The Veggie World in Zurich

Expectations

I have known about Veggie World since 2018, through posts on YouTube by influencers and also from the official side. Until 2019, I was travelling in South America, which is why I couldn’t visit the fair until now. So this year (2022) was my first time at Veggie World. Through the Youtube videos I had the impression that it is a fair where mainly the latest substitute products from the big manufacturers are presented. Since I rarely consume such products, I went to Zurich with mixed feelings. Accordingly, my expectations were not that high. But I was hoping to buy a nice T-shirt and try out a few products so that I wouldn’t have to buy them myself later just to test them. For me, this is especially true of meat substitutes, because they usually don’t taste good to me, as they imitate the dead animal too much. I also find the ingredients of such products questionable, especially as far as the fat content is concerned.

Booths

But as always, everything turned out differently than expected. The hall was much smaller than imagined, and within 10 minutes I had gained an overview. How should I fill the day now? Then I started to inspect the various stands more closely. There were only about 5 stands with substitute products, which I thought was positive (among them were simplyV, Soyana, Coop and Outlaws Food). Having observed how influencers are treated by simplyV; exclusive package in cool bag and a royal treatment; I now also know why my image of Veggie World was so one-sided.

Many booths were made up of small family or individual businesses, start-ups or companies with a social background, presenting new innovative products or traditional products that are not only interesting for people living vegan. Many of them are projects with a social background that source their raw materials in Central Asia, Latin America or Africa. Others create new products, like naanu-foods, which crosses sugar-free biscuits with supplements. I also noticed that many booths, including food trucks, came from the French-speaking part of Switzerland. In any case, I changed languages more often.

Besides food, there were also cosmetics, vegan T-shirts, insurance and of course Sea Shepherd. The organic-vegan hotel and restaurant Bödele from Vorarlberg was also represented.

At the very beginning there was a huge booth of “I love fruit and veg from europe”. A campaign promoting the seasonal purchase and consumption of European fruit and vegetables, organic produce and products with European quality labels. They inundated me with a bag, apron, desk calendar and all sorts of information. Unfortunately, the recipes they distribute are neither vegan nor vegetarian. Which had a somewhat negative effect on my impression of it, because then it ends up back in the same circle that you should eat more fruits and vegetables, but the essentials are not addressed.

and South Amerika

Of course, the Latin American products immediately reminded me of South America and I had a brief emotional moment. As regular readers of my blog know, there are also vegan fairs in South America. One is in Arequipa (Peru) and the other is in São Paolo (Brazil). I unfortunately missed the latter, it is organised by the Sociedade Vegetariana Brasileira and, as far as I know, takes place on the university campus. The Veg Festival in Arequipa took place exactly on the weekend of my arrival, so of course I wrote a post about it.

Surprisingly, the Veg-Fest in Arequipa is not much smaller than Veggie World in Zurich, which I really didn’t expect. Does this show the progress in Peru or the Swiss backwardness? In any case, vegan cosmetics, T-shirts, food, restaurants and lectures were presented at both events. Compared to Veggie World, however, Veg-Fest had quite a touch of indie. You have to know that being vegan has a different meaning in South America. Being vegan is a statement there: back to Mother Earth, back to the roots, to a way of life in harmony with nature, as many of the ancestors of today’s South Americans lived. And yet it has a touch of hippie, because the city people in Peru also have less real contact with nature. But I think it’s exactly this back-to-the-roots feeling that people associate with veganism there that will make the movement successful in South America. And yet it mixes with the modern fusion cuisine of Peru, the eco-friendly innovations that are also emerging there, the Hare Krishna communities and the Adventists. And I miss this wonderful mixture of positivity in Europe.

What I missed?

Although it was not a sunny day, I found Hall 622 very dark, there was no daylight and the fresh air that reminds you of the season could not be perceived. As a result, I could not tell the time and since there were no public clocks, I had to search for my mobile phone in my backpack more often. On top of that, the deprivation of daylight made me additionally tired. Music, live or otherwise, wouldn’t have hurt either to lift the atmosphere a bit.

