Taco Bell announced it will add plant-based meat to its menu in the next year.

Last fall, the Mexican-inspired fast-food chain debuted a dedicated vegetarian menu. It featured two new menu items: a Vegetarian Crunchwrap Supreme and a Vegetarian Quesarito.

At the start of 2020, the chain vowed to continue providing the most vegetarian choices and to make it even easier for customers to order them.

Now, the company is embracing veganism as consumer demand for plant-based products grows, especially in the fast-food sector.

We definitely see that plant-based protein has a place on the menu, Taco Bell CEO Mark King told Bloomberg Green.

The fast-food chain is still deciding which plant-based options to add to the menu.King says the company met with Beyond Meat Inc. and Impossible Foods Inc. in recent months

King sampled Beyond Meats items just last week and says hes a fan. I tried all the food which was really exciting, and way beyond my expectation.

According to Fast Company, monthly average searches for the word vegan along with names of major fast-food chains rose 12 percent from 2018 to 2019.

The words vegan Taco Bell ranked number one, yielding 456,500 total searches from January 2018 to August 2019.

By comparison, vegan Starbucks came in second with 216,500 total searches, and vegan Burger King came in third with 127,700.

The arrival of vegan meat to Taco Bells in the US comes on the heels of a shift towards veganism in chains overseas.

Last fall, Taco Bell China added OmniPork, vegan pork that looks and tastes like animal-derived pork, to its menu for a limited time.

The vegan pork is made from shiitake mushrooms, pea protein, soy protein, and rice protein.

Taco Bell Spain also added plant-based meat to its menu last year.

The meat-free meat is made from oats and beans and is marinated in a sauce with secret Taco Bell spices.

Customers can substitute the new oat meat in place of animal-based meats in any of Taco Bells menu options.

Taco Bell launched a limited-time menu featuring the oat-based meat in London locations last May.

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Taco Bell Is Adding Vegan Meat to Its Menu Nationwide

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Mexican-inspired fast-food chain Taco Bell announced it will add vegan meat to its menu in the next year; it is still deciding on plant-based options.

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Audrey Enjoli

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Taco Bell Is Adding Vegan Meat to Its Menu Nationwide - LIVEKINDLY

As veganism grows in popularity around the world, there is increasing pressure for employers to catch up and make the workplace more inclusive.

Measures proposed by the U.K. charity The Vegan Society include dedicated vegan shelves in office fridges, as well as color-coded equipment and separate food preparation areas.

The number of vegans in the U.K. alone quadrupled between 2014 and 2019, growing from 150,000 to 600,000 people, according to the charity. Meanwhile, global internet searches for "veganism" have more than doubled in the past five years, according to Google Trends data, and the term is now seeing around three times the interest of "vegetarianism."

Vegans don't consume animal products and the subsequent shift towards plant-based diets led The Vegan Society to last week publish tips for employers on how they can create a more inclusive work environment for vegan employees.

This was in light of recent changes to U.K. anti-discrimination law which now protects "ethical veganism" people who not only follow a plant-based diet but also avoid any products using, or tested on, animals.

The charity said employers should consider the following:

In January, an employment tribunal in the U.K. confirmed that ethical veganism is a belief that is protected within the scope of the 2010 Equality Act.

This is the U.K. law which says it is illegal to discriminate against people on the basis of age, disability, gender and religion, among other protected characteristics.

The inclusion of ethical veganism within the remit of this law came after an employment tribunal ruled in favor of Jordi Casamitjana, who alleged he was fired from his job at the League Against Cruel Sports for his beliefs. Casamitjana claimed he was fired for telling colleagues that the League's pension fund was invested in companies involved in animal testing.

Matt Turner, a spokesman for The Vegan Society, said the protections for ethical vegans in the U.K. are "long overdue."

"As momentum in the U.K. continues to grow, it's imperative that employers ensure that the ever-increasing number of ethical vegans are protected and catered for in the workplace," he said.

Eric Brent, CEO of California-based online vegan and vegetarian restaurant directory HappyCow, said he believed the same legal protections should apply to vegans in the U.S.

He argued that vegans should be included on the list of people protected under Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) laws, which protect workers in the U.S. against workplace discrimination.

The EEOC, meanwhile, told CNBC via email that veganism could sometimes be considered a religious practice and be protected under its laws.

