Heavenly Organics

Last year’s vegan fair in Shrewsbury was a huge success, with around 2000 people turning up to sample the array of vegan goodies on offer.

Heavenly Organics couldn’t make it last year but we’re really looking forward to holding a stall at this year’s fair, which takes place on Saturday August 4th at The Morris Hall in Shrewsbury and promises to be the biggest vegan Shrewsbury fair to date.

You can find The Morris Hall at Bellstone,  Shrewsbury, SY1 1JB, Shropshire PLEASE NOTE THE NEW VENUE ADDRESS! The vegan fair starts at 10 a.m and runs until 4 p.m.

There’ll be a wide variety of hot and cold food, cakes, books, clothing, jewellery and gift stalls in the theatre itself, whilst outside in The Square you’ll find charity and vegan information stalls. The outside stalls will be open before 10 a.m. so there’ll be plenty to do if you arrive at the event early.

There are free goody bags on offer for the first 100 people through the doors of the The Wightman, and the organisers say that if you’d like one you should turn up nice and early! The fair is completely free entry, and there’ll be lots of samples to try on the day as well.

Here’s a rundown of stallholders who’ll be at the fair:

• Good Carma Foods (alternative, whole food, dairy free products)

•  Deb’s Pantry (bakery specialising in vegan cakes and treats)

• Absolutely Vegan (vegan food)

• V Active (vegan books, mugs, tshirts and more)

• Lakeside Ethical Treats (natural, organic, fairtrade, local and vegan sweets and chocolates)

• Shropshire Veggies and Vegans (vegetarian and vegan group)

• The Ginger Cow (vegan cuisine)

• The Tipsy Badger (vegan bags made mostly from recycled materials)

• Shrewsbury Wellbeing Hypnotherapy (hypnotherapy and hypnosis)

• Shropshire Badger Group (network committed to protecting badgers)

• Happi Bakes (baked goods)

• IUVO Skincare (organic vegan skin care)

• Viva La Vegan (vegan clothing and accessories)

• Zainz Catering (traditional South East Asian food)

• The Pie Parlour and Bakery (gluten, dairy and egg free foods including vegan goods)

• Trishual (raw chocolate maker)

• Wear Your Voice (vegan and animal rights tshirts)

• Top Bathbombing (luxury bath bombs, hand made soaps and essential oils)

• Plant Bites (Wholefood, vegan, healthy snacks)

• Clean & Natural (organic skin and hair products)

• Enrichd (plant-based whole food supplements and superfoods)

• Butterbelle (all natural nut and seed spreads)

• Wolverhampton Vegans (vegan group)

• Anonymous For The Voiceless (vegan activism)

• Nature’s Kitchen (Sweet and savoury treats inspired by worldly cuisine)

• Fundraising stalls for vegan charities Veganuary and Animal Free Research UK

For more information you can find the Facebook event page for Shrewsbury Vegan Fair here.

Let’s celebrate vegan Shrewsbury! We’re really looking forward to seeing you all there!

Here at Heavenly Organics Skin Care we love to support ethical retailers who are also dedicated to selling sustainable products and making a positive change for humans, animals, and the planet. That’s why we’ve put together a shortlist of our favourite independent ethical stores – who also just so happen to stock our vegan, organic skin care products!

Ethical Wares

Ethical Wares is a 100% vegan footwear, clothing and lifestyle accessories store offering over 500 entirely cruelty-free products. Ethical Wares are also very careful to source responsibly made goods, with many of their products carrying the FairTrade mark.

What’s more, the shop’s income goes towards funding the care of 50 animals who live with the store owners in Wales, a huge family who include goats, sheep, pigs, horses, cats, dogs, rabbits – and even Aunt Dotty the cow!

https://www.ethicalwares.com

Brontosaurus Vegan Lifestyle Store

Just like their dinosaur namesake this Swansea-based grocery and lifestyle store is passionate about plants! Brontosaurus Vegan Lifestyle Store is 100% vegan and sells not only plant-based food but also nutritional supplements, cosmetics, toiletries, household products and much more.

The store can be found at Swansea’s Indoor Market on Oxford Street in the city centre, and is open from 9.30 to 16:30, Monday to Saturday.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/brontosaurusvegan

Carrot Cruncher

If you’re looking for delicious organic and locally produced food in Carmarthenshire, Wales, look no further than the aptly-named Carrot Cruncher! The store sells a range of fresh local fruit and vegetables, as well as oils and vinegars, breads and cakes, and much more.

Carrot Cruncher is open daily between 10:00 and 17:00 and you’ll find the shop on Sycamore Street in Newcastle Emlyn.

https://www.facebook.com/Carrot-Cruncher-1993583520859158

Cariad Wholefoods

An independent store located in Blandford Forum, Dorset, Cariad Wholesfoods specialises in – you guessed it – wholefoods! Cariad are passionate about selling organic, plant-based, responsibly sourced and ethically produced goods and they also strive to support local producers whenever possible. Vegans can shop safe in the knowledge that everything Cariad sells is 100% plant-based.

