Food-tech company Eat Just, creator of the vegan egg product, debuted two new television commercials as part of the campaign, starring Williams and Gyllenhaal respectively.

The adverts, narrated by actor JB Smoove, poke fun at the lengths celebrities go to in order to maintain their health and fitness. But with JUST Egg, the commercials suggest, eating healthily (and sustainably) is easy.

Like all plant-based foods, JUST Egg is completely free from cholesterol. It also contains 69 percent less saturated fat than chicken eggs, and boasts five to seven grams of protein per serving (depending on the product).

The eggs, made from mung beans, are also kinder to the planet. As of April, Eat Just had sold the equivalent of 250 million eggs, saving 9.1 billion gallons of water in the process.

It also spared 43.6 million kilograms of CO2e and 13,446 acres of land.

Celebrity endorsement

Speaking about the campaign, Williams said: “I eat to live, so JUST Egg helps me feel and perform better. But it’s also delicious – I don’t think my family can even taste the difference between JUST Egg and chicken eggs.

“I’m also all-in on the mission: how can we make healthy, sustainable options accessible to everyone?”

The athlete, who has 23 grand slam victories to her name, is also a shareholder in the company, something Williams says she’s “proud” of.

“JUST Egg is making a real difference,” she added.

Gyllenhaal – who has worked on near to 60 movies, including Donnie Darko and Nightcrawler – is also an investor in the brand.

“I’m excited to be partnering with JUST Egg,” he commented. “I’m eating more plant-based for my health, and JUST Egg makes it easy and delicious.

“I also recognize the impact our food system has on our planet, so JUST Egg’s mission is important to me. And, honestly, who can turn down being narrated by JB Smoove?”

The new ads will air on television in major markets, including Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York City. They will also appear nationwide on connected TV platforms and social media, while billboards of the collaborations will pop up in hard-to-miss locations.

The post Serena Williams And Jake Gyllenhaal Star In New TV Adverts For Vegan Eggs appeared first on Plant Based News.

In each decade, Hart serves up a Beyond Meat burger to comedian Will “Spank” Horton.

“Traditions keep us connected to our past, but we have to make decisions for our future,” he says in the commercial. “We’ve gotta go beyond tradition, make changes that are better for the planet.”

“Eating plant-based is actually fighting climate change,” he continues. “Sometimes we don’t look for the most obvious things we can change, and I don’t know why. Some things should be easy, like eating Beyond Meat. Changing the world one burger at a time.” 

Changing up traditions

Founded in 2009, Beyond Meat’s products hit the shelves for the first time in 2012. While the brand’s products are entirely plant-based, its target audience is not vegans. Instead, it wants to encourage more meat-eaters to swap out beef burgers for plants.

And it’s working. In 2018, the brand released data revealing that 70 percent of its customers were actually meat-eaters.

With the new Hart commercial, Beyond Meat is continuing to nurture that customer base. 

“Our consumer testing found that Kevin resonated with non-plant-based consumers,” Beth Moskowitz, Beyond Meat’s chief brand officer, told Adweek. “He makes plant-based eating very approachable.”

Hart’s decision to show a backyard barbecue in the commercial was intentional. For many, it’s a summer tradition where friends and family gather to eat a meat-heavy feast. But Hart, who has reduced his own meat intake, maintains it doesn’t have to be that way.

He said: “I love that my family and I can enjoy all the foods we love, like grilled burgers in the backyard, but do so in a way that’s better for us without feeling like we’re sacrificing anything.”

The video (and shorter variations of it) will appear on digital, social, and connected TV, as well as TikTok. Beyond Meat and Hart will also host pop-ups and sampling events together to promote the products.

The post Kevin Hart Teams Up With Beyond Meat For New TV Advert appeared first on Plant Based News.

Inspiring people to take the climate crisis seriously

The actor is passionate about fighting the climate crisis. He has created his own documentaries to raise awareness of global warming, like 2016’s Before the Flood. He frequently invests in sustainable, plant-based brands (vegan snack company Hippeas, for example). Plus, he uses his platform to advocate for climate action.

In 2016, DiCaprio received the Academy Award for Best Actor in The Revenant. In his acceptance speech, DiCaprio spoke of the need to take climate crisis action seriously. The next day, Google searches for “climate change” rose 261 percent.

Using the power of cinematography combined with harrowing testimonials (including the perspectives of indigenous people who live in some of the most climate crisis-impacted areas of the world), Eating Our Way to Extinction intends to have a similar effect on viewers.

Last year, director Otto Brockway and producer Mark Galvin told Plant Based News: “Most of the modern world has somewhat lost that connection to nature and to the planet in some way.”

“[Indigenous] people very much still live in tune with nature and they see the cycles of the Earth and the cycles around them that have been relatively stable for hundreds and maybe even thousands of years – suddenly changing.”

