Angelina wrote: Rice, black beans, onion, red pepper, and cilantro. These are the ingredients of Gallo Pinto, a vegan recipe passed down to me from my mother, my grandmother, and many generations before them. Food heritage is meaningful to me: I see it as cultural preservation. From the seeds to our plates, food is more than just fuel. It’s a cultural pursuit rooted in know-how, transmitted from generation to generation. Food connects us to our ancestors’ stories and knowledge. To me, plant-based living strengthens my identity, reinforcing the strings that tether me to my past, my loved ones, and my legacy, despite time and distance.

I grew up on home-cooked traditional Costa Rican foods—with a plant-based twist. First made by my grandmother back in Heredia. Then by my mom in the United States. Our kitchen becomes a classroom when my mother cooks. I inherited my love for plant-based living from my mother and grandparents: descendants of farmers in Costa Rica. No one in my family went to college. Still, they taught me the power of plants and the multidimensional environmental impact on us and the planet. I decided to go vegan when I was 13 years old after learning about the devastating impact of animal agriculture on the environment, our health, and the ethical concerns around animal welfare.

When I started high school, I founded a plant-based club. During the last four years, at our meetings, we exchanged books, volunteered at local farms, and attended virtual panels with speakers examining the impact of plant-based diets. In 2019 I founded GreenMealsProject.org that provides plant-based breakfasts to people experiencing hunger in my hometown. I coordinate a group of 18 volunteers from my school, family, and neighborhoods. In the last three years, we volunteered 1,200 hours, donated 7,000 pounds of food, and raised $12,000. We distribute the plant-based breakfasts on Wednesdays before school starts. We’ve partnered with Trinity Center, a daytime shelter in Walnut Creek, California, to ensure direct access to help the people who benefit from our program the most.

Last summer, I applied for an internship to develop plant-based seafood alternatives at Current Foods. As an intern, I practiced texture profile analysis and chemical tests. I help create plant-based seafood to help minimize the effect of dietary greenhouse gas emissions.

This fall, I’ll attend Stanford University. While this scholarship will lessen the financial burden of my college education, it would be an honor to represent a scholarship and organization whose values align with my morals and lifestyle. I aspire to explore alternative protein classes, study Sustainable Food Systems, and research the future of agriculture at the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability. But ultimately, I want to be a global citizen who recognizes and respects the cultural diversity and ethical values of others while helping sustain and regenerate the environment through the power of food.

The deadline for high school seniors for The Vegetarian Resource Group college scholarships are February 20^th of each year. For details, see https://www.vrg.org/student/scholar.htm

To support The Vegetarian Resource Group scholarships and internships, donate at www.vrg.org/donate

Located in the Cargo District of Wilmington, NC, Mess Hall (https://messhallilm.com/mess-hall-menu/) recently re-opened in their new location which offers family-friendly outdoor seating, a shared yard with the dog-park at Ruff Draft (https://ruffdraftilm.com/), and some delicious vegan eats. The vegan options are limited, but we’re hopeful that through encouragement from the local vegan community, Mess Hall will add a few more vegan options to their menu!

Mess Hall’s current vegan options include the Vegan Smash Burger: roll, veg patty, Kind Cultures vegan cheddar, lettuce, tomato, pickled onion, vegan secret sauce and Vegan Tots: tots, Kind Cultures vegan cheese, vegan secret sauce, pickled onions, green onions. Both feature Kind Cultures vegan cheese (kindculturesvegancheese.com), made locally in Wilmington!

A VRG volunteer local to Wilmington, has reached out to Mess Hall to ask them to add a vegan kids and breakfast option. Reaching out to your local restaurants to request vegan options is an easy and productive form of activism!

