See: https://www.newhope.com/manufacturing-and-supply/retailers-whey-are-animal-free-dairy-products-natural?

The Vegetarian Resource Group has a graphic called Burrito on My Plate, which shows viewers the water footprint of a vegan versus a meat-based burrito. It takes 225 gallons of water to make a vegan burrito without tofu and 253 gallons of water to make a vegan burrito with tofu. In comparison, it takes 541 gallons of water to make a beef burrito.

The Burrito on My Plate Graphic can be seen here: https://www.vrg.org/environment/BurritoOnMyPlate.pdf

The article detailing how we came up with the numbers of gallons of water needed to produce each type of burrito can be found here: https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2017issue2/2017_issue2_burrito_plate.php

By Rima Ibrahim

1-2 heads of lettuce

2 tomatoes

3 cucumbers

4-6 mint leaves (or 1 Tablespoon dried mint)

1 large bell pepper (any color)

2 green onions (scallions)

2-3 lemons

2 Tablespoons parsley

1/3 cup olive oil

2 Tablespoons sumac

1 Tablespoon garlic powder

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 teaspoon paprika

¼ teaspoon lemon rind, grated (optional)

Cut up all veggies. Add seasoning and lemon juice. Mix everything together and enjoy.

Note: The traditional salad also includes pieces of bread either baked or fried for a crispy texture.

Recent topics brought up include:

– Question posted: How do you all explain why your family is vegan to younger children? Our daughters are 3 going on 4 soon and have been excited to announce their veganism to everyone. This makes me proud but I want to make sure they understand that other children who don’t eat the same aren’t “bad” or “weird” for NOT being vegan because most children aren’t making their own dietary decisions. Any thoughts or age appropriate conversation prompts to promote an accepting view of others eating habits at this age?

– Posted a review of the book Feeding Your Vegan Child that ran in Vegan Journal.

– Shared Vegan Grilling Recipes

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VRGparentsandkids is intended to be a group that offers support for families raising children on vegan diets and for vegan kids around the world. We envision it as a place to get advice about a wide-variety of topics: pregnancy, birthday parties, school lunches, Halloween, non-leather apparel, cruelty-free products, summer camps, and more. Please use it as a place to share your wisdom, seek advice, or just find a sympathetic ear. The goal is to offer support.

Consequently, any profane, defamatory, offensive, or violent language will be removed. Feel free to disagree, but do so respectfully. Hateful or discriminatory comments regarding race, ethnicity, religion, gender, disability, sexual orientation, or political beliefs will not be tolerated. We expect that posts should relate to vegan diets and lifestyles. The Vegetarian Resource Group reserves the right to monitor all content and ban any user who posts in violation of the above rules, any law or regulation, SPAM, or anything otherwise off topic.

Please share this information with any veggie families that you know! Thanks.

By Reed Mangels, PhD, RD

Picture yourself at a well-stocked supermarket. You are reading package labels to try to assess which foods are healthiest for you. “What about foods that are best for the environment?” you may wonder. In the past, The Vegetarian Resource Group has reported about studies finding that producing a single serving of red or processed meat has a markedly larger impact on greenhouse gas emissions, land use, acidification, and air quality than does producing a serving of plant foods (1, 2).  While helpful, these studies don’t aid with making decisions about specific food products.

New research, using more than 57,000 products from the United Kingdom and Ireland, estimated products’ impacts on greenhouse gas emissions, land use, water stress, and eutrophication potential (3). Each food’s nutritional quality was also considered. Generally speaking, more nutritious foods were more environmentally sustainable. If the different aisles in a grocery store were considered, the aisles with fruits, vegetables, salads, breakfast cereals, some breads, and meat alternatives (e.g. tofu, vegan sausages) were judged to have the best scores for environmental impact and nutritional quality. Aisles with cheese, chocolate, savory pies, and quiches scored worst for environmental impact and nutritional quality. The aisles with the greatest environmental impact generally were ones with beef and lamb products. Some products such as sodas, fruit juice, and frozen desserts had low environmental impact scores but were deemed to be of poor nutritional quality.

In the U.K., package labels indicate the actual amount of ingredients, saying something like pesto is 47% by weight basil and 5% cashews. This information, which was used in this research to estimate the environmental impact of products containing a number of ingredients, is not included on labels in the U.S.  This study used a serving size of 3 ounces of product for all foods. This may over-estimate the actual amount consumers eat of some foods (like nuts) and under-estimate the amount of others (like prepared entrées). The estimated environmental impact includes the processing and transportation to retail stores of raw ingredients but does not include postproduction processing, packaging, and transportation. So, for example, the environmental impact of making sugar into soda or of making flour into bread was not calculated. Despite these limitations, this study offers help to consumers making decisions about which food to purchase.