Among other issues, the hard-hitting documentary focuses on ocean dead zones, greenhouse gasses, deforestation, species extinction, and plastic pollution, all of which can be tied back to animal agriculture.

Eating Our Way to Extinction is available to stream on Prime Video.

The post Leonardo DiCaprio Encourages 53 Million Followers To Watch This Climate Crisis Documentary appeared first on Plant Based News.

The review draws attention to neuroscientific research, delivering a damning conclusion: elephants living in unnatural captive environments suffer from captivity-caused brain damage.

Ricky Gervais, vegan animal rights advocate and celebrity comedian, is calling for all elephants to be released to accredited sanctuaries where they can live a more natural life.

“Elephants are sensitive, emotional, and highly intelligent beings — seeing them suffer mentally and physically behind bars is heartbreaking,” said Gervais.

The #1 worst zoo of 2021

Edmonton Valley Zoo in Alberta, Canada, has been identified as the worst zoo of 2021. The facility has held 46-year-old Asian elephant Lucy in solitary confinement for the past 15 years. 

Bob Jacobs, Ph.D., professor of neuroscience and lead author of Putative neural consequences of captivity for elephants and cetaceans, summarized the findings. 

“Decades of neuroscience research shows that an impoverished brain is a damaged brain. Whether it is the 10 Worst Zoos or the ten best, all zoos are detrimental to elephants’ brains and cause physical and mental suffering,” said Jacobs. 

Captivity and ‘neural cruelty’

According to Jacobs, captivity leads to neural cruelty, which negatively impacts the hippocampus, which handles memory, and the center of the brain that processes emotions. This essentially leads to repetitive stereotypic behaviours that many animals adopt in captivity – crippling their social, mental, and neural needs.

Despite the fact that these zoos hold relevant accreditations by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums (AZA), and the Canadian equivalent (CAZA), the gold standard for zoos, they fail to provide an adequate duty of care for the elephants, In Defense of Animals says.

In fact, the organization found evidence of neural cruelty in every zoo on this year’s list – and also in every other zoo with elephants to various degrees. 

Gervais is encouraging the public to join him together, with In Defense of Animals, to call for the end of elephant captivity. He said: “I personally urge all zoos on the 10 Worst Zoos list to urgently retire elephants to accredited sanctuaries so they may live their lives with dignity.”

The post Ricky Gervais Calls For Urgent Release Of All Elephants From Zoos appeared first on Plant Based News.

“The ceremonial bearskins could easily be replaced with faux fur, retaining the traditional look but eliminating the cruelty,” he added. “It’s time for the Ministry of Defence to drop the petty excuses and make the switch. It’s what the British public wants and what bears need.”

A petition against real bearskin caps

Dixon, along with PETA, launched a government petition on the subject. It states that there is “no excuse” for MoD to fund the slaughter of bears for soldiers’ caps.

So far, the petition has gathered more than 50,000 signatures.

The MoD has responded to calls to change the Queen’s Guard’s headwear. It claims that the furs used to make the caps are the result of a “licensed cull by the Canadian authorities.”

PETA, however, maintains that this is not the truth. It claims it reached out to the Canadian government to question the MoD’s statement and received this response: “[T]he MOD receives the final product from our contracted suppliers and is not involved with the licensed cull sanctioned by the Canadian government.”

Those interested in signing the petition can do so here.

The post Simon Pegg And Alesha Dixon Campaign Against Queen’s Guard Bearskin Caps appeared first on Plant Based News.

The three-time Grammy Award winner has been vegetarian for more than a decade. Then in June 2020, Lizzo went vegan. 

The musician, known for her iconic flute solos during her performances, recently headed to TikTok to rave about her vegan cheesy Takis creation. 

It features Japanese yams, “high protein” tofu, onion, garlic, nutritional yeast, dairy-free parmesan, vegan smoked gouda, hot sauce, and salt and pepper. Once blended, Lizzo pours the cheesy sauce over a bowl of Takis Fuego chips, which are plant-based. 

“EAT YOUR FEELINGS WITH ME,” Lizzo captioned the post. 

Two days later, Lizzo again sang the praises of vegan food on TikTok, which has around one billion active monthly users. 

This time, the recording artist whipped up vegan chicken Alfredo. Lizzo said it was the first time she had made the creamy dish, which tasted like “heaven.”

It’s certainly not the first time Lizzo has celebrated plant-based food with her fans; she’s been publicly doing so since she first went vegan nearly two years back. She’s also used conversations about veganism to tackle fat shaming.

In response to fat-phobic comments on TikTok, Lizzo filmed herself in her underwear eating a vegan egg sandwich. “[Shout out] to all my fat vegans – we look as good as we feel… And to the haters, good luck chasing that narrow beauty standard,” she wrote.