Conclusion

I can only recommend the fair. What surprised me was that it was not a fair of substitute products. Many suppliers had a social-ecological background, with products from Africa, South America and Central Asia. The fact that so many products were presented that can also be served to people with an omnivore diet makes this fair interesting for everyone who is open to new foods.

Favourites

I do not receive any compensation from any of the companies mentioned in this post for mentioning their products, nor did I receive any products for free at the fair (except for the degustations, of course). There is no ranking order in the following list.

José Opita Café

Buy coffee directly from the family finca in Colombia. Authentic family farm, excellent quality, sustainable and direct. Grown either by coffee farmers from their own family or selected partners and imported directly so that everyone benefits.

Website

Meybol Cacao

Meybol Cacao is passionately dedicated to selling tree-to-bar chocolate made from the best and most exclusive fine cocoa varieties from Peru. The award-winning chocolate bars are lovingly handcrafted from the best beans from their own cacao trees or from selected plantations. In the process, they care about the people and nature at all times. The natural manufacturing process is controlled from start to finish, it is completely transparent and avoids middlemen – directly from tree to bar.

Website

BanChips

BanChips produce Chifles in Switzerland. There are 6 different flavours, including Nature, Salt & Vinegar, Paprika, Curry, Tomato Pizza and Oriental. The plantains for the BanChips arrive in Switzerland by sea and land from Colombia and Ecuador, where they are produced by hand in small quantities. They are deep-fried in Swiss organic rapeseed oil. In contrast, the bulk buyer (Coop) flies its Chifles in from Thailand.

Website

Chiliwerk

Chiliwerk is a family business. Marbella produces a wide variety of chilli sauces, chutneys, jams, marinades, creams and pickles herself. The product range extends “from mild to wild”, so there is something for everyone.

Website

Back to Roots

The company imports and distributes tiger nuts (from Africa) and mainly produces tiger nut drinks, but they also have other products such as roasted peanuts and cashews from Togo. As a social enterprise, they strengthen women’s skills through local projects in rural areas.

Website

Neues Food Depot

The New Food Depot is aimed at traders, such as natural food shops. The range includes a number of interesting products from all over the world that meet the highest ecological and social standards. All products are of the best quality and are produced in a small-scale farming environment.

Website

Djoon Dattelpralinen

These date pralines and spreads have only a few selected ingredients and no added sugar. All products are completely organic and gluten-free.

Website

Akari Taste GmbH

These long-lasting dressings and dips are created from A to Z in the manufactory in Zurich, without artificial additives, flavour enhancers or preservatives.

Website

Montanita

Soaps made from natural raw materials from Morocco, which are also produced locally, so the entire value chain remains in Morocco. This creates jobs and generates income for countless families. In addition, soap production has a long tradition in Morocco. Soaps have been produced in Morocco for centuries, so the production is not only understood as work, but rather as a traditional craft.

Website

Creamy Stuff

All products are handmade in the manufactory in Wolfhalden/AR. The assortment ranges from skin care to body and hair care and is completely vegan. Everything is free from palm oil, parabens and silicones and of course completely without animal testing. Ingredients are sourced as locally as possible and a holistic sustainability approach is taken throughout the product lifecycle. A recycling system was launched in 2016: Customers can return their empty packaging to one of the retailers. These are then cleaned and reused in the production of the creams. Overall, the packaging is designed to be as environmentally friendly as possible: either unpackaged, with paper or in glass or recycled PET bottles.

Website

Sea Shepherd

Sea Shepherd is a global NGO working to protect the oceans and their inhabitants. For over 40 years, it has been working to expose and end illegal and harmful activities. Its approach is different from most NGOs: Sea Shepherd is not a protest organisation – there are no flyers, petitions or demonstrations. Their credo is “Direct Action” – they track down illegal and harmful activities in the world’s oceans and do their best to intervene directly to stop them.

Website

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