For example, in 2012, a federal district court ruled in favor of a woman who filed a lawsuit over her dismissal from a hospital. The woman refused to get a flu vaccination which she said went against her veganism and she used biblical extracts as the basis for arguing her beliefs.

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Vegans want to change the workplace and it all starts in the kitchen - CNBC

zollipops

Teen entrepreneur and inventor 14-year-old Alina Morse, creator of the all-natural vegan candy that cleans your teeth Zolli Candy returns this week to exhibit at the Natural Products Expo West, showcasing her seven new product lines.

At age seven, while researching ways to create healthy candy she could have all the time, Miss Morse invented Zollipops, the clean teen lollipops, which hit shelves in 2014 when she was age nine. A freshman high-school student, the youngest in the INC. Magazine INC. 5000 CEO for 2019, the youngster launched one of the fastest-growing private companies in the US which has a three-year revenue growth of 696%.

Recent data from IRI Worldwide shows that approx. 75% of the candy category growth is from outside of the three largest manufactures (Ferrero, Mars, Mondelez), and instead is coming from small and midsize companies like that of Morses. Her brand is championing vegan sweets and is outselling other products from Dum Dums, Blow Pops, Mentos, and Tic Tacs. Zollipops have been the fastest-growing sugar-free candy company and brand during the last 18 months.

Now sold at over 25,000 retailers (including Target, Wal-Mart, CVS, Walgreens, & Whole Foods), her new line comprises of Zollipops, Zolli Drops, Zaffi Taffy, Zolli Carmelz, Zolli Gumeez, Zolli Beanz, and Zolli Ball pops.

Morse donates 10 per cent of profits to support oral health education & entrepreneurship in schools and her Million Smiles Initiative is set to help fight Americas most chronic childhood disease tooth decay.

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Teen Entrepreneur Creates Vegan Candy That Cleans Teeth - vegconomist - the vegan business magazine

Your hunt for a vegan Easter egg is over. Good old Aldi, our go-to for bargain groceries and of course the pom pom making kit, inflatable canoe and solar fairy lights we didn't know we needed has delivered again. This time, they have made Easter that little bit more inclusive with their brand new Moser Roth Free-from Egg costing 4.99 for 200g.

The 65% cocoa solids eggs is dairy, wheat and ironically egg-free. It is therefore also suitable for people with milk, wheat and egg allergies, but unfortunately not for nut-allergy sufferers as it comes packaged with delicious hazelnut truffles.

It is one of a line of new vegan-friendly products from Aldi, following on from their Veganuary success which included jackfruit pizzas, vegan sausage rolls and other plant-based treats. And if dark chocolate is not your thing, don't worry as there is a honeycomb Moo Free Easter Bunnycomb egg available for just 3.49.

All are available in store now. We'll be stocking up so make sure you get there soon.

Head to our food hub for more vegan recipes.

Bosh Healthy Vegan Henry...

Great Gluten-Free Vegan Eats...

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Avoiding dairy? Aldi has a vegan Easter egg and we can't wait to try it - Real Homes

Joaquin Phoenix during his Oscars speech this month, in which he decried fact that people feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow and steal her baby. Photograph: Mark Ralston/AFP via Getty Images

He has been called a diva and pretentious, and there are even those who dont like his acting but never before has Joaquin Phoenix been accused of causing mental health problems for British livestock farmers.

On Tuesday, the National Farmers Union (NFU) president, Minette Batters, changed all that, opening a new front against the US actor by claiming that he and other celebrity campaigners for veganism had played a part in demonising the UKs meat producers and doing enormous damage to their wellbeing.

Days after the Joker actors Oscars speech attacking the meat industry, Batters said farmers fearing the imminent loss of their livelihoods and family holdings were in a state of stress and anxiety.

Asked at the unions annual conference who she thought was driving the view that meat was bad and plants were good, she said: A lot of people who seem to hit the red carpet at the Bafta awards.

She added: Celebrities have to be careful [because] there are real-life consequences for others Joaquin Phoenix, hes had a really challenging life, and you really feel for him and a lot of the things he was saying, but he has to remember there are people at the end of this, there are small family farms and they get hurt too.