Power of celebrity influence

Sharing pro-vegan content online can help normalize the lifestyle and introduce people to new ideas surrounding food and consumption. Combine that with the significant reach of celebrities and other high-profile individuals, and that impact intensifies. 

In 2015, a Harvard review looked at the influence of celebrities on people’s attitudes and behaviors. 

The author, academic researcher Julie Doyle, said celebrity dialogue around veganism “offers the potential for a previously stigmatized practice … to achieve mainstream credibility.”

This could, in turn, have an effect on the planet, she notes.

“Celebrities can act as important intermediaries to help make the complexities of climate change more accessible and relevant to our daily lives. Food is one such area where celebrities can help link the impacts of climate change to our consumption habits,” Doyle wrote. “Indeed, as one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, the production and consumption of meat and dairy …  is a crucial social practice that requires further interrogation.”

Along a similar vein, a 2009 survey found that one in four teenagers admit to being more influenced by celebrities than people they know.

The post Lizzo Promotes ‘Heavenly’ Vegan Food To Over 21 Million TikTok Followers appeared first on Plant Based News.

After a successful collaboration in 2020 with the Parisian fashion brand, the Baywatch star has once again joined forces with Ashoka Paris to create a new vegan shopping bag collection available in red, black, terracotta and nude shade.

Uses apples that would otherwise be wasted

The PETA-approved Pamela Shopping Collection features four bags made from apple skin leather, a revolutionary biodegradable material that is crafted using apple waste obtained from Italy.

Apple leather is made using the cores and skins discarded from the industrial food industry.

The wasted fruit scraps are gathered together, juiced, and naturally dried into a fine powder. The fine powder is then blended with a resin-like material and is dried, producing a flexible leather-like sheet.

The inside liners of each bag feature Pamela’s stylised lips and her inspirational activist slogan “RESIST!”, and like all liners of their entire collection, it is made from recycled plastic bottles.

Animal activism

For many years, Pamela Anderson has been a supporter of PETA and is an active animal rights campaigner. 

On their website, Ashoka Paris shared, “The partnership between Pamela Anderson, PETA Award 2018 Personality of the Year and Ashoka ParisPETA Award 2018 Best Vegan Bag was a natural fit. Working on this Vegan bag project with Pamela, a global celebrity and committed activist, is an honour and a fabulous experience,”.

As part of the collaboration, Ashoka Paris will donate a portion of the sales to the Pamela Anderson Foundation, a not-for-profit foundation, which has been working to support and protect human rights, animals and the environment for 25 years.

If you would like to get your hands on a bag, Ashoka Paris and Pamila Anderson are holding a giveaway with PETA UK where one lucky fan will get the chance to win an uber-chic bag in the colour of their choice.

The future of fashion

Predicted to be the future of fashion, a growing number of brands are ditching animal skin in favour of vegan alternatives, such as apple leather.

The shift to sustainable and ethical material is hugely motivated by the animal welfare and environmental concerns that come with producing leather. 

The post Pamela Anderson Debuts Vegan Handbag Collection Made From Apple Skin Leather  appeared first on Plant Based News.

Vegan and professional athlete Alex Lenghel joined the latest season of MasterChef, as the show’s first-ever vegan contestant.

Cooking challenge

In the latest episode, the contests were teamed up in pairs to create a dish for the judges for the first challenge. Lenghel, along with fellow contestant Andrei Klabacs, worked together on a dish using a recipe that Klabacs put forward.

However, once the food was presented to the judges for the final taste test, the judges decided to send Lenghel and Klabacs to the elimination round, along with several other contestants for a final cook-off.

At the start of the elimination round, the contestants were presented with beef, and the judges explained that they needed to recreate a meat dish following the cooking instructions provided by guest chef David Contant.

Refusal to cook meat

The challenge began with tying a piece of string around the meat and it’s visibly clear that Lenghel wasn’t going to follow. 

One of the judges goes on to say “come on Alex,” as a way of urging him to begin the challenge. However, Lenghel explains that he doesn’t wish to cook meat and that he has no intentions of compromising on his ethical principles. 

In response, the chef goes on to say that he doesn’t have to eat the meat, he only needs to cook it for the judges. Lenghel explains that he doesn’t want to cook the meat, reminding the judges that he didn’t join the competition to cook meat as a vegan contestant.

After being questioned by the judges at his cooking counter, one judge probes, “I’d like to ask you again Alex, are you going to cook the meat, or are you going to go home?”, without offering Alex any other meat-free alternatives for the challenge.

Having been vegan for over three years, Langhel decided to remove his chef apron and leave the show.

Wrong to kill animals for pleasure

Speaking to Plant Based News, Lenghel explained that cooking meat went against his ethical beliefs. 

