Plantwise Weekly Issue #3
Joyful Ventures, Pierce Morgan attacks again, Duckweed, & Much More
Welcome to our third issue of Plantwise Weekly, a curated digest of the week's most groundbreaking developments.
We plan to keep the newsletter free, but in return, we kindly ask you to share it with your friends, family, and colleagues 😊.
👨🍳 Celebrity Chef Bans Vegans And Faces Backlash
📚 TL;DR: Celebrity Chef John Mountain announced a ban on vegans from his restaurant Fyre in Perth, Australia. The ban followed a negative review from a customer critiquing the lack of plant-based options. This sparked a heated debate on social media. The vegan community condemned it as discriminatory and arrogant.
🧩 Context: John Mountain previously starred on the BBC show Great British Menu. According to Mountain, the issue originated when a vegan customer asked in advance if Fyre had vegan options. He assured her that they would accommodate her dietary requirements. But during her visit, Mountain had forgotten about her request, as he was busy catering a private party. In response, the customer posted a negative review about the restaurant.
💡My take: As a chef and restaurant owner, Mountain handled the single review very unprofessionally. This was especially when he admitted to being at fault. It showed even poorer judgement to use provocative language to "ban" all vegans. The vegan customer only visited Fyre for their friends and got assurance from the owner. The centre around this debate is not whether a restaurant can choose its own menu, but the attitude towards customers from different social groups.
➡️ Share your thoughts on this controversy in the comments below. You can also follow the full story here.
📺 This is Piers Morgan's interview with John Mountain and vegan activist Joey Carbstrong. The comment section says it all.
📈 Joyful Ventures Raises $23M to Propel Sustainable Protein Startups
📚 TL;DR: Joyful Ventures has launched with a promising $23M first close. The California-based VC firm is set on funding early-stage startups focusing on meat alternatives. To date, Joyful has backed two firms with Canadian roots: New School Foods and Orbillion Bio.
🧩 Context: Joyful Ventures, which started in late 2022, aims to drive investment in what they call "food 2.0". Joyful Ventures focuses on plant-based, precision fermentation, mycoproteins, molecular agriculture, and cultivated technologies. While the sector is in a downturn, the firm remains optimistic about the potential of sustainable protein options. Joyful Ventures is especially interested in preseed and seed-stage startups from Canada.
➡️ Interested in the future of sustainable proteins and Joyful Ventures' work? Read more about their vision here. Further media coverage is here.
🌱 Duckweed: The Unexpected Powerhouse of Plant Protein
📚 TL;DR: Rubisco, a protein found in leaves, is being hailed as an "ideal" protein for humans, with a similar amino acid profile to egg whites or milk casein. It's non-allergenic, easily digestible, and versatile. Rubisco is also capable of providing the mouthfeel of butter and eggs in baked goods and the juiciness of a burger in plant-based meats.
🧩 Context: Rubisco, known for its potential in human nutrition, has been difficult to harvest efficiently until now. The solution lies in a plant often overlooked: duckweed, the world's smallest flowering plant. Plantible Foods is pioneering an approach to extract rubisco from duckweed in its California-based R&D lab. Plantible Foods believes duckweed and rubisco could revolutionise plant protein.
➡️ Intrigued by the potential of rubisco and duckweed in plant protein? Learn more about the story here.
🥗 WFPB & Type 2 Diabetes Remission
📚 TL;DR: New research indicates that a whole-food plant-based diet could potentially result in type 2 diabetes remission. The study was published in the American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine. It involved 59 type-2 diabetes patients from a cardiac wellness program. The patients followed a plant-based eating pattern, with 37% of them achieving full diabetes remission. High-fibre, low-fat plant-based diets can help achieve remission from type-2 diabetes, even without calorie restriction or fasting.
🧩 Context: This study adds to the growing evidence supporting the benefits of a whole-food, plant-based diet. Other health benefits include reduced blood pressure, lower cholesterol, and improved heart health. Eating high-fibre foods can help slow down spikes in blood sugar, thus making you feel full for longer and less likely to overeat. Plant-based diets are often associated with improved insulin sensitivity. Weight loss, exercise, stress reduction, and avoiding alcohol are other significant improvement factors.
💡Practical Tips: An easy way to incorporate healthier eating is to start with meal planning. You can first create a grocery list that prioritises fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and plant proteins. Over the weekend, prepare and store these ingredients for easy access throughout the week. Don't forget to include plant proteins like lentils, chickpeas, and tofu in your meals. These small, practical changes can support your transition to a healthier lifestyle.
➡️ Read the full study here.
🔎 Heck Boss Suggests UK's Vegan Market Can Still Make A Comeback
📚 TL;DR: Jamie Keeble reveals that the rising cost of food and financial uncertainty have steered UK consumers towards cheaper alternatives such as meats and veggie products over higher-priced vegan options. These challenges have led Heck to reduce its vegan range due to lower demand. Despite the current climate, Keeble expects a resurgence once the economic climate stabilises.
🧩 Context: Jamie Keeble is the co-founder and sales manager of Heck Food. Back in May, Heck Food made the news as they shelved the production of most of its vegan range of sausages and burgers. The spike in food inflation has made a tangible impact on consumer preferences. In particular, it has caused a temporary shift away from costly plant-based items. Although there has been significant product development in the vegan sector, market growth hasn't caught up.
➡️ Read the full interview here.
🖋️ Get in touch
If there is a specific piece of news, topic, or brand that interests you, please share it with us!
Email: hello@plantwiseapp.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/PlantwiseTweets