The “Hell of a Steak” commercial – which comes from non-profit organization Vegan Friendly UK – aired during the Eurovision Song Contest in Israel on Saturday night. It’s set to appear on UK screens this week, and it will likely be shown in the US in the coming months. 

The ad features a group of diners pondering what to order at a restaurant named “Meat Out,” with one of them enquiring about a dish called “Hell of a Steak.”

The waiter then tells him: “I’m glad you asked… You won’t believe what we go through just to bring it to your plate.” 

He then goes into detail about the environmental costs of raising just one cow, explaining that it takes a piece of land about the size of three football pitches, 800,000 gallons of water, and 18,000 pounds of feed.

Throughout his explanation, the diners are covered in water and hay, before a single cow enters the restaurant and approaches their table.

The waiter finishes by saying: “Can you believe it? So many resources… And don’t get me started on the greenhouse gases.”

The diner then tells the waiter: “I don’t want to know the price,” to which the waiter ominously responds: “I’m sure you don’t. It’s a heavy price to pay.”

Animal farming and the environment

Noga Bronsky, CEO of Vegan Friendly UK, told Plant Based News that the advert is a “comical and high-level production” that “focuses on the harmful impacts of the meat industry on the environment and its connections to climate change.”

Animal agriculture – particularly cattle farming – is catastrophic for the environment in a number of ways.

Farmed cows produce around a third of the world’s methane emissions when they burp and fart, which is one of the main greenhouse gases responsible for global warming. They are also a leading cause of deforestation and land and water use. 

The advert follows in the footsteps of another highlighting the animal cruelty inherent in meat consumption, which was also released by Vegan Friendly earlier this year. It encouraged viewers to “make the connection” between the food they eat and the animals who suffered and died for it. 

The post WATCH: Vegan Commercial Aired During Eurovision To Be Shown Around The World appeared first on Plant Based News.

Meg Long – owner of vegan food page @offtheeatentrack – was one of just 45 applicants selected for the 18th series of the BBC cooking show. She will compete against eight other contestants this week. 

Taking to Instagram to announce the news, Long wrote: “It’s a privilege to be chosen to be on the show from [thousands] of applications and to have the opportunity to cook vegan food on a show I’ve loved for years.”

She added: “Everyone knows how much I love cooking and especially sharing my love of vegan food so I’m really excited to be part of this year’s show.”

MasterChef, which is presented by chefs John Torode and Gregg Wallace, sees amateur chefs compete to win a cash prize, trophy, and the MasterChef title. 

Each week, nine new contestants take part in the “audition stage,” before battling it out for a place in the quarterfinals. The series is now in its fourth week, with Long’s episode airing on Tuesday, April 12. 

MasterChef’s reliance on meat

The food show, notoriously meat-heavy, has attracted some criticism from the vegan and vegetarian community for its excessive use of animal products. 

Richard McIlwain, chief executive of The Vegetarian Society, previously branded the show a “dinosaur” in a society in which many people are cutting down on meat. A report by the Guardian found that during one season of MasterChef, 37 percent of the meals served featured red meat. Meanwhile, 40 percent contained fish, and just two percent were fully plant-based.

In February, a vegan chef walked off the set of MasterChef Romania after being ordered to cook with animal products. Speaking about his decision, he later told Plant Based News: “I can’t cook meat when I believe that it is not normal to kill animals just for our pleasure.” 

The franchise has, however, taken small steps to embrace vegan cooking. Earlier this year, a plant-based chef named Teresa Colaço was crowned winner of the Portuguese version of the program after cooking up a completely vegan menu for the show’s finale. 

She later said her victory was “just the beginning.” And, that she plans to “take plant-based food as far as possible.”

MasterChef UK continues at 8pm on Tuesday, April 12, on BBC One. 

The post New Vegan Contestant To Go Head-To-Head With Meat And Dairy On MasterChef UK appeared first on Plant Based News.

The Australian activist is well known for his appearances on Good Morning Britain, where he has challenged Piers Morgan’s infamous anti-vegan views.

This time he’s taken on a farmer, who takes exception to Joey’s views on the farming industry.

Watch the debate in full below:

The post Vegan Activist Joey Carbstrong VS Farmer: Live TV Debate Gets Heated appeared first on Plant Based News.

