Besides various health benefits, a vegan lifestyle can significantly reduce one’s carbon footprint and consequently do their little bit in helping stall climate change.
In fact, research reveals that world hunger can be eradicated if everyone turned vegan.
Having said that, it can be overwhelming to switch to a vegan diet, especially if you’ve been on an omnivore diet your whole life, and that’s where MyVeganuari comes in.
“MyVeganuari is a month-long campaign in January where Malaysians can opt to commit to a 100% plant-based diet for three, five or seven days a week,” said Ravika Ravichandran, secretarial and communications director of plant-based student society called The Green Spoon (TGS).
Running for the second year, those who sign up will receive various discounts and offers from partner restaurants and brands, which includes, among others, Sala KL, Salad Atelier, BakedKL, HalaVeg, Mushroom Lah, Kelava, Pinxin Vegan Cusine, Berjaya Cafe and WOP Pizzeria.
In addition to invitations to special events, giveaways and a weekly newsletter, participants will also receive an e-book on plant-based recipes, the 18-year-old told FMT.
The event is the local spin-off of the global Veganuary movement, an annual challenge that began in the UK in 2014.
Those interested can participate for free by registering on The Green Spoon’s website, after which they will receive an e-mail containing the promo code.
“Although you can sign up at any point during the campaign, it’s better to do so before Jan 1 so that you can get the full experience of MyVeganuari,” said Ravika, adding that a different theme will be introduced each week.
According to her, last year’s campaign attracted over 1,600 participants, which included a sizeable number of pledgers who were completely new to plant-based diets.
“There was a lot of engagement and we received positive feedback from them,” she said, adding that most people participated for health reasons.
In addition, one can also sign up for a virtual run and stand to win attractive prizes that include AirPods, JD gift cards and an Apple watch.
Founded last year as a response to the feedback received from some MyVeganuari participants, The Green Spoon is the youth-arm of the Malaysian Vegetarian Society and aims to establish a safe space for students on a plant-based diet.
“Plant-based (diet) youths have different needs compared to their adult counterparts.
“For example, if they live in a non-plant-based (diet) household, they might not have a say in the groceries bought and meals cooked,” explains Ravika.
“So, we want to create a community where they can interact with each other and share resources,” she says, adding that they also aim to guide those who are transitioning into plant-based diets.
Moving forward, The Green Spoon hopes to collaborate with more vegan businesses as well as those that offer plant-based diet options.
“We want to highlight these brands so that more people will know about them,” she said, before adding that they are also hoping to attract more partners outside of the Klang Valley.
Ravika said that ultimately, it did not matter how far along someone was in their journey towards observing a plant-based diet. “It’s good enough if you start with several days a week,” she said, adding that there were many flexitarians in The Green Spoon community.
So, what are you waiting for?
Sign up now for MyVeganuari and give the plant-based diet a try – who knows, you might just continue pledging long after January has ended.
After all, plant-based meals are just as delicious, and as they say, it’s all in the gravy!
You can sign up for MyVeganuari through The Green Spoon’s website or follow their Facebook and Instagram account for more information.