Ukraine

Vegan military rations developed by Every Animal and proposed to the Ukraine's Ministry of Defence

Proposed vegan meal ready-to-eat (MRE) © Every Animal
Politics & Law

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense to Include Vegan Military Rations From December 2024

Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense has announced plans to include kosher, halal, and vegan military rations starting from December 2024. The new ready-to-eat foods aim to meet the needs of military personnel, respecting their beliefs, health considerations, and ethical principles. They will be introduced following the completion of the development and approval process. According to the announcement, consultations have already occurred with various religious leaders and communities, and animal rights organizations such as Every Animal and UAnimals, which contributed to developing vegan rations with similar calorie content, nutritional value, ease of preparation, and price as traditional meals. Halyna Litosh, director of DOT project portfolio management, shared: “As a part of the Euro-Atlantic family, we must adopt an inclusive culture and strive to meet the needs of the …

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Team of Lviv Vegan Kitchen in front of their building

© Lviv Vegan Kitchen
Charity & Campaigns

Project Update: Vegan Meals For Refugees in Ukraine

vegconomist has been supporting the Lviv Vegan Kitchen project since April 2022. The Lviv Vegan Kitchen team provided Ukrainian war refugees and soldiers with vegan meals. To date, with the help of our readers and the matching grant from the Karuna Foundation, which doubled every donation up to the sum of 20,000 US dollars, we have been able to raise a total of €44,600 for Lviv Vegan Kitchen. Project Update: Lviv Vegan Kitchen Ends Refugee Aid – Support for Vegan Soldiers Continues The following changes have led to Lviv Vegan Kitchen’s decision to terminate all processes related to refugee support: Their chef joined the armed forces Difficulties in recruiting employees (this is a problem faced by all Ukrainian employers; there are literally fewer and fewer …

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&JOY

© &JOY
Facts & Figures

&JOY: Vegan Desserts From Ukraine With No Gluten or Refined Sugar

&JOY is a Ukrainian company offering plant-based desserts made from nuts, seeds, and fruit. The brand’s entire range is free of gluten and refined sugar. A huge selection of over 100 products is available, such as cakes, cheesecakes, candy bars, cookies, and brownies. Examples include the strawberry yogurt cake, peanut nougat bar, cherry brownies, and passionfruit cheesecake. &JOY has partnerships with more than 120 coffee shops in Kyiv and the wider region, and the desserts are also available direct-to-consumer. The brand claims to have sold over 110,000kg of products in the past four years. The desserts can be ordered from &JOY’s website. They are shipped frozen and can be kept in the freezer for up to 180 days. Plant-based Ukrainian brands Many Ukrainian plant-based producers …

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Green Go steak

© Green Go

Startups, Accelerators & Incubators

Ukraine: Green Go Creates Realistic Plant-Based Shrimp, Calamari, Ribeye Steak, Filet Minon and More

Ukrainian food startup Green Go is set to host a tasting event and Q&A session with a select group of investors, media, chefs, charities, and other industry partners at the ProVeg HQ in Berlin on Thursday, February 2nd. Green Go will showcase samples of its realistic plant-based shrimp, salmon burgers, calamari, and whole cuts including “ribeye steak” and “filet mignon”, prepared by vegan chef and blogger Alexander Flohr, author of the cookbook Vegan Ocean. Besides tasting the startup’s products — not yet available in restaurants, retail, or food service outside Ukraine — attendees will have the opportunity to talk to Founder Alexandr Panasiuk, CEO and Creative Director  Bogdana Leonova, and Head of Food Technology Maria Manturova. ProVeg Incubator Green Go was founded in 2021 by …

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adm workers in a farm field during the day

© ADM
Science

Study: Plant-Based Diets Could Improve European Food Security in Wake of Russia-Ukraine Conflict

A study published in the journal Nature Food has analysed the potential impact of the largely plant-based planetary health diet on European food security. There are increasing concerns about food resilience in Europe and worldwide, following supply chain issues caused by extreme weather, COVID-19, and the Russia-Ukraine conflict. This has led to a significant spike in the price of food and fertilisers. The study argues that this problem is exacerbated by the consumption of animal products in Europe, which is significantly higher than is recommended for environmental and health reasons. Large quantities of imported grain are used to feed farmed animals rather than humans, which is said to be an inefficient use of resources. Far-reaching impact According to the researchers, a large proportion of crops …

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aquafaba

© Aquafaba.space

Charity & Campaigns

Ukraine’s Aquafaba.space Launches Crowdfunding Campaign For Egg White Replacer

Aquafaba.space, a plant-based egg white replacer startup from Ukraine, announces the launch of a crowdfunding campaign on the platform Indiegogo to determine the demand for its product. Aquafaba.space announced the start of its crowdfunding campaign to gauge interest in its product. The campaign has a global reach due to the international interest in the company’s product creation. The company says that Ukrainian animal rights group UAnimals will receive 10% of the money raised. The goal of the organisation is to “give the feeling of protection and safety to those who cannot take care of themselves” by protecting animals who suffer from war and brutality. Freeze-dried aquafaba Aquafaba in powder form that has been freeze-dried comprises the startup’s flagship product. The liquid that remains after cooking …