Location: 2136 Wrightsville, Ave., Wilmington, NC 28403

Telephone: 910-604-4927

Website: https://messhallilm.com/mess-hall-menu/

Facebook: https://facebook.com/mess.hall.ilm

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mess_hall_ilm/

photo from Neat Burger

The Vegetarian Resource Group maintains an online Guide to Vegan/Vegetarian Restaurants in the USA and Canada. Here are some recent vegan restaurant additions. The entire guide can be found here: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

To support the updating of this online restaurant guide, please donate at: www.vrg.org/donate

Here are some new additions to VRG’s guide:

Betty’s, 3604 N. May Ave., Ste. E, Oklahoma City, OK 73112

Take-out salads, hot entrees, burger, tacos, desserts, smoothies, and Betty’s Lemonade.

Neat Burger, 25 Cleveland Pl., New York, NY 10012

Neat Burger is a trendy vegan burger joint with locations around the UK and now the USA. This is the perfect place for a quick vegan burger, hot dog, sandwich, salad, or shake! Their signature “Neat Burger” includes a double Neat Patty, vegan cheese, caramelized onions, tomato, lettuce, pickles, and their special Neat Sauce, served on a brioche bun. If you’re looking for something spicy, you can try their “Buffalo Chick’n” sandwich or a side of their “Spicy Corn Ribs.” Their specialty vegan shakes are made with a creamy oat base, and offer flavors such as Double Chocolate, Oreo, Strawberry, Caramel, or Original.

Southern Squeeze, 1301 Dorchester Rd., Ste. 101, Chattanooga, TN 37405

Southern Squeeze has a bright atmosphere with tons of greenery decor. They serve all juices, waffles, salads, sandwiches, smoothies, smoothie bowls, and even coffee and tea. Their most popular menu items include the “Aztec Bowl” with quinoa, housemade vegan taco “meat,” herb cashew cheese, avocado, seasonal veggies, and lime vinaigrette, as well as their vegan “Poke Bowl” with seasonal veggies, avocado, quinoa, kelp noodles, nori, and spicy vegan “mayo.” Southern Squeeze is right by Riverview Bird Sanctuary in Dorchester, TN!

Sun of a Vegan, The Hickory Ridge Mall, 3707 South Hickory Ridge Mall #458, Memphis, Tennessee 38115

A prime destination for vegan comfort food, Sun of a Vegan offers burgers, nachos, quesadillas, tacos, chili, and desserts. Be sure to try their Philly Cheesesteak, Oyster Mushroom Basket, Taco Trio, and Signature 5-Layer Lasagna. Their dishes are characterized as being flavorful, well-seasoned, and generously sized. Additionally, the storefront is wheelchair accessible and compostable containers are available.

The Baklava Lady Café & Bakery, 34 Main St., Englishtown, NJ 07726

Enjoy a large selection of soups, salad, sandwiches, snacks, many Turkish (e. g., Pomegranate Ricotta Birds Nest, Chocolate Hazelnut Baklava) and non-Turkish desserts, and a variety of hot and iced drinks.

Turkish-style baklava, brunch dishes, and baked goods made fresh daily. Baklava trays available for events.

UNiQ Burger, 7730 E McDowell Rd Suite 108-B, Scottsdale, AZ 85257

A no-frills burger joint with a simple but scrumptious menu. Don’t miss the Southwest Burger or the Fully Loaded Fries. The former had lots of fresh avocado and sauce, a good mixture of crunchy onion strings, lettuce, and onion, and just the right amount of spice due to jalapeños being folded into the bun. The fries seemed to be perfectly seasoned and prepared as well; they were hot and crispy but not too oily. Other sought-after options include the Ginger Salad, the UNiQ Burger, and the Parmesan Truffle Fries. Please note that gluten-free options are available and the location is wheelchair accessible.

Wild Heart Bistro, Belvedere Square Market, 529 E. Belvedere Ave., Stall M-2, Baltimore, MD 21212

Located in Belvedere Square Market near the Senator movie theater, Wild Heart Bistro offers a large selection of salads, sandwiches, bowls, and desserts. For example, try their Italian inspired Buddha Bowl or their Bean Burger. Seating is available in the building and outside, weather permitting.

Recent topics brought up include:

– The Vegetarian Resource Group sent in testimony to the FDA on the labeling of plant-based milk alternatives. See: https://www.vrg.org/blog/2023/04/08/vrg-sends-in-testimony-to-the-fda-on-the-labeling-of-plant-based-milk-alternatives/

– A coalition of nutrition and conservation organizations is seeking parents who have tried to access non-dairy milk for their child from their local school.

