06.08.2017 ►Jain Vegans ►Newsletter @ HereNow4U

Jain Vegans

On Sunday 13 August 2017, there will be two fantastic vegan events for the Jain community in London.

At 11am, there will be a vegan lifestyle event with Oshwal West in Hounslow, with several speakers, cooking demonstratons and food samples.

And at 5pm, there will be an unique opportunity to hear from and meet the founders of Veganuary - one of the most inspiring, exciting, and effective vegan charities in the UK.

Read on for details on how to register, and for info on other upcoming vegan events.

**Reminder**
Speaker event with founders of Veganuary
Niland Centre | Sun 13th Aug | 5pm - 7pm | free

A unique opportunity for the community to hear from and meet the founders of Veganuary, one of the most exciting and effective vegan charities in the UK.

Veganuary helped inspire 60,000 people to try vegan in January 2017, saving 85,000 animals in that month alone, and potentially as many as 14 MILLION animals through longer term dietary changes.

Sunday 13th Aug (5 - 7pm)
Niland Centre, Bushey, 93 Elstree Road, Bushey, WD23 4EE
Registration essential (free): www.jain-veganuary.eventbrite.co.uk
Open to everyone

In 2013, an English couple, Matthew Glover and Jane Land, had the idea of launching a campaign to help save the lives of animals by encouraging people in the UK to try vegan for January. They didn’t have any financial backers at the time, and every penny of the 2014 Veganuary campaign was financed from their own pockets.
Three years later, the 2017 Veganuary campaign was one of the most successful in UK history. 60,000 people have participated and, in a follow-up survey, 59% of respondents who were previously non-vegetarians indicated they were planning to continue with a vegan lifestyle. Veganuary estimate that the campaign spared the lives of over 85,000 animals in January 2017 alone, and that as many as 14 MILLION animals could be saved as a result of the lifestyle changes the campaign helped to inspire.

Neither Matthew nor Jane were born into vegetarian families, yet they have become two of the most effective proponents of a low-himsa (vegan) lifestyle in the UK.

Find out about what motivated Matthew and Jane to switch to a non-violent lifestyle, what they believe to be the secrets of Veganuary’s success, and how they have been inspired by the Jain community.

Oshwal Vegan Lifestyle event (2nd chance)
11:00 - 13:30 | Sun 13 Aug | Oshwal Shakti Centre, Hounslow

An opportunity to learn more about the relevance of a vegan lifestyle for Jains, gain tips on vegan nutrition, watch simple cookery demonstrations and taste some food samples.

A fantastic opportunity for anyone that missed out on the Oshwal Vegan Lifestyle Event on Sunday 16 July 2017 at Ekta centre (see summary below)

Hosted by Oshwal West and conducted by the Jain Vegans Team.

For registration/further info, contact Keshubhai: 07735 382 657 (2pm to 8pm)

Summary of Oshwal Vegan Lifestyle Event
(16 July 2017 at Oshwal Ekta Centre)

On Sunday 16th July, following months of planning and preparation, the first ever Oshwal Lifestyle event took place at the Ekta centre. There was a lot of demand for this all-day programme co-organised by Oshwal UK and the Jain Vegans team, and the 250 capacity was reached.

Freshly brewed masala tea and biscuit refreshments were on available at the start of the day, providing a tasty caffeine kick for anyone struggling for early morning alertness.

The first presentation on 'How to be healthy on a vegan diet' by Dr Dev Priya Singhvi and Dr Anuja Shah was crammed with invaluable research-based medical evidence.

Next followed a cookery demo on vegan khandvi by Bhartiben & Veenaben of the Ekta centre volunteer catering team, and vegan kadhi by Nishma Shah of the Jain Vegans Team.

The second presentation was titled 'The Ethical and environmental case for avoiding dairy'. Sagar Kirit Shah and Tasvi Shah provided a thought-provoking talk, just before the lunch break, full of number-crunched data to back their case.

The vegan lunch was lovingly prepared by the Oshwal volunteer catering team, led by Harshidaben, Bhartiben and Sailesbhai. On the vegan menu: chilli tofu & salad wraps, matar pulao, kadhi, dokhra, khandvi (demonstrated earlier) and chia seed pudding.

Not only was all the food delicious but it was served up in compostable, eco-friendly plates, spoons and cups.

Nishma Shah then demonstrated how to make cashew cheese, (and tasters were passed around with crackers for the audience to try), before showing how to turn aquafaba (chick pea water) into an egg-substitute.

