Jay&Joy in London

© Jay&Joy

Cheese Alternatives

France’s “First Plant-Based Creamery” Jay&Joy Now Available in the UK

Paris-based Jay&Joy, which describes itself as the first plant-based creamery in France, creates a range of organic, artisan vegan cheeses from almond milk, cashew nuts, and coconut, and recently celebrated its expansion into the UK market. The product portfolio includes vegan goat’s cheese, camembert, blue cheese, maroilles, feta, parmesan, and grated cheese. Two products — Jean Jacques, a vegan Maroilles cheese, and Jeanne, a vegan “bluish” cheese — are now available through Planet Organic, the leading organic grocery chain, while further products have rolled out into independent stores. Founded in 2015, The Jay&Joy company began with its Jay&Joy laboratory, introducing to the market five products: Jay Nature, Jeta Frais, Jack Pimenté (Spicy Jack), Joy Volcan and Joy Prairie. A year later, the founders opened “France’s …

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Oowee's Classic Christmas Oowee

Classic Christmas © Oowee

Fast Food

UK Chain Oowee Introduces Three New Festive Vegan Products

Oowee announces it is to add three festive vegan products to all menus, entailing both savoury and sweet items. Oowee has enjoyed a successful year, opening a new flagship store in Brighton in March and in July partnering with OmniFoods for the Ocean Burger, a vegan fish fillet burger described as being highly realistic. The new festive dishes launch in all Oowee locations in London, Bristol and Brighton this week and will be on the menus until 4th January. The three dishes are: Oowee’s Classic Christmas: A classic Crispy Chick’n burger, filled with crunchy red cabbage, a creamy stuffing mayo, a hash brown, crispy fried onions, cranberry sauce, and spinach pesto in a bun. Classic Christmas Poutine: A generous portion of fries, Crispy Popcorn Chick’n, …

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really happy chicken burger

© Really Happy Chicken

Fast Food

Vegan Fast Food Shop Really Happy Chicken Ranked 1st on ‘UK’s Top 40 Burger Bucket List’

American style vegan fast food shop Really Happy Chicken has landed at first place on the ‘UK’s top 40 burger bucket list’ with its plant-based Sticky Burger. Debuting in Brighton in 2020, Really Happy Chicken is known for its KFC-inspired menu and South American fast food flair. Selling out within just four hours on its opening day in 2020, the vegan chicken shop serves burgers, grilled wraps, fried vegan chicken wings, and more. Burger bucket list Stag party organiser StagWeb praised Really Happy Chicken on its bucket list saying that its plant-based Sticky Burger is “the perfect blend of sweet and savoury with the sticky BBQ sauce and seriously good vegan chicken”. Really Happy Chicken describes its Sticky Burger as a “crispy, golden fried vegan …

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No Catch Co founders Ed & Kevin

©The No Catch Co

Interviews

The No Catch Co: “Our Mission is to Take On the Fish and Chip Shop Industry”

The No Catch Co was unveiled to great excitement in the UK last month by founders Earthling Ed and partner Kevyn Bourke, who also run London’s biggest vegan restaurant Unity Diner, state: “We believe that enough is enough, and that it’s time for a revolution within the seafood industry.” It’s a worthy and imperative mission; a cause that is increasingly becoming part of consumer consciousness especially in the wake of Seaspiracy. “The British public is absolutely ready for vegan fish and chips” Ed and Kevyn took a quick moment out of their extremely busy schedules to brief us on the UK’s brand new vegan fish and chip shop chain which has debuted in Brighton and has ambitions to expand nationally. Tell us about the decision …