– VRG’s Essay Contest for Children

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VRGparentsandkids is intended to be a group that offers support for families raising children on vegan diets and for vegan kids around the world. We envision it as a place to get advice about a wide-variety of topics: pregnancy, birthday parties, school lunches, Halloween, non-leather apparel, cruelty-free products, summer camps, and more. Please use it as a place to share your wisdom, seek advice, or just find a sympathetic ear. The goal is to offer support.

Consequently, any profane, defamatory, offensive, or violent language will be removed. Feel free to disagree, but do so respectfully. Hateful or discriminatory comments regarding race, ethnicity, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, or political beliefs will not be tolerated. We expect that posts should relate to vegan diets and lifestyles. The Vegetarian Resource Group reserves the right to monitor all content and ban any user who posts in violation of the above rules, any law or regulation, SPAM, or anything otherwise off topic.

Please share this information with any veggie families that you know! Thanks.

Pizza Verde Fort Worth TX

The next time you’re in Fort Worth, Texas, you might want to enjoy dinner at one of these vegan restaurants:

Belenty’s Love 3516 Bluebonnet Cir., Fort Worth, TX 76109

Vegan/Mexican. Belenty’s Love serves a large assortment of vegan Mexican food including breakfast all day, salads, tacos, and smoothies. For breakfast order the tofu and potatoes breakfast burrito or the blueberry French toast made out of thick Texas toast. For lunch or dinner, try the cauliflower wings served with celery and covered in delicious barbeque sauce. For your main dish, order the enchilada plate topped with cheese and tasty sauce. This plate also comes with lentil soup, black beans, and a small side salad. The enchiladas are mouthwatering and filling. Another great option is the “ceviche”: 2 tostados topped with mushrooms, tomatoes, red onion, avocado, and cheese. Be sure to order one of their delicious smoothies. For dessert, try the sopapilla with fruit, the Mexican version of a donut or beignet. This delicious fried dessert will be the perfect end to your meal.

Boulevard of Greens 2700 Horne St. #110, Fort Worth, TX 76107

Vegan. Their menu includes bowls, pumpkin pie, cookies, muffins, juices, and more.

Pizza Verde 5716 Locke Ave., Fort Worth, TX 76107

Vegan/pizzeria. Pizza Verde offers margherita, potato leek, and Verde pizzas, plus so much more. Also enjoy Bruschetta or a house salad.

Spiral Diner & Bakery 1314 W. Magnolia Ave., Fort Worth, TX 76104

Vegan/organic/diner/bakery. Spiral Diner & Bakery offers an extensive menu of comfort foods at great prices and the best part is — it’s all vegan! Enjoy salads, wraps, burgers, burritos, sandwiches, entrées, and desserts. Menu items include Sketti & “Meatballs,” Red Curry Coconut Noodles, Jamaican Jerk BBQ San’ich, Philly Cheez Steak, and soft serve floats. The owner donates a portion of the restaurant’s profit to local grassroots organizations that are fighting for human, animal, and environmental causes.

If  you’re traveling elsewhere in the USA or Canada, be sure to visit The Vegetarian Resource Group’s online restaurant guide: http://www.vrg.org/restaurant/index.php

photo from Shake Shack

According to AOL, Shake Shack is adding permanently to its menu a veggie burger and nondairy shake. See https://www.aol.com/finance/shake-shack-leans-veggie-burgers-120041981.html

Shake Shack says on their website:

We have a few options for Vegetarians and Vegans!

-Our new Veggie Shack is a meatless patty packed with veggies and topped with American Cheese, crispy onions, pickles, and ShackSauce! Make it Vegan by removing the Cheese, ShackSauce, and Crispy Fried onions, and requesting a lettuce wrap or gluten-free bun.

Veggie Shack

-Our Non-Dairy Chocolate Custard or Shake is made with creamy plant-based non-dairy frozen custard made with NotMilk™

-Our Fries are also Vegetarian and Vegan friendly!

