing her experience and insights of leaving her full-time job in favour of a nomadic vegan lifestyle.
She will be giving two workshops during the festival; explaining her journey to becoming vegan 10 years ago and sharing some of her favourite travel tips from her adventures around America eating and reviewing vegan restaurants while living out of her van," says Rachelle.
Vegan Vibes is open to all ages and will provide something for the whole family, including a licensed bar, outdoor cinema, face painting and a bouncy castle for the kids, plus music from New Zealand music act Sal Valentine and the Baby Shakes.
Here are some of the local businesses who will be featuring their vegan products at Vegan Vibes this month.
Vitality Organics 322 Maunganui Road, Mount Maunganui, Owned and operated by Bay of Plenty vegan Dave Wylie
Dave Wylie is a self-described intrepid traveller and has been dedicated to organic food and a plant-based lifestyle for about 18 months. Dave's partner, Maxine, is the brand manager at Vitality Organics and is the owner of eco yoga mat business LittleBabe Eco Yoga Mats. They are both vegan.
On Dave's travels through South America in 2014 he discovered the benefits of superfoods and learnt from locals the importance of living sustainably and organically. He then embarked on a six-month adventure living off the grid in the Daintree rainforest in Australia, which was where his plan for Vitality Organics began.
The brainchild of Dave and Aaron Pearson, the company was established with the intention of helping people realise the power of food as medicine, and utilising nutrient-dense foods into our diet to surpass your own potential. Over eight months, Dave and Aaron set about creating and building from scratch the 'shake shack' trailer, now known as food trailer Vitality Organics. "Our passion at Vitality Organics is to bring people exotic, healthy and flavoursome superfoods from all around the world, to our little trailer in Mount Maunganui," says Dave.
Maxine and Dave have a mutual love of serving nutrient-dense superfood smoothies, slices, salads and soups. Must try: Vitality Organics alkalising green smoothie and the new and exclusive to Vegan Vibes 'Shroom Smoothie'.
Maxine Orange is 23 years old and resides in Papamoa, but is originally from California and the Pacific Northwest.
LittleBabe Eco Yoga Mats is her "passion project", created alongside her partner Dave Wylie (owner of Vitality Organics) and is all about love and respect for our earth and one another.
"We started the business two years ago and at the time, there was no one else creating speciality designed eco yoga mats in New Zealand, so we were thrilled to fill that hole with quality earth-conscious gear.
"We wanted to embody our own life beliefs and values: small batches, sustainably made, quality product, beautiful design and conscious connection at the forefront. Our mats are totally renewable, biodegradable, natural and vegan," says Maxine.
Maxine balances the demands of her yoga mat business with working as the brand manager at Vitality Organics, as well as completing her degree in Holistic Occupational Therapy. She says partner Dave has provided her with many superfood smoothies for the days she is running to back-to-back classes and then into business meetings, and she has loved the benefits of her vegan lifestyle.
"For me, being a vegan is a form of everyday peaceful activism and the decision to becoming a vegan literally happened overnight. "About a year and a half ago, I reached a point of no return. I had learned a certain threshold of information about major corporations, animal suffering, heath factors and the detriment consuming animal products was doing to our earth - so that night I just stopped and have never looked back.
"I feel becoming vegan is more than a diet; it is a lifestyle that shows others that you are interested in positive change and make decisions towards that change every day." What I'm selling: Check out LittleBabe's cork Eco Yoga mats on sale at Vegan Vibes. The mats are natural, thick and non-toxic, have no plastics, PVCs or chemicals, are biodegradable and come in two thicknesses and a range of designs.
be ORGANICS Run by Beth Merrick 6 Tawa Street, Mount Maunganui
be ORGANICS is an organic produce store that opened in May in Mount Maunganui. The store was created by Beth Merrick, who has a love of healthy food and health living. She wanted to provide the Bay of Plenty with whole, fresh and organic foods that are free from nasty sprays and pesticides.
"Having regular access to fruit and vegetables that are untouched by poisons was a driving motivation for opening our doors, giving people the choice to consume ethically, which, in turn, has a more positive impact on the environment and your health," she says.
Having lived overseas for the last 10 years, five of which were in Sydney where there is a strong and established health and wellness scene, she knew how accessible organics were in other parts of the world and it drove her to return to the Bay and join the organic movement in New Zealand.
"The benefits of a plant-based lifestyle allow us to leave much less of an impact on the earth." What's in season? Beth will have a farmers' market-style stall at Vegan Vibes with the latest seasonal, organic produce on offer, grown locally in the Bay of Plenty.