“I can’t cook meat when I believe that it is not normal to kill animals just for our pleasure,” he explained. 

He hopes that food shows, such as MasterChef, will see the need to adapt to the increasing plant-based demand. The show has been criticized in the past for its high meat content.

“They need to be more flexible with ingredients offered in the show, as there are lots of vegan substitutes for everything,” Lenghel noted.

To read more on this story, go here for our exclusive interview with Alex Lenghel.

The post Vegan Chef Quits Romanian MasterChef After Being Ordered To Cook Meat appeared first on Plant Based News.

Festival-goers will not be required to provide evidence of a negative Covid test, show proof of vaccination status, or worry about contact tracing before or after the event.

The festival team welcomed the news that restrictions in England officially ended yesterday, and they expect a return to near-normal for the event this summer.

Vegan Camp Out will run from Friday, July 15 to Monday, July 18 at its new venue, Stanford Hall in Leicestershire.

Covid restrictions ending

The government announced an end to all legal Covid restrictions in England from February 24, nearly two years after the first rules were introduced in March 2020. 

According to the government’s Living with Covid plan, people no longer have to self-isolate if they test positive for Covid, although they’re still advised to do so. 

Routine contact tracing will also end and close contacts will no longer need to self-isolate or take daily tests. Covid passports won’t be recommended except for international travel. 

Face masks will no longer be legally required although ministers still suggest they be worn in crowded and enclosed public places. 

2022 agenda released 

Vegan Camp Out’s lineup this year is jam-packed, and includes vegan educator, public speaker, and content creator Earthing Ed. Actor, writer, and podcaster Evanna Lynch, best known for her role in the Harry Potter series, will also be in attendance.

Other famous faces include Lucy Watson, a British reality tv star, model, and entrepreneur who appeared in the award-winning television series Made in Chelsea. Gaz Oakley, aka Avant-Garde Vegan, a cookbook author who collaborated with Wagamama to craft its iconic plant-based egg, will also take to the stage.

Matt Pritchard, Heather Mills, Preacher Lawson, and Happy Pear will be sharing their vegan experiences at the celebrated event too.

The much-anticipated food area will include 45 exciting vendors offering vegan kebabs, pizzas, smoothies, curries, ice cream, cakes, and burgers, to name a few.

The festival team is keeping the final food list a secret until the event kicks off.

Previous years 

This year marks the sixth Vegan Camp Out. The festival came from humble beginnings, when in 2016, 400 people turned up from all over the country. 

The first event had no talks or stalls, just 400 people gathered together in a field in Derby with one food vendor. The gathering allowed people who’d only ever met online to meet in person for the first time.

In 2019, numbers increased to 7,500 attendees and this year that figure is expected to be double that.

Adult tickets cost £70 for the whole weekend and that includes a camping pass. And tickets for children will cost £35 for the weekend. 

Get your tickets from VeganCampOut.co.uk.

The post Vegan Camp Out 2022 Going Ahead As Covid Restrictions End appeared first on Plant Based News.

In a recent edition of his email newsletter, Schwarzenegger praised his “80 percent vegan diet” and explained that it helped him feel “healthier and younger overall.”

He also believes that eating mostly plant-based has helped reduce his LDL cholesterol levels, also known as the “bad” kind of cholesterol, as it’s directly linked to high-risk heart disease. 

Health benefits

It’s well known that regular consumption of certain animal-based foods, such as processed meats and dairy products, is linked to higher serum cholesterol levels, as they contain high amounts of saturated fat and cholesterol.

In contrast, adopting a plant-based diet rich in fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains, lentils, and nuts is considered to be a key part of managing raised cholesterol levels.

In fact, a recent meta-analysis of 49 studies found that vegan and vegetarian diets were linked with lower levels of total and LDL cholesterol levels when compared to omnivorous diets.

“My bad cholesterol number is so low that my doctor thought I might be a different person,” Schwarzenegger revealed.

The avid gym-goer regularly encourages plant-based diets and has spoken about both the health and environmental benefits that come with eating more plants. 

The power of celebrity influence

When it comes to spreading a message, the power of celebrity influence cannot be denied – and that also includes spreading vegan or plant-based wisdom.

Schwarzenegger, widely considered the greatest and most iconic bodybuilder of all time, has been sharing the benefits of plant-based eating and terminating myths about protein consumption for many years now.

Along the way, he has inspired a whole new generation of vegan bodybuilders to build muscle mass on a plant-based diet. 

Schwarzenegger is also featured in The Game Changers, a documentary executive-produced by James Cameron, showcasing how a plant-based lifestyle is related to overall fitness.

The post Arnold Schwarzenegger Praises Plant-Based Diet appeared first on Plant Based News.