Her comments were immediately criticised by vegan and animal rights groups, who accused Batters of making claims without evidence and ignoring the ethical problems posed by meat production.

Veganism is something of an easy target at the moment and Im not sure that we are the cause of farmers problems, said a spokesperson for the Vegan Society. There are many causes of mental health issues and stress in farming and I havent seen evidence, a piece of research, showing that veganism is one of them.

Phoenix, who has been a vegan since he was three, made a plea for tolerance and equality in his acceptance speech for the best actor award at the Oscars, saying no race, gender or species had rights over another.

I think weve become very disconnected from the natural world, he said. We go into the natural world and we plunder it for its resources. We feel entitled to artificially inseminate a cow and steal her baby, even though her cries of anguish are unmistakeable. Then we take her milk thats intended for her calf and we put it in our coffee and our cereal.

Veganism continues to grow in popularity in the UK, with supermarkets clearing shelf space for plant-based ready meals, and meat-free dining in restaurants and pubs now commonplace.

Other celebrities who have spoken about the health benefits of plant-based diets are Benedict Cumberbatch, Ellie Goulding and Beyonc, with their support credited with aiding a rise in veganisms popularity.

Batters said she was not saying veganism is wrong, but argued that the debate around animal products had become so binary that meat was being put in the same category as tobacco.

I remember the interview I did with Evan Davis on PM to talk about the governments new food strategy and he said: Is eating meat the new smoking? He compared us with the tobacco industry and you think, Whoa, just think about all of this.

But the Vegan Society questioned whether its members were really so influential, pointing out that the total number of vegans in the UK was still only 600,000, and saying: The fact is 99% of the population are still eating animal products. There might be a lot more meat reducers, but this is not an industry that has been threatened by veganism.

Dawn Carr, the director of vegan corporate projects at People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta), said farmers were not the only ones feeling anxious.

We cant turn a blind eye to the visible fear and distress shown by animals raised for their flesh, milk and eggs, she said. They have no choice, but farmers do: instead of sending sentient animals to slaughter, they can sow oats or soya beans or grow vegetables, grains, nuts or fruits instead, depending on the quality of their land.

Batters called for kindness to be shown to farmers and an understanding that they were human too. Its very polarised and its doing enormous damage to the mental health of livestock farmers, she said.

Its just about instilling this philosophy and being kind and farmers need we all need to think that too in this world of social media, we just need to take a step back sometimes.

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Veganism row breaks out after Joaquin Phoenix is told: be kinder to farmers - The Guardian

caption Ikeas new vegan meatballs. source Courtesy of Ikea

Ikeas is rolling out a vegan version of its iconic Swedish meatball dish that is served in its restaurants in stores around the world.

The company, which is best known for its inexpensive furniture, confirmed last week that the plant-based meatball dish will hit stores in August of this year.

The news that it was testing this vegan alternative was first announced in May 2019.

Its Swedish meatballs, which are typically served with cream sauce, mashed potatoes, and lingonberry jam, have been offered in its stores for more than 35 years and have become an iconic part of the company. According to Mashed story from 2017, two million meatballs are eaten every day across its stores worldwide.

Ikea already offers alternatives to its original beef-pork blend meatballs. These include veggie balls, chicken balls, and salmon and cod balls, which were launched in 2018.

It is a really exciting industry! Looking at the quality of the products that we have been tasting I am looking forward to serve a delicious plant based meatball made from alternative protein at IKEA, Michael La Cour, managing director of IKEA Food Services AB said in a statement to the press in May. I hope that the many meatball lovers out there will like it as well.

Ikeas move to launch plant-based meatballs is part of the companys broader plan to become more sustainable.

On Thursday, Ikea updated investors on its progress toward becoming more climate positive. The company said that during the 2019 financial year the climate footprint of the chain had decreased for the first time by 4.3% in absolute terms. This decrease was driven by its increased use of renewable energy resources to produce Ikea products as well as increases in the energy efficiency of the lighting and appliances range, it said.

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Ikea is launching a vegan version of its widely popular Swedish meatball dish in August - Business Insider

Liverpool will be welcoming back a massive vegan festival on Saturday 28rd March.

The Live A Better Life Vegan Fair, Liverpools biggest vegan event, will return to St Georges Hall offering delicious food and advice for those interested in all things vegan.