Cariad is located in the Georgian Passage, East Street, Blandford Forum and the shop is open Monday to Friday 10:00 to 17.30 and Saturday 9.30 to 17:00.

https://www.cariadwholefoods.com

Friendly Foods

Friendly Foods is a family-run ethical store which stocks a wide range of 100% vegan food products – over 1000, in fact! Committed to providing food that’s friendly to people, animals, and the planet, many of Friendly Foods’ products are not only vegan but also organic, raw and gluten free.

As well as food, the shop sells a growing range of personal care items, including many re-usable or zero waste products. You can find Friendly Foods on the Bridgnorth Road (A454) between Wolverhampton and Bridgnorth and the shop is open 6 days a week (closed Wednesdays) from 10:00 to 17:00.

https://www.friendlyfoods.uk.com

Animal Free Research UK (Hitchin)

Animal Free Research is the new name for the amazing charity formerly known as Dr Hadwen Trust, who fund and promote non-animal techniques to replace outdated and cruel animal experiments.

Sadly the charity shops set up by Animal Free Research proved unsustainable, and the store in Hove was closed in April with the Hitchin branch set to shut its doors in mid-June. You can however still support AFR’s incredibly important work by donating and purchasing goods through their eBay store.

https://www.charity.ebay.co.uk/charity/Animal-Free-Research-UK/10488

One Small Shop

One Small Shop sells a wide range of ethical, vegan goods through their online store including clothing, cosmetics and accessories for both him and her, kids clothes and babygrows, and even balms and shampoos for our canine friends! One Small Shop is committed to supporting businesses who put principles first, whilst also making cool and beautiful products.

As well as selling goods through their website, this Hastings-based ethical retailer runs pop-up stalls at markets, where they offer a handy refill service to help reduce waste. Read more in the News section of their website.

https://www.onesmallshop.com

The plastic free revolution has arrived and we couldn’t be happier!

Single use plastic in the food and drink industry is the main issue. Plastic is made from crude oil and is therefore a finite resource.  So much of this is ending up in our oceans, trapping and killing vast swathes of marine life as well as land animals and birds who often become tangled up in plastic and are unable to free themselves.  Something needs to be done and I cannot thank Sir David Attenborough enough for all he has done in raising this issue and bringing it to the attention of billions of us.

So what can we do?  As consumers we really do have the power to effect change.  We do not have to wait for the manufacturers to make changes (though thankfully so many already are in droves).

Here are a few suggestions of things we can all do to help save the planet of the plight of plastic:

Buy a veg box

There are local veg box schemes all over the country.  Just search the internet and I’m sure you’ll find one in your area.  Many are organic too and often come in box without plastic. Furthermore you’ll be supporting a local business! You could also check with them beforehand about plastic packaging and request that there is none in your box.

Refuse

Simply do not buy plastic shrouded foods. Easier said than done, I know!  But there are alternatives.  More and more shops are popping up now where you can take your own container and buy items such as rice and pasta loose.

Refill

Refill your own bottle instead of buying a plastic one. Free water filling stations are popping up all over the place now where you can refill your own bottle! Or, simply, plan ahead and make sure you have enough fluids to last you the day.

Give your plastic back

Where I live we are lucky enough to have an amazing green grocer/deli that sells organic and local fruit and veg. They offer paper bags to put your produce in but they did sell grapes in plastic box.  I asked if I could put them in a paper bag instead and gave them the box back.  I did this twice.  The third time I shopped there, the grapes were in a box loose with no plastic boxes!   Message received and understood!

Reuse

Plastic is everywhere but always consider whether or not you can reuse the plastic before putting it out for recycling.  What about using pots to pot seedlings in to grow your own vegetables? Or upcycle them for kids’ craft projects? In fact, never mind kids’ craft projects, what about your own!

Make your own

Instead of buying certain foods, why not make your own and save on the packaging altogether.  Of course this is more time consuming than picking something up in your weekly shop.  I make my own vegan butter.  It honestly only takes minutes, it’s plastic free, palm oil free and tastes far better than shop bought too!

Choose glass

There is ALWAYS another way.  For example, if you’re a peanut butter lover like me, there are several companies who sell it in glass jars instead of plastic.  Certain glass jars are also great for storing leftovers in too.

Pass it on

Had an order through the post and it’s covered in bubble wrap?  Businesses like us will happily take it off your hands and reuse it for our online orders too.

Use your voice

Contact your favourite food manufacturers and ask them to stop using plastic.  There are great alternatives out there such as PLA. PLA is a plastic alternative and stands for polylactic acid.  It is made from renewable resources such as corn starch, tapioca roots, or sugarcane and is compostable.  What’s not to love?

At Heavenly Organics, we swapped from plastic to glass a couple of years ago and so many of our customers really appreciate it.  We also offer refill products wherever possible.

This list of suggestions is by no means exhaustive and you may consider some of these suggestions too difficult but we can all do our bit.  We can all make a change; let’s make that change a positive one!

The Unstoppable Rise of Veganism – The Guardian

5 Vegan Deodorants – Huffington Post

What is #veganhour – Interview in Plant Based News

Home Business Innovation – Interview in The Guardian