2018 Vancouver Veg Expo — Zygote Nation

Zygote Nation was there! … At the 2018 Vancouver Veg Expo on May 27, 2018, at the Vancouver Convention Centre West in Vancouver, British Columbia.

This was the largest, most-well-attended vegan event I have been to thus far in 2018. Scores of food and drinks vendors from across Canada, along with some US merchants, showcased their products.

Here is my list of the festival’s top notable businesses and products:

Nut Tree Products

Nut Tree Products of North Vancouver offers vegan food items, including cheese-style, raw nut spreads; coconut water kefir tonics; coconut yogurt drinks; herb teas; and kombuchas. In addition to enjoying a fizzy kefir tonic at the festival, the Brazil Nut “Cheeze” caught my eye. Comprising only three ingredients (i.e., Brazil nuts, cabbage, sea salt), it seemed like an intriguing spread, definitely one I had not had before. Turned out it was delicious. I did not sense at all that I was eating cabbage due to how well the taste and texture of those three ingredients meshed. I ate my jar of Brazil Nut Cheese back at my hotel room with black rice crackers back; that combo made for a delicious snack.

Canadian Pine Pollen Company

Canadian Pine Pollen Company of North Vancouver sells pine-pollen powder and pine-pollen tincture. Its pine pollen is wild-harvested in the forests of British Columbia, Canada, and the processes the company employs keep the pollen raw and living, with all its nutrients intact (e.g., natural probiotics and enzymes), according to Canadian Pine Pollen Company’s website. Both the powder and tincture come in two varieties: Lodgepole Pine (yellow cones) and Ponderosa Pine (red cones). At the company’s booth, co-founder Burgess Andre showed me the rich yellow color of the Lodgepole Pine Pollen compared to the dull yellow color of another brand that sources its pollen from China. Canadian Pine Pollen Company also sells chaga chunks, spruce tips, and bar soap.

NoochPop

NoochPop of Vancouver sells organic fresh-popped popcorn that is seasoned with nutritional yeast (also known as nooch), a source of fiber and B vitamins. The popcorn is available in four varieties: Kinda Cheesy, Kinda Garlic ’n Cheesy, Kinda Nacho, and Kinda Sweet ’n Savoury. I really enjoyed this popcorn. I tried the Kinda Garlic ’n Cheesy and Kinda Nacho. They were delicious: really tasty with nice seasoning, but not too much, and not heavy oil-wise. NoochPop uses an organic oil blend of coconut, olive, and avocado. Right now, NoochPop is one of my favorite organic popcorns, along with Living Intentions’ organic Activated Superfood Popcorn and Lesser Evil’s organic ghee popcorn.

Artisans Way Organics

Artisans Way Organics of Sechelt, British Columbia, Canada, offers nut and seed butters, raw chocolate, supplements, and items like organic chia seeds, organic raw cacao nibs, and organic raw jungle peanuts. I was most interested in its line of Better Butters’ nut butters, which are stone-ground and mostly organic. Stone grinding “keeps the temperature and friction low to maintain nutrition,” states Artisans Way Organics’ website. The Organic Tiger Nut Butter (ingredients: organic tiger nuts, organic shredded coconut, organic sunflower oil) caught my attention. I have had tiger nuts before, but not previously come across a tiger nut butter. (Tiger nuts are actually not nuts, but tubers that grow in the ground. They are said to be high in fiber and protein and minerals like magnesium and potassium.) Also catching my eye was the Mystery Butter (organic almonds, organic Brazil nuts, organic coconut, organic cashews, organic tiger nuts, organic powdered dates). It was delicious. The company is working towards organic certification of its products, according to the website.

Simply Delish

Simply Delish of Langley, British Columbia, Canada, sells vegan, gluten-free dry soup mixes for the stovetop and, in some cases, the crock pot. What I liked about this brand is that it includes what I would call more exotic soup varieties (e.g., African Sweet Potato Soup, Jamaican Me Hungry Lentil Stew, Mulligatawny Soup), in addition to soup types more common to my North American palette (e.g., Autumn Harvest Lentil Soup, Nonna’s Minestrone Soup, Smoky Black Bean Quinoa). The mixes have reduced levels of sodium and are free of monosodium glutamate, according to the company. One can prepare the mixes by simply adding water and cooking, states Simply Delish’s website. The company also provides suggestions for optional additions that compliment each specific recipe. For example, an alternative preparation for the African Sweet Potato Soup is to add coconut milk or nut butter. Each Simply Delish soup package makes eight to 10 one-cup servings, enough to feed a family of four to five, states the website.

Herbaland

Herbaland of Richmond, British Columbia, Canada, calls itself Canada’s largest producer of gummy vitamins and supplements for children and adults. Among the adult gummy varieties are: Branched-Chain Amino Acids (for post-workout muscle recovery); Cold Brew Energy; Plant-Based Omega-3; Protein (with organic pea protein); and Vegan D3 and B12. Examples of the kids’ gummies include: Calcium and D3; Immune Boost; Multivitamins; and Vitamin C. All of the gummy varieties are free of gluten, soy, dairy, egg, nuts, and genetically modified ingredients, according to the company. Further, the adult gummies are sugar-free as are some of the kids’ varieties. Herbaland uses organically farmed and fair-trade ingredients whenever possible, states the company’s website. At the Herbaland booth, the Eye Care gummies caught my eye, pardon the pun. As a writer, I have my face in front of a computer all day, so I do all I can to protect my eyes, especially from artificial blue light that I have read can be quite damaging. The Eye gummies, which have a nice strawberry flavor, contain eye-nourishing lutein (from Marigold flowers) and zeaxanthin. The lutein is in a form that the body can readily absorb, according to the company.

Garden Path Homemade Soap

I have to give credit to Garden Path Homemade Soap of Vankleek Hill, Ontario, Canada. At the festival, I came across the company’s Toilet Bombs for cleaning one’s toilet bowl. This product falls into what I call “the something-refreshingly-new-and-different category,” at least to me. The white “bombs” look like medium-sized marshmallows. Their ingredients are: baking soda, citric acid, borax, witch hazel, lavender, and peppermint and lemon essential oils. To clean a toilet bowl, one drops one bomb into the bowl and allows the bomb to fizz and dissolve. Then, one simply scrubs the inside of the bowl and flushes. One can also plop a bomb in a bucket of water to create a surface-cleaning solution or to clean the bathtub or shower, according to Garden Path’s website. Bombs away!

May 27 2018 Vancouver Veg Expo