PLANT BASED VS VEGAN


What’s the difference between vegan and plant-based?


The term plant-based term was coined to make it appealing for health reasons, without getting into the ethical debate, but does that really mean vegans are more ethical than those defining as plant-based? Here’s what Louise Palmer-Masterton, founder of multiple award-winning restaurants Stem & Glory had to say


I Roots


The term vegan was first coined in 1944 by Donald Watson and friends, although it wasn’t until the 80s that veganism was clearly defined as follows: “a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude—as far as is


possible and practicable—all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment…” Interestingly, in the US Dr. T. Colin Campbell coined the term ‘plant-


based’ around the same time following research at the National Institutes of Health which showed the therapeutic impact of a low-fat, high-fibre, vegetable-based diet on cancer. He was seeking a term that described this diet without invoking ethical considerations. In other words, veganism is about the abstention from animal products,


not necessarily with reference to healthy foods, whereas wholefood plant- based is very much focussed around the health benefits of following the diet.


GRowth


In the early 80s, veganism was very fringe, and plant-based was unheard of. But through the 80s and 90s as people’s consciousness started to shift, people started to question the ethics of eating meat.


n our business, this is something that comes up often, most recently because our new tagline is ‘Gloriously Plant-based’. I get asked frequently


if that means I’ve abandoned veganism? For me, the two things mean the same. In fact, we’re all about wholefood plant-based ingredients, ethically sourced, low carbon, circular, compassionate and cruelty-free. So, is that vegan or plant-based? And what’s the difference anyway?


At this time, it was activist movements that were driving the vegan


movement forward, but these were uncomfortable for some people and a mainstream negative association kept veganism as a fringe movement. Once we moved into the noughties, that started to change, and the term


plant-based began to break into the mainstream and, as we moved into the ‘teenies’, the movement, and the term, suddenly started to gain traction. But is it a bad thing for the vegan movement that the term plant-based was


popularised? I’d suggest that the term plant-based has contributed significantly to the rise in popularity of veganism, and that they share responsibility for the rise of interest in the vegan movement with regard to animal welfare and health.


EnviRonmEntal considERations


Another huge factor in the growth of both movements is the environment. When I became vegan, it was for the animals but back then, in the same way that health was not a key driver for those adopting a vegan lifestyle, the environment also wasn't mentioned. Now, however, the environmental arguments have become increasingly compelling to the point that they can no longer be ignored. Most people I know now actively try to eat fewer animal products. But are these people eating more vegan food or more wholefood plant-based food? And is one better for the environment? I had a friend that questioned my veganism years ago. He held up a


processed vegan product and said to me ‘this doesn’t contain animals, but it does contain humans’. He made a good point. The life blood of humans goes into processing and manufacturing, and processing is wasted energy. The more you process a food product, the more energy you use. So, on this point, a wholefood plant-based diet is better for the


environment and health than a vegan diet containing processed foods. Stem & Glory is going to stick with being both wholefood plant-based


and vegan, but I do think we’ll see wholefood plant-based and veganism converging in coming years.


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