The Live A Better Life vegan fairs have been running in Liverpool since 2013 and have been attended by more than 26,000 people.

Event Manager Emma Cox said: Our last event at St Georges Hall attracted over 3,000 people. With so many new foods to try and things to see, we are expecting our next event to be even more popular.

A total of 130 stalls will be selling everything from vegan food to cruelty-free beauty products. A massive range of delicious food will be on offer as well as natural products, fashion, jewellery, gifts and much more.

Event Manager Emma added: Interest in veganism is higher than ever in 2020.

There are already a growing number of people in Liverpool who are vegan, vegetarian or on their way to a plant-based diet.

For the increasing numbers of people who want to find out more about improving their health, saving animals and protecting the environment, this is an amazing event which will entertain and inspire.

For the first time ever we will have a live musical theatre show inside the vegan fair. Live singing and dance performances will take place on the Great Hall main stage for visitors to enjoy. Fantasy Performers will be providing a spectacular 2 hour live show, starting at 1pm.

Showcasing the best vegan food and natural products in Liverpool, the Live A Better Life event will be a great day out that all the family can enjoy.

The Live A Better Life event takes place at St Georges Hall, Liverpool, L1 1JJ.

Its happening 28th March from 10-5 and entry is 3 on the door (under 10s free).

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Liverpool's massive vegan fair is coming to St George's Hall this month - The Guide Liverpool

Taco Bell is slated to add vegan meat options to its menu next year, according to new CEO Mark King. Under its previous leadership, Taco Bell eschewed adding vegan meat to the menu and instead leaned into its existing meatless menu items to embrace the plant-based trend, creating dedicated vegetarian menus and guides to help customers order vegan options. We definitely see that plant-based protein has a place on the menu, King told Bloomberg. King has already met with plant-based companies Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat but has not yet determined which brand to partner with on the menu update. I tried all the food which was really exciting, and way beyond my expectation, King said about the Beyond Meat products he sampled last week. Last year, competing chain Del Taco added Beyond Meat vegan options to all 580 of its locations nationwide.

Want more of todays best plant-based news, recipes, and lifestyle? Get our award-winning magazine!

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Taco Bell Will Add Vegan Meat to Menu Next Year - VegNews

Plant-based meat has officially infiltrated pretty much every fast food restaurant in the game. Burger King has the Impossible Whopper, White Castle has Impossible Sliders, Dunkin has the Beyond Sausage Sandwich, and, now, even KFC (a fast food chain that's literally all about chicken) has hopped on the bandwagon.

Recently, KFC started testing out plant-based chicken nuggets and wingswhich they call Beyond Fried Chicken (a.k.a. fried chicken made with Beyond meat)in certain parts of the U.S.

It was a BFD. One Atlanta restaurant sold out of Beyond Fried Chicken in less than five hours. People lined up before the restaurant even opened, and the drive-thru line wrapped around the parking low twice.

Now, KFC has expanded their Beyond Fried Chicken test to more than 70 spots in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Nashville, Tennessee, throughout February, according to a press release.

"We've really pushed the limits to develop plant-based chicken that I think will have KFC and plant-based protein fans saying, 'That's finger lickin' good, Andrea Zahumensky, chief marketing officer at KFC U.S., said in the release.

How exactly does this whole chicken-less fried chicken thing work, though? Here's everything you need to know about KFCs new Beyond Fried Chicken.

KFC shared online that Beyond Fried Chicken primarily gets its protein from soy, wheat, and pea proteins.

Want more specifics? Heres the full ingredients list:

Water, Enriched wheat flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Soy Protein Isolate, Expeller Pressed Canola Oil, Enriched bleached wheat flour (Bleached Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Wheat Gluten, Natural Flavor, Yeast Extract, and less than 2 percent of: Breadcrumbs (Wheat Flour, Distilled Vinegar, Sea Salt, Leavening (Sodium Bicarbonate), Inactive Yeast, Spice Extractives), Chili Pepper, Citric Acid, Garlic Powder, Leavening (Sodium Bicarbonate, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate), Modified Wheat Starch, Onion Powder, Pea Extract, Rice Flour, Salt, Spice, Titanium Dioxide (for color).

Yeah, it's longbut, plant-based or not, this is fast food, after all.