See https://shakeshack.com/faq?a=What-vegetarian-or-vegan-options-do-you-have—id–BjalMAUDQDiC1tE9cMJgHQ

By Anna Markulis, VRG Intern

Keith Akers’ new book, Embracing Limits, is an enjoyable and intriguing read that offers a unique perspective on the environmental crisis that our generation is faced with and will continue to be affected by in the future. Akers argues the cause of environmental destruction, at its core, is the human desire for limitless growth and expansion. He explains that the most effective solution we can do as humans is to “embrace limits” and relinquish our near unquenchable desire for expansion and growth.

I appreciated Akers introduction of the book which gives a detailed history of the environmental movement and how it has changed over time. This includes the rise of the Conservation Movement of the late 19th century, the environmentalism movement that gained traction in the 60s and 70s, and the most recent wave of environmentalism, the Climate Justice Movement. While all these major movements made at least some sort of progress, Akers argues that they have inevitably failed to address the root of environmental destruction. Akers explains that in order to contain our desire for expansion, it is essential that we embrace limits and understand their necessity. Our current economic and political systems are based on the idea of unlimited growth, which is an unsustainable and unrealistic assumption with our current rate of environmental degradation.

Akers does not simply lecture the reader on these issues, he provides practical and helpful solutions, or “limits,” that we can all embrace in our daily lives. These limits go beyond the basic recycling and electric cars. The most prevalent solution Akers suggests is to limit our consumption of meat and animal products, and to instead adopt a plant-based diet. This is wonderful news to all vegetarians and vegans alike. A plant-based diet is not only beneficial to humans’ health, but has a positive impact on the environment. He argues that animal agriculture has a negative impact on the environment, through deforestation, water pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions. Akers admits that though some people may find it challenging to completely give up meat and animal products, it is most important that we make efforts to reduce our overall meat consumption as a means of helping to solve our environmental crisis.

I’d recommend Embracing Limits to anyone who feels stumped about what they can do to help solve our environmental crisis. He provides practical everyday solutions backed by science and research. Just as Akers suggests in this book, sometimes the answer is truly so simple, yet massive. Instead of thinking of solutions in terms of expansion and innovation, we should instead set limits and embrace them for a healthier planet and human population.

You can purchase Embracing Limits here: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/embracing-limits-keith-akers/1143247893

By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Would you like to know if a food product has been recalled due to contamination with Salmonella, Listeria, or other concerns? Are you interested in knowing if a product was incorrectly produced so that it has nuts or eggs or other ingredients in it even though the label does not list these ingredients?

If you answered yes to either of these questions, consider signing up for FDA’s Recalls, Market Withdrawals, and Safety Alerts. When an alert is issued, you’ll get an email. To sign up, go to Recalls, Market Withdrawals, and Safety Alerts and fill in your email. On the next page, under Recalls and Safety Alerts, select FDA Foodborne Illness Outbreak Investigation if you’re interested in learning about products contaminated with bacteria and other substances. Select Recalls, Market Withdrawals, and Safety Alerts if you’re interested in learning about products that have been recalled for labeling and other issues. Once you’ve made your choices, click submit.

Alternatively, you can go to FDA’s Recalls, Market Withdrawals, and Safety Alerts page and search for recalls by product type (for example, Food & Beverages). You can then select the Brand Name to read more details about the recall. This could provide useful information for someone following a vegan diet or who has food allergies. In the past, I’ve learned of seemingly vegan products including pretzels and dark chocolate where a batch of the product that contained cow’s milk was distributed in packaging that did not reveal the presence of cow’s milk.

To read more about food labeling by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) see:

Allergy Information on Food Labels

Deciphering Food Labels

What’s Going On with Daily Values on Food Labels?