Each week, the group will need to tackle relentless food challenges to demonstrate they have what it takes to win the investment. 

Vegan entrepreneur Fois, the owner of Lele’s Vegan Cafe, joined the show in a bid to promote veganism and ultimately demonstrate that vegan cooking is accessible to all.  

Having successfully made it through the first round, Fois returns to screens this week with her fellow teammates.

According to BBC, this week’s challenge will involve Ramsay filleting fish ‘with his eyes closed’. The episode is also set to feature one contestant mistakingly serving honey to a vegan. 

Need for cooking shows to adapt to the increasing vegan demand

These incidents highlight the need for cooking shows to adapt to the increasing vegan demand seen across the world. 

Just last year, BBC’s show Masterchef also received a great deal of criticism, with questions arising over its high meat content. Both The Vegan Society and The Vegetarian Society hit out against the cooking show for its upholding of animal products.

The post Gordon Ramsay’s ‘Future Food Stars’ Features Vegan Chef  appeared first on Plant Based News.

Two years in the making, nine of the 26-part Asian Elephants 101 series world premiered on multiple National Geographic Channels, and the entire series will now stream on UnchainedTV.com.

The 26-part short film series highlights the survival challenges faced by people and elephants, as two dominant species compete for space. 

The episodes focus on key aspects of elephant ecology, the plight of captive elephants, human encroachment into wildlife habitats, climate change, habitat fragmentation, and deforestation.

Elephants VS climate change  

Elephants are the gentle giants that we all love. The biggest animal on earth, and the one that nothing is frightened of. 

But what many don’t realize is that all species of elephants are also ecologically significant. 

They traverse vast areas 16 to 18 hours a day, trampling softwood trees, thus allowing rain and sunshine to penetrate the ground, promoting the growth of hardwood trees that store carbon-di-oxide (a potent greenhouse gas that exacerbates climate change). 

According to the International Monetary Authority, African forest elephants help fight climate change, with each elephant at a carbon value of $1.75 million. 

Elephants also create pathways to waterholes and fodder for other animals, who would otherwise be unable to access these life-giving resources.

Asian elephants play a key role in climate mitigation but according to the IUCN, there are less than 40,000 Asian elephants left on the planet, fully 27,000 in India, their last bastion. 

Saving the Asian elephants of India is critically important to not only saving the species, but also other species in the ecosystem.

Human elephant conflict 

The series explores the serious issues facing Indinal elephants’ fight for survival. 

Human elephant conflict (HEC) is a huge problem for their survival. Due to unprecedented human population growth in India, competition for space is causing humans and elephants to clash. 

Reckless development and land use have decimated 80 percent of wildlife habitats. Famished elephants are forced to leave the forests and venture into croplands to quell their hunger, exacerbating HEC, resulting in senseless tragedies for both humans and elephants.

This in turn triggers retaliatory killings of elephants, and the vicious cycle continues unabated.

Illegal capture

The series also explores another major issue facing the elephants of India — their illegal capture. 

On the one hand, elephants are revered, considered the embodiment of Lord Ganesh – a Hindu God with an elephant face. But on the other hand, they are tortured and exploited for profit behind the veil of culture and religion.

The series aims to influence decision-makers to legislate laws that would take into consideration elephants, wildlife, and the rich biodiversity of India. 

The makers of the series told us:

“We hope that the narratives and visuals will help people understand our intricate connections with and dependence on other species, inspiring attitude, and behavior shifts, motivating people to protect the endangered Asian elephants. 

“The films will help people realize that the survival of elephants in the forests of India is crucial to mitigating climate change globally, demonstrating that what happens in one country reverberates across the planet.”

You can download the UnchainedTV app on your phone or TV streaming device here.

The post <strong>Unchained TV Features New Series About The Amazing Asian Elephant</strong> appeared first on Plant Based News.

Drawing inspiration from other reality cooking competitions, such as MasterChef and Beat Bobby Flay, Peeled aims to provide vegans more representation on mainstream TV.

“As a vegan and a foodie, I’ve always had a love-hate relationship with cooking shows,” said vKind founder and Peeled creator, Star Simmons, in a recent statement. 