Here's the kicker: According to KFC, their Beyond Fried Chicken is 100 percent plant-based, but it's prepped in the same fryers as KFCs actual chicken. So, it could get contaminated with residue or fat from that real chicken, and therefore isn't technically even vegetarian, let alone vegan.

KFC says they bread their Beyond Fried Chicken in a mixture similar to their popcorn nugget breading, meaning that the plant-based option is not gluten-free.

Real Talk: Is Beyond Fried Chicken healthy?

When we talk about eating more plant-based foods, this isnt what we mean, says New York City-based dietitian Samantha Cassetty, RD. Just like regular fast food, this isn't an everyday food.

Jessica Cording, RD, nutritionist and author of The Little Book of Game-Changers, agrees: Fried chicken is still fried chicken. Just because something is plant-based doesnt necessarily mean that its healthy.

Theres some difference in nutrients, but its still fried protein at the end of the day, says Cording. If a regular part of your diet, fried foodswhether plant- or animal-basedcan have a negative effect on your health.

31 Plant-Based MealsEven Carnivores Will Enjoy

Plant-based faux meats are also often made with heavily processed ingredients and contain excessive amounts of sodiumneither of which are great for you, adds Cassetty.

Still, youre not going to torpedo your healthy eating goals by treating yourself once in a while. If youre curious about plant-based foods and you want to give these a try, they can fit in a healthful diet, Cassetty says. As long as 75 percent of your eats come from minimally-processed plant foods, such as beans, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and avocados, you're good.

As of right now, KFC doesn't have any other plant-based meal options on the menu.

However, certain KFC side orders, like green beans, coleslaw, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, and sweet kernel corn, fit the bill.

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KFC's New Plant-Based 'Vegan' Fried Chicken: Everything You Need To Know - Women's Health

Serena Williams is one of the greatest tennis players to ever play the game. Shes got the second-most Grand Slam titles for a woman (23 and counting). And shes not done yet. The mom to two-and-a-half-year-old Alexis Olympia is also a fashion icon (she actually went to fashion school in 2000). And she took to New York Fashion Week earlier this month to launch her newest S by Serena collection, including a vegan leather range.

The S by Serena Spring 2020 collection features on-point dresses, pantsuits, and jumpsuits in vegan leather and bold prints. Williams says the new collection is a fashion passport. She was inspired by her travels around the world, in particular, by Africa.

Thats where I got the giraffe print from, she told Essence. I just feel like giraffe is the new leopardI mean, at least Im trying to make it the new leopard! Williams told Vogue about her favorite design. I am loving it.

Williams also says she was extremely motivated to include vegan leather in this collection. I feel like a lot of things are being killed and were not saving the earth, she said. We can all just do one small thing and help out so that was also a lot of our inspiration.

The collection also gives another nod toward the planet with a bold emphasis on green, the de facto color of environmentalism. One of the hottest colors this year on the runway for spring and summer is green, Williams said.

Williams herself eats a mostly vegan diet. Her husband, Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian, is also vegan.

My first come-to-Jesus moment was when we found out that Serena was pregnant, he told GQ. Thats when it really hit me. I dont want to be an unhealthy, lethargic dad when Olympia wants to practice soccer in the backyard.

Ohanian says things really changed after he watched an early cut of The Game Changers. He was so impressed by the film, which busts the myth that athletes need meat, that he signed on as an executive producer. Around the same time, I tried the Impossible Burger, and I was like, Damn! This is good! It wasnt long after that I invested in it. Now Im whole-hog, so to speak, on the plant-based revolution.

Williams says her outlook changed too after their daughters birth. And it has informed her designs.

After having a child, I was like, My heroes are moms. Women are superheroes. To have a baby and have to go work two weeks later or three weeks later, or even to go to a 9 to 5 [is incredible], she said to Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour.

For me, its all about creating that message of inclusivity, and inclusivity is everything.

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Serena Williams Just Launched a Vegan Leather Line to Help Save the Planet

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Tennis legend Serena Williams is a GOAT on the court and off. Her latest S by Serena Spring 2020 Collection focuses on vegan leather and animal prints.

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Jill Ettinger

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Serena Williams Just Launched a Vegan Leather Line to Help Save the Planet - LIVEKINDLY