To reduce the environmental impact of their food choices, consumers can reduce or eliminate foods like beef, lamb, and cheese and products containing these foods. These can be replaced by similar plant-based products which have a lower environmental impact.

We hope that additional studies like this one will be conducted in the United States and other countries and that package labels of food products will include information about their environmental impact.

References

1. Domingo NGG, Balasubramanian S, Thakrar SK, et al. Air quality-related health damages of food. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2021;118(20):e2013637118.
2. Clark MA, Springmann M, Hill J, Tilman D. Multiple health and environmental impacts of foods. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2019;116(46):23357-23362.
3. Clark M, Springmann M, Rayner M, et al. Estimating the environmental impacts of 57,000 food products. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022;119(33):e2120584119.

To read more about environmental effects of food choices see:

Save Our Water: The Vegetarian Way

The Water Footprint of a Vegan Versus a Meat Burrito

Is Dairy-free Better for the Environment?

Kasheri with Brown Rice

Chef Nancy Berkoff shares delicious vegan Egyptian recipes in her previous article Vegan Recipes from Egypt. Dishes include Kasheri with Brown Rice, Brown Rice Mujaddara, Makloubeh (Layered Eggplant), Vegan Kofta, Orange and Olive Salad, Khoshaf (Compote), and Egyptian Lemonade.

To subscribe to Vegan Journal visit: http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

If you live in Maryland (especially near Baltimore) or will visiting this area, you might want to dine in one of the many restaurants participating in Maryland Vegan Restaurant Month that is being held through August 28^th this year. Some of the participating establishments include Land of Kush, Golden West Café, Liora, Double Zero, Gangster Vegan Organics, Roland Park Bagels and Sandwiches, Harmony Bakery, Miss Shirley’s, and Treehouse Café and Juice Bar.

For further details, see: https://www.mdveganeats.com/

Chef Nancy Berkoff serves up several vegan tempeh recipes in a previous Journal article published by The Vegetarian Resource Group. Try preparing Breakfast Tempeh, Tempeh Sausage, Tempeh Noodle Soup, Grilled Tempeh Salad with Peas and Pineapple, Tempeh in a Roll, and Tempeh on Toast.

The complete article with recipes can be read here:
http://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2016issue1/2016_issue1_cooking_tempeh.php

To subscribe to Vegan Journal visit:
http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

My name is Cassandra, I am a local coordinator with CIEE, a nonprofit. I link host families with foreign exchange students. We have approved students ready to come to Virginia. I would love it if you could share this email with some of your friends or parents in the community. We have several vegetarian students, especially from Germany. We are hoping to find host families. We have 6 week welcome families, 1 semester and 10 month school year! For more information:
https://www.ciee.org/
ciee.org/hostapply

You can also email or text me anytime with questions: 304-767-1541; [email protected]
-Cassandra K, CIEE L

Photo by Rissa Miller

By Rissa Miller, Senior Editor Vegan Journal

(Makes about 12-13 pancakes)

These spicy-sweet pancakes show off a seasonal treat: Maple flavored Dandies mini marshmallows! Available for the fall of 2022, they bring in sweetness and the warmth of maple to these chai-spiced breakfast classics. And the mini marshmallows add a surprising texture too! Look for the delightful gooey pull of melted marshmallow with the crisp snap of crystallized sugars.

1-1/3 cups plain, unsweetened vegan milk (tested with almond and soy)

1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar (or lemon juice)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup organic sugar

1 Tablespoon arrowroot starch (or cornstarch)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

Pinch ground clove

Pinch ground black pepper

Pinch ground nutmeg

Pinch salt (optional)

One 5-ounce bag Maple Dandies Vegan Mini Marshmallows

Non-stick spray, for cooking

First, combine the vegan milk and vinegar in a small dish and set aside to “curdle” the milk for about 10 minutes. Then stir in the vanilla.

In a medium bowl, combine flours, sugar, and all spices. Combine with milk mixture and allow to rest for about 15-20 minutes. The rest period allowed the batter to thicken. Add the bag of Dandies and stir into the batter just before cooking.

Cook on a flat griddle or pan over low-medium heat. Spray the pre-warmed cook surface with non-stick spray. Ladle out about 1/4 cup of batter per pancake. Allow to cook until the top and edges of the pancake bubble, and the bottoms are golden brown, then flip with a wide spatula. Any exposed marshmallows will get gooey, then crisp on the outside. Cook on the second side until the pancake is cooked through. Times will vary, but approximately 2-3 minutes per side.

The recipe will make about 12-13 pancakes. Serve as desired for breakfast, brunch, or snack time.

Note: Maple Dandies mini marshmallows are a seasonal offering and can be swapped with regular Dandies mini marshmallows or 3/4 cup dried cranberries, if Dandies aren’t available in your area. See: https://dandies.com/dandies-maple-marshmallows