The Vegan Pod – Details, episodes & analysis

Ultra-processed vegan foods have been a hot topic in the media recently and have been called out for having negative health implications. On the latest episode of The Vegan Pod, we explore the truth behind the headlines and ask: Are ultra-processed foods bad for us? How do vegan ultra-processed foods compare to their non-vegan counterparts? Are there benefits to choosing to eat processed foods? 

To answer all these questions and more, we’re joined by guests Emily McKee and Jenny Chapman. Registered Dietitian Emily works here at The Vegan Society as part of our Nutrition Team, and biologist Jenny was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2023 to investigate the adoption, acceptance and trust of plant-based meat and authored the report “Processing the discourse over plant-based meat”. 

The views expressed by guests on The Vegan Pod are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.    

RESOURCES:

Processing the discourse over plant-based meat - Jenny Chapman

Ultra-processed food and veganism: What are the facts? - Emily McKee

Food labelling: nutrition information - British Dietetic Association

Plant-based meat and health in Europe - The Good Food Institute

On the latest episode of The Vegan Pod, we’re celebrating World Environment Day by discussing how our relationship with non-human animals contributes to the climate crisis and asking what we can do to change it.

Despite research illustrating the widespread environmental impact of animal agriculture, it is often an issue that gets left out of conversations about the climate crisis. To help us explore why this is and what we can do about it, we're joined by Dr Richard Twine and Dr Heather Marshall from The Centre for Human Animal Studies at Edgehill University.

Together, with our host, they unpack the role that the current relationship between humans and animals plays in the environmental crisis, the impacts of the climate crisis on animals and how education can play a key role in encouraging wider adoption of veganism.

The views expressed by guests on The Vegan Pod are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.  

In this episode of The Vegan Pod, we're asking “Should veganism be used as a vehicle for comedy?”.

Does vegan humour reinforce negative assumptions about veganism or help to tackle them? How can we deal with non-vegans who choose to make jokes about the vegan lifestyle? This month we were joined by two long-time vegans and professional comedians, Chris Stokes and Ishi Khan, to help us answer these questions and understand whether it’s possible to toe the line between making people laugh and simultaneously raising awareness around such a serious issue. The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.

In July's episode of The Vegan Pod, we’re exploring how protest laws are impacting the vegan movement and discussing how we can be effective activists in the current political climate.

In this episode, our host, Rachel New is joined by Dr Alex Lockwood, spokesperson for the activist group, Animal Rising, and Dr Steve Cook, Associate Professor of Political Theory who’s research focusses on justice for nonhuman animals and the ethics of activism. The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.

Is it expensive to eat a vegan diet? That's what we're asking on June's episode of The Vegan Pod. Host, Rachel New, is joined by Vegan Punks, Dan and Jess and best-selling cookbook author, Katy Beskow, to help tackle the myth that it's costly to be vegan and discuss delicious ways to keep your food shop budget down! The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.

In May's episode of The Vegan Pod, we're celebrating Spring by talking all things gardening! Host, Rachel New, is joined by vegan gardeners Matthew Appleby and Danielle James, who help us understand how to make our gardens animal-friendly and offer advice on how to grow successfully whilst limiting our impact on natural ecosystems. The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.

April saw thousands of runners take place in the London Marathon, in this episode of The Vegan Pod, we talk to two vegan runners who completed this year's race!

Host, Rachel New, talks with Matthew Fordham and Emily Goyal to hear their running stories, their experience of the race and how they've fuelled themselves for their training on a vegan diet. The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.

In this episode of The Vegan Pod, we're asking "Do companion animals make vegans hypocrites?"

For vegans, there can be a number of questions and concerns when it comes to taking on a companion animal, from the overarching question “is it vegan to keep an animal?” to questions around breeding and adoption, and, of course, what to feed them to keep them happy and healthy.

To help us with this fascinating and important discussion, host Rachel New is joined by Veterinary Professor, Andrew Knight, and co-director of Vegeco, Damian Eadie.

The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.

Happy Valentine’s Day! In this month's episode of The Vegan Pod, we’re talking love and asking - would you have a vegan wedding even if it meant losing guests?  

Joining us on this episode, to discuss organising and hosting vegan weddings, we have Tomi Makanjuola, vegan chef, writer and content creator, who had her vegan wedding at the end of last year, and Sian Bowron, who’s been running her wedding planning business, Amythest Weddings, since 2012. The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.

Happy New Year and welcome to the first episode of the Vegan Pod 2023! January is a time for fresh starts, resolutions, and making positive changes for the year ahead. One thing lots of people are considering this year, is their environmental impact - a Vegan Society survey has found that over half of Brits planned to make a resolution this year with an environmental goal in mind.  

Joining us on this episode to discuss low-waste living and veganism, we have Camilla Gaillardin, co-founder of vegan, zero-waste personal care brand, Milly & Sissy, and Gittemarie Johansen, sustainability expert and zero-waste blogger. The views expressed by our guests are not necessarily the views of The Vegan Society.