“Peeled allows vegans and vegetarians to enjoy cooking shows again, and gives plant-based culinary arts a platform to be taken seriously.”

Panel of all-vegan judges

In the first series of this kind, each episode will feature hand-picked, classically-trained chefs competing against each other in front of a panel of all-vegan judges. 

In a bid to be named the “Hottest Vegan Chef” around, the chefs will be put through different culinary challenges to showcase their cooking skills and passion for plant-based cooking. 

Over each episode, the contestant with the lowest scores will be “peeled off”, or eliminated, leaving the remaining chefs to progress in the competition. The final winner will be awarded a large cash prize to be donated to a nonprofit charity of their choosing. 

The Peeled squad

An entire team of well renowned vegan professionals are confirmed for the first series, including Chef Josie Clemens, who was a contestant in Season 20 of the hit cooking show “Hell’s Kitchen.” Chef Josie will also be joined by Sophie’s Kitchen CEO Dr Miles Woodruff and celebrity chef Chris Tucker.

Clemens was so excited to learn about the show, that she even signed on as co-creator. 

“Competing in Hell’s Kitchen was a great experience, but not at all hospitable for a vegan chef like me, who would otherwise never opt to cook anything that wasn’t entirely plant-based,” she said.

“I was thrilled to learn that vKind would be producing an all-vegan cooking competition. Signing on as co-creator was a no-brainer for me.”

Viva Las Vegan

The show is currently being filmed in Las Vegas, at the Vegas Vegan Culinary School and Eatery – the nation’s first all-vegan cooking school.

The show will also provide a platform for vegan brands to showcase their products and promote their brands to new audiences.

“We’re especially excited to provide vegan brands a new platform to showcase their products in front of an audience hungry for vegan alternatives,” said Simmons. 

“We roll out the green carpet for businesses of all sizes that are contributing to the VegEconomy.” 

In preparation for the summer launch, cast members will be introduced in a series of video interviews in the coming weeks. To find out who will be joining the competition, keep your eyes peeled, as vKind will be releasing videos on their YouTube channel and their website.

The post First All-Vegan Cooking Competition ‘Peeled’ Coming To US Television appeared first on Plant Based News.

In the new Netflix show, Corlett portrays the famous explorer Leif Erikson, who is thought to be one of the first European to have entered the shores of North America.

As the show is set between 1002 and 1066, covering the final years of the Viking age, the characters can be seen wearing costumes made of leather, fur, and wool. 

In a recent interview, Corlett shared that he found it challenging to wear his leather costume at the start of the series. 

“I hadn’t worn leather in a long time. The costume at the start was all leather, and so that was quite overwhelming,” said Corlett.

However, the head of costume on the show, Susan O’Conner Cave, was quick to design a vegan-friendly armor made of cactus leather for the vegan star. 

“It’s a funny mix because you want to be as authentic as possible, which makes sense, but also, you know, the values come in sometimes.”

1 billion animals killed every year for leather

Leather is typically made from the hides of cows and calves, the furthest away from sustainable or ethical. According to PETA, the global leather industry kills more than a billion animals every year.  

Vegan leather, made from materials such as cactus leather, cork, and recycled rubber, offers sustainable alternatives to highly unethical and outdated animal leather.

Manufacturers across the globe are releasing more types of vegan leather as vegan leather becomes increasingly popular. In fact, the vegan leather industry is predicted to be worth almost $90 billion by 2025. 

The post ‘Vikings: Valhalla’ Star Sam Corlett Ditches Leather Costume appeared first on Plant Based News.

Colaço, born in the Algarve but now living in Lisbon, plated up multiple meat-free dishes during her time on the show, and the program’s finale was no exception. The chef, who has a degree in speech therapy, chose to present a plant-based menu for the competition’s finale, proving that animal-free food can triumph in one of the world’s largest cooking shows.

Colaço wrote on Instagram that the victory was “an honor.”

‘Just the beginning’

In November, Colaço commented that she is “at a great disadvantage” compared to her fellow contestants, “all of whom are excellent cooks and master animal protein and Portuguese cuisine.”

“I don’t master one or the other, my forte is vegetables, legumes, algae, and some strange ingredients in between, which few people here know about.”