Although there were opportunities to ask questions after each of the two earlier presentations, the day was concluded with a longer 30 minutes Q&A panellists session to address any other queries the audience may have had. After a second round of masala tea, our visitors were each given a goody bag as they left. Armed with all the information shared, anyone not already vegan was encouraged to give it a try, either immediately or alongside others in some upcoming campaigns (eg Go vegan for Paryushan or Veganuary)

Upcoming vegan events

Vibrant social events in London
For information on monthly informative talks, regular scenic walks at different locations in London, social meals at some of the best vegan-friendly restaurants in the city, social meetups in London among like-minded folk, check out the follow links:
London Vegans and London Vegan Meetup

Summer Holiday cookery classes for children - Mon 7th to Fri 11th Aug
Taught by Nishma Shah of Shambhu's (and part of the Jain Vegans Working Group)
For further information and to book your child's place:
www.shambhus.co.uk/children-classes

Relevance of a vegan lifestyle for Jains - Sun 13th Aug (11am to 1:30pm)
Oshwal Shakti Centre, Hounslow (TW3)
Hosted by Oshwal West Area, conducted by the Jain Vegans Team.
For registration/further info, contact Keshubhai: +44 7735 382 657 (2pm to 8pm)

Veganuary speak to the Jain community - Sun 13th Aug
www.jain-veganuary.eventbrite.co.uk

Bolton Vegan Festival - Sat 26th Aug
www.facebook.com/BoltonVeganFair

Viva! Vegan Festival, London (Wembley) - Sat 16th Sept
www.viva.org.uk/festivals/london-wembley-2017
Nishma and Mahersh Shah of Shambhu's, and part of the Jain Vegans Working Group, will be running their vegan catering stall at this event

Indian cuisine, by Nishma of Shambhu's (Cookery class for adults) - Sat 23rd Sept
Taught by Nishma Shah of Shambhu's (and part of the Jain Vegans Working Group)
For further information and to book your place:
www.shambhus.co.uk/adult-classes

The National Veg Food & Lifestyle Festival (Manchester) - Sat 30th Sept
www.national-veg-food-and-lifestyle-festival.co.uk
For a list of many other great upcoming vegan events, visit this link:
http://shambhus.co.uk/events/

Vegan recipes & cookery classes

Do you need advice and tips on how to veganise your favourite dishes or perhaps you're looking for ways to introduce more plant based cuisine into the family diet? If so check out the following listings:

http://www.jainvegans.org/recipes/
http://yummyvegan.tumblr.com/
https://veganjain.com/
http://plantshift.com/recipebook/

Would you like to share the recipe for a favourite Jain vegan dish? Please email us on for publication on our website.
(Please accurately state all measurements in metric units)

Vegan cookery classes & demos

Abuse and killing of cows in milk production

The abuse and killing of cows on dairy farms is the main reason why many members of the Jain community have decided to make a switch to a vegan lifestyle:

The cow is forcefully impregnated through artificial insemination. If a cow isn’t made pregnant, she won’t produce milk.
The newborn calf is normally taken away from his/her mother within 24-48 hours. This is traumatic for cows, who, like human mothers, are very motherly and develop strong bonds with their babies.
Male calves are killed shortly after birth or sold on for meat/leather production. They have no other use to dairy farmers.
Female calves are kept on to replace their mothers as milk-producing cows.
The mother cow will be killed when 5-7 years old, even though she could live for 20 to 25 years if given the chance. This is because after bearing a calf and giving milk each year, her milk yield drops such that it is no longer profitable for a dairy farmer to keep her alive.

Even though cows on organic farms might experience slightly better conditions, they are still artificially inseminated and killed long before they would leave their bodies naturally.

NHS website supportive of a vegan diet

For further information on vegan health nutrition, please consult the Vegan Section on the NHS website or visit this link: http://www.vegansociety.com/resources/nutrition-and-health

Alternatives to dairy to help you give up

It is possible to get a range of dairy free alternatives to traditionally animal based products. Normally available from free-from sections of supermarkets and also from health food stores.

You can easily replace:

Cow milk with Soya/Rice/Almond/Coconut Milk (Supermarket ownbrands, Alpro, Provamel, Bonsoy, Ecomil, Koko, Sojade)
Yoghurt / Dahi with plant based curds (Provamel, Alpro, Sojade, Coyo, supermarket own brands)
Butter with vegetable spreads (Pure and Vitalite are commonly available from supermarkets. Note many margarines contain butter milk and thus are not suitable for vegans)
Cheese / Paneer with Dairy Free Cheeses (Tofu, VBites, Sheese, Tofutti, Vegusto, Vegourmet, Violife)
Ice Creams with sorbets or dairy free ice creams (Alpro, Bessant and Drury, Swedish Glace, Booja Booja, Almond Dream, Coyo, supermarket own brands)
Chocolate with dark chocolate (Plamil and Organica do specialist dairy free ‘milk chocolate’ and many brands do vegan dark chocolate)
Eggs with egg replacement powder (baking) or tofu (scrambled)
Honey with maple syrup, rice syrup, agave syrup, date syrup or golden syrup

About Jain Vegans

Jain Vegans supports members of the Jain community in the transition towards a plant-based low-himsa lifestyle, and helps raise awareness about the abuse, violation and killing of cows in milk production.