More About the Updates to the Daily Values on Food Labels

Puzzling Nutrition Information on Food Labels

The Vegetarian Resource Group is a vegan activist non-profit organization that does outreach all-year-long. For example, VRG has been participating in numerous virtual events by providing speakers on a wide variety of vegan topics. We also send literature free of charge to other groups/individuals doing educational activities in schools, hospitals, camps, restaurants, libraries, offices, etc. Our ability to continue doing this depends on people like you! Your donations allow us to promote the vegan message whenever we’re called upon for assistance. Please consider becoming a monthly, quarterly, or single-time donor to The Vegetarian Resource Group.

Thanks so much for your support. You can make a donation online here: www.vrg.org/donate

By Anna Markulis, VRG Intern

I had a positive, educational, and meaningful internship experience with The Vegetarian Resource Group Spring semester 2023. As a senior at Loyola University Maryland majoring in Communications and minoring in Environmental Studies, I was tasked with finding an internship combining these two fields in the Baltimore area. The Vegetarian Resource Group did just that, and I am so grateful for this opportunity and work experience. Not only did I get to experience the kind of writing and communication work I’d expect in a job setting, I had the opportunity to connect with some amazing people from around the world, and feel as though I made some sort of positive impact on nature, animals, and the environment by helping such a great organization.

When I began my internship in January, Charles gave me an outline of the entire internship, got me in contact with everyone I would be working with, and allowed me to select my own due dates for each project. I was so used to following a curriculum with due dates established by a teacher, so this was a great learning experience for organizational and planning skills. In the beginning of the semester, Charles sent me so many interesting articles and readings on vegetarianism’s positive impact on the environment, and was eager to learn more about why I’m interested in vegetarianism and sustainability.

The first project I was tasked with was reviewing a local vegan restaurant of my choice. My little sister and I made a fun trip out of it, and visited the lunch restaurant at MOM’s Organic Market. We tried the vegan veggie sandwich, which ended up being one of the best sandwiches my sister and I had ever eaten! I reviewed the sandwich, took photos, and my blog review post was published on VRG’s Facebook page. In addition to reviewing restaurants and assisting Debra with the vegan restaurant guide, Rissa sent me some vegan snacks in the mail for me to review for “Veggie Bit” posts, which were both so delicious.

When I first got in touch with Charles, he asked me for five short term goals. One goal I mentioned was to finally try out a recipe from Linda McCartney’s vegan cookbook, and I ended up being able to cook and review a vegan gingerbread recipe for a project. I had so much fun with this task, and I even learned a bit about copyright rules while writing my review.

I was also given the chance to read and respond to high school seniors’ scholarship essays, which gave me such a deeper look into why young people today are deciding to eat a plant-based diet. It was so interesting to get a glance into some of the amazing vegetarian/vegan activism young people are capable of within their communities. I noticed a trend among the essays – most students are going vegan/vegetarian for the environment! Charles let me read scholarship essays from 20 years ago to compare students’ motives and write a blog post about it. I also was able to showcase my love for graphic design and created a poster to promote the VRG’s scholarship essay contest which I loved creating.

Additionally, I had the opportunity to interview Dr. Simon Brown, a Philosophy professor at Johns Hopkins, to discuss animal consciousness, and how our misconceptions have alerted the way we view ourselves, animals, and nature which I found so compelling. I wrote a piece on our discussion, and related it to vegetarianism and environmentalism. Charles also gave me the opportunity to speak with a German exchange student, and we compared the attitudes towards the environment of young people in Germany and America. Lea was so kind and intelligent, and I’m so glad I could connect and speak with her about this topic.

One of my favorite experiences of the internship was being able to participate in Loyola’s Earth Day event on the quad. Charles helped me run a VRG table with Vegan Journal magazines, flyers, and buttons, and it was such a great way to celebrate Earth Day and promote vegetarianism/veganism.

Overall, I am so grateful for my internship experience at The Vegetarian Resource Group. Even though I am graduating Loyola in May, I will gladly volunteer and stay in contact with The Vegetarian Resource Group. I would recommend this internship to any student, as this has been such a positive and valuable experience that I feel proud of being a part of.

For information about VRG internships, see https://www.vrg.org/student/index.php

To support VRG internships, scholarships, and youth outreach, donate at https://www.vrg.org/donate