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Flower Burger

©Flower Burger

Gastronomy & Food Service

Flower Burger to Open Second UK Location in Brighton for its Rainbow Burgers

After the successful opening of its first UK store in London, the colorful plant-based burger concept Flower Burger is opening a second location in Brighton. Flower Power boasts highly instagrammable rainbow burgers made of all-natural, vegan ingredients. The Italian plant-based brand opened its Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia location in Spring 2021, joining 20 international outlets, including Amsterdam, London, Los Angeles, Marseille, and Milan. Guests can enjoy a playful space filled with kaleidoscopic graphics at the new Brighton restaurant, based on North Street and opening this November.   Flower Burger has garnered fans across the world with its vibrant vegan burgers, using natural colours like turmeric, spirulina, cherry, and black carrot to create its made-in-house buns, complete with burger patties of seitan and lentils, as well as plant-based …

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BeSaucy founders

©BeSaucy

Products & Launches

BeSaucy: Popular Brighton Chip Shop Pivots Into Vegan Mayonnaise

UK family-run BeSaucy has today launched as a vegan condiments company after being forced to close its popular Belgian-style chip shop in Brighton due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team has been creating its house-made condiments since it opened its chip shop BeFries in 2016 and has now pivoted and rebranded to focus on selling its vegan mayonnaises. Since opening, the shop has offered both vegan and non-vegan condiments, but has focused on its plant-based business after “seeing a gap in the vegan condiment market for fresh, exciting flavours.” The BeSaucy founders created the vegan sauces from a base of aquafaba, organic soya milk and cold-pressed rapeseed oil. It currently offers three flavours; Basil Mayo, Garlic Mayo and Black Truffle Mayo. Dashal Beevers, co-founder and …

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RACHEL HUGH The Vurger

Rachel Hugh ©The Vurger

Company News

The Vurger: “The Challenge of 2020 Has Not Prevented Us From Innovating”

This February, The Vurger secured £1.4M investment for expansion – and a month later, the pandemic hit the UK’s foodservice industry hard. Like many of their peers, The Vurger had to pivot, though still managing to open a new location. At the end of one very unusual business year, Co-founder Rachel Hugh tells us how and why.

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Robin Webb, Founder Vegetarian Shoes

Robin Webb, Founder Vegetarian Shoes (image supplied)

Shoes

Vegetarian Shoes: “We are Using More Natural and Plant-Based Materials Like Hemp and Pineapple Fibres”

Vegetarian Shoes has been a well-recognised part of the Brighton landscape since 1990. Founder Robin Webb began to make shoes and belts out of leather alternatives after leaving art college, when he discovered a synthetic microfibre used in the yachting upholstery which offered the same properties as animal leather.

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Loui Blake

Image courtesy of Erpingham House

Gastronomy & Food Service

UK’s largest Vegan Restaurant Erpingham House Announces Opening Date for Brighton Venue

Two years after opening the largest vegan restaurant in UK, Erpingham House co-founder Loui Blake announces the restaurant’s second location, at 14 Duke street in Brighton. The first location in Norwich was recognised as one of the UK’s top vegetarian restaurants by the Times and was twice nominated by VegFest as restaurant of the year.

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Loui Blake

Image courtesy of Erpingham House

Interviews

Loui Blake: “Our Marketing Strategy Has Driven Customers, and the Product Has Kept Them Coming Back”

Loui Blake is a successful vegan entrepreneur who owns and operates Erpingham House – the UK’s largest plant-based restaurant. He also runs Kalifornia Kitchen in London and has recently completed a crowdfund to open a second restaurant location in Brighton, just 18 months after launching the first.

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Nathalie Crouch Photography

Fashion, Design & Beauty

Brighton Vegan Shoe Shop Wins Awards From UK’s leading Vegan Charity Viva!

Vegetarian shoes / Viva
Nathalie Crouch Photography

At vegan charity Viva!’s birthday fundraising dinner last month, Brighton-based Vegetarian Shoes founder Robin Webb was presented with two awards by Viva! Patrons Peter Egan and Jerome Flynn. Webb received the prestigious ‘Award for Outstanding Loyalty & Commitment as a Business Partner’ and the ‘Award for Excellence and Innovation: Best Vegan Footwear’.

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