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PureField Ingredients wheat blue

©PureField Ingredients

Studies & Numbers

ProVeg Report Reveals Impact of Ukraine War on Plant-Based Sector

With conflict continuing in Ukraine, food awareness organization ProVeg International surveyed European plant-based firms about the impacts of the crisis on plant-based industry. The report, which surveyed 31 European countries between 1st and 20th April, finds that 61% have seen higher prices for raw ingredients, with the same number reporting supply shortages. In particular, there is a scarcity of sunflower oil as Ukraine is the world’s biggest exporter of sunflower oil. 61% reported higher prices for raw ingredients. 61% reported a shortage of raw ingredients. 64% reported higher energy and transportation costs. 64% reported a lack of availability of transport and truck drivers. 59% thought higher ingredient and energy prices would lead to an increase in product prices. 69% said that it will remain difficult …

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Charity & Campaigns

Double Your Donation: Vegan Meals For Refugees in Ukraine

Vegconomist is supporting a vegan meals project for refugees in the Ukrainian city of Lviv (read more about it here), where tens of thousands of refugees come from other parts of the country. You too can help with your donation. And thanks to the Karuna Foundation, your donation will be doubled, up to an amount of €10,000.   E.g.: You donate €50. The Karuna Foundation will also donate €50, totalling €100   Vegconomist readers already donated thousands of euros and those will be doubled by the Karuna Foundation as well, as part of this €10,000 matching grant.   If you would like to support Lviv Vegan Kitchen, please donate: Or via bank transfer to a special vegconomist account, the donation will be given to the project Lviv …

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VegaMilk

©Vitmark

Beverages

Vitmark Ukraine Continues to Produce Plant-Based Milk Despite Conflict

Vitmark Ukraine informs us on request that the company continues to supply milk alternatives to customers in Ukraine and abroad. Despite difficult conditions and logistical problems, production continues. Vitmark is one of the largest Ukrainian producers of juices, soft drinks and baby food and exports to 25 countries globally. Prior to the Ukrainian conflict, the company has invested five million Euros in creating a milk alternative startup under the brand name Vega Milk, which is available in 11 varieties with a focus on local oat and buckwheat. Speaking to vegconomist in March of 2020, the company explained that plant-based milk is still far more expensive than cow’s milk in Ukraine but this situation is is expected to change as the country’s Gen X begins to …

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vegan garlic kyiv

© Finnebrogue
Politics & Law

Better Naked to Donate 50% of Vegan Garlic Kyiv Profits to Ukraine Relief Effort

UK plant-based brand Better Naked, owned by Finnebrogue, has announced that 50% of profits from its vegan Garlic Kyiv will be donated to the humanitarian effort in Ukraine. Better Naked has also renamed the product, formerly called the Garlic Kiev, in solidarity with the Ukrainian people. Chicken kievs originate from the Ukrainian capital, which was known as Kiev in the days of the Soviet Union but is now often spelled Kyiv at the request of the Ukrainian government. Better Naked’s vegan Garlic Kyiv contains a pea-protein-based chicken alternative covered in plant-based garlic butter sauce and coated in breadcrumbs. Finnebrogue will split half of the profits from the product between Unicef and the Red Cross. Ukraine conflict The conflict in Ukraine has had serious consequences for …

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PureField Ingredients wheat blue

©PureField Ingredients

Politics & Law

Conflict in Ukraine to Cause Spike in Food Prices Worldwide

The G20’s Agricultural Market Information System (AMIS) has warned that the current conflict in Ukraine will bring a spike in food prices that will threaten food security globally. Russia and Ukraine together produce 29% of the world’s wheat, along with 19% of corn and a huge 80% of sunflower oil. The countries are also key producers of fertilisers and fuel, both important for agriculture. AMIS has urged G20 countries to avoid imposing sanctions on Russia that could disrupt food trade flows, with a particular emphasis on ensuring that those in low-income countries have adequate supplies of affordable food. However, food security is still likely to be affected by the conflict, as there may be disruption to crop production. The news comes at a difficult time …

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Charity & Campaigns

Help Ukraine – How to Donate Now For the Ukranian People and Animals

The people and animals in Ukraine need our help. The vegconomist team would be happy if you could support one of the following organisations with a generous donation. Thank you very much. Nova Ukraine: An non-profit organization focused on bringing humanitarian aid to vulnerable populations in Ukraine and spreading awareness of issues facing its residents to concerned parties in the United States. They are taking donations via Paypal, check, or cryptocurrency. Viva! Poland: Adopting animals at the border that need help. Our activists from Viva! Poland waited 24 hours to pick up dogs, and the Ukrainian woman who saved them drove with them for over a day. The food collection is still ongoing, details at https://viva.org.pl/apelujemy-o-pomoc-dla-podopiecznych…/ Support our activities by donating account number 53 1500 …

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