“I need to focus a lot, study a lot, and be attentive to every detail,” she stated.

Her determination paid off, with the mother of two securing the top place on February 26.

But according to Colaço, “this is just the beginning.” In a statement, the 32-year-old said she wants to “take plant-based food as far as possible.”

Vegan contestant leaves MasterChef

Meanwhile, in Romania, the country’s MasterChef program was taking a different turn.

During an elimination round, judges instructed the contestants to cook a dish containing meat. Alex Lenghel, a vegan and professional athlete, objected, saying to do so would clash with his ethical principles.

“I’d like to ask you again Alex, are you going to cook the meat, or are you going to go home?” one judge queried. In response, Lenghel removed his apron and left the set.

Speaking to Plant Based News, the vegan of three years (and vegetarian for six) explained that veganism is about more than just food. “I told them, I couldn’t do that … It’s about what message you want to send,” Lenghel said.

Like Colaço, Lenghel has no plans to stop now. Both chefs aim to dedicate their post-MasterChef time to promoting and celebrating plant-based cooking and nutrition.

The post Plant-Based Chef Crowned Winner Of MasterChef Portugal appeared first on Plant Based News.

Tom Bursnall, director of plant-based food company Miami Burger and producer of the advert, expects it will spark conversation and backlash.

Bursnall created the 30-second ad in collaboration with the charity Vegan Friendly.

See the ad in full below:

Making the connection

The ad encourages viewers to “Make the Connection” between the food they eat and the animals it is sourced from.

It centers on a group of people as they lament topical animal welfare issues such as plastic in the ocean, bullfighting, and wet markets, all while tucking into a hearty, meaty meal.

“Plastic straws are ruining the oceans. The poor fish don’t stand a chance!” one woman says, before taking a bite of fish from the plate before her.

As she does, the commercial switches to images of fish moving down a processing line and being graphically butchered. It then switches back to a close-up of the woman’s mouth tearing fish off her fork with her teeth.

“They just don’t care about animals like we do, babe,” her husband responds, taking a bite of pork. The camera switches to a piglet kept in dire conditions, meat being butchered, and blood splashing onto a takeaway container.

Cognitive dissonance

Speaking to Plant Based News (PBN), Bursnall elaborated on the concept:

“Utilizing uncomfortably close-up camera shots and interwoven clips of animals being slaughtered for consumption, the cognitive dissonance reaches a crescendo as one character opines: ‘can’t we treat all living things the same, please?’”

“All of the actors are vegan and did their work at a discount to help the cause,” Bursnall noted. “We also only used vegan food, of course!”

The advert ends with the three people looking down at their food in disgust as they begin to make the connection.

Then there is a link to maketheconnection.io, a page hosted by Vegan Friendly that gives meat substitute recommendations, along with health and animal welfare information. 

Produced by creative agency Hotwolf, the commercial will feature across high-profile UK channels such as Channel 4, Sky Max, and Sky Cinema over the next few weeks.

This is in order “to highlight the hypocrisy of self-proclaimed animal lovers who still eat meat,” Bursnall said.

Vegan Friendly partnership

The ad comes just over a year after Vegan Friendly’s last commercial aired on the UK’s Sky and Channel 4.

The ad caused outrage and attracted more than 200 complaints.

“I envisage this one generating more,” Bursnall told PBN, referring to the latest project.

The ad was originally aired in Israel. There, it reached three million people, approximately 35 percent of Israel’s population. An edited version hit UK TV screens after Bursnall launched a crowdfunding campaign to pay for a primetime slot.

“I want everyone who watches TV, Video on Demand, and YouTube to see this advert,” Bursnall said last year. “The aim is to help awaken millions of people from the cognitive dissonance slumber we humans have regretfully found ourselves in.”

“I will stop at nothing to get these stirring videos in front of millions of people,” he added. 

The new “Make the Connection” advert comes a month after another vegan charity, Viva!, launched its “Takeaway the Meat” campaign.

The ad – which sees a piglet delivered to a couple who ordered pulled pork from the mock food delivery app, “Just Meat” – debuted on Channel 4 on Valentine’s Day, reaching an estimated 16 million viewers.

The post WATCH: The New Vegan TV Ad That’s Expected To Outrage Meat-Eaters 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.