Good times are back for the vegan community, the plant based curious ……..and anyone wanting a fun foodie festival and more in Brighton!
The good times are set to roll back into Brighton last week of April as Vegfest returns to the Brighton Centre for a 2-day vegan extravaganza that is already very good news for the extended vegan community, somewhat dissipated during the long years of lockdown.
Food, fun and inspiration are all firmly on the menu as over 100 traders and 70 speakers gather together to celebrate the best of the vegan way of life – and share it with thousands of visitors.
Packed full of fantastic plant based options, the food is always the highlight of any Vegfest and visitors will be enthralled by the wide selection of vegan options on offer, including the standout Dapper Ice Cream made from cashew nuts with all the trimmings, and the extraordinary vegan cakemaker Giancarlo from Vegan Sweet Tooth with his incredible creations, visually stunning as well as extremely moreish.
Hot food street caterers include the Brownins family Caribbean flavours plus a new Cypriot Vegan kebab offering from Vebab – It, alongside firm favs including vegan burgers, Greek Mezze, curries, waffles and much more.
And the Yogi Tea Bar brings a flavour of calm and relaxation with their herbal tea garden overlooking the Sea, whilst the Cider Bar from Value Africa includes a wide variety of exotic spirits from Africa on offer too.
Vegans will be in heaven and those that are plant based curious will be impressed, no doubt.
The entertainment jumps into action on Karin Ridger’s Feel Good Stage with the addition of two top rate comedy hours including (vegan) comedians Tom Ward, Adele Cliff, Eddie French and Luke Poulton, with live music and inspirational & motivational speakers, and even a cacao ceremony interspersing the rest of the fun and games. Karin, a long time PR agent and Presenter for Vegfest, is ecstatic to be back in Brighton after such a long gap….
“Once again I feel that we are coming home…. In fact I call Brighton my second home. There is nowhere quite like Brighton!
The people of Brighton embrace VegfestUK and absolutely love our festival – whether they are vegan already, if they are vegan curious or just feel like checking us out – we welcome everyone! And this year of course it is a free event so you can pop in and have a wonder around.
All of us are buzzing about coming back to The Brighton Centre and the atmosphere of this VegfestUK festival is second to none…. And my audience and I always get to hang out with the most fantastic guests… I feel very lucky to connect with world leading experts and all thanks to VegfestUK.”
“Do come and say hello!”
A wealth of talks and expertise is on hand in the 6 talks rooms spanning both days including Jamaican International and Championship football player Adrian Mariappa, vegan for a few years now, and Welsh Rugby International Lewis Bolding.
Also World Record Holder Kate Strong is making up a very dynamic vegan fitness presence, and an abundance of science based expertise in the Health and Lifestyle areas includes the Plant Based Health Professionals UK for up to date evidence based approaches to wholefood plant based diets.
The Plant Based Treaty, fresh from seeing Norwich, Edinburgh and Haywards Heath Councils endorse the Treaty this year, are presenting their work for the whole day on Saturday, and animals and activism continue to play a central role at Vegfest the 2 day ‘Action for Animals’ Summit including a multitude of national and grassroots campaign groups presenting together, with a focus on Movement Unity a common theme.
And of course, for many the stars of the show are the traders and charities exhibiting at the event, with a number of independent vegan businesses at the show including start-ups and new ventures that haven’t been seen before in Brighton.
“We’ve lost quite a few over the last few years’ say the organisers ‘but have gained some really exciting and fresh up and coming brands that are full of enthusiasm and to some degree intrigue as to how these events can help build their brands.”
There’s options to sell, sample, network, market and build up contacts and with all the challenges facing small independents and charities especially, a real welcome breath of fresh air for both the traders and the organisers.
And with admission free to the public, and such a fabulous place to be, Brighton will be out in force and creating an almighty buzz.
“We can’t wait and it’s great to be back and play a part in helping the vegan and plant-based communities get back to full feelgood factor and focus. A huge free vegan event in the centre of town is just the ticket.”
Talking of tickets – tickets are free however required in order to attend VegfestUK Brighton at The Brighton Centre 10am – 6pm Saturday April 29th and again 10am – 5pm Sunday April 30th.
Tickets are available from the website and likely to all be allocated by the time the gates open, so if you want to come, get your tickets now and come and join the biggest vegan party in town for quite some time.
VegfestUK Brighton April 29th 30th 2023 at The Brighton Centre is the UK’s biggest indoor vegan event this Spring, featuring up to 150 exhibitors, 70 speakers and performers, and over 8,000 visitors over 2 days.
Now in its 15th year in Brighton, VegfestUK Brighton began life in 2009 and immediately became a huge success.
This after the establishment of the UK’s biggest vegan events in Bristol (2003 – 2023), London (2013 – 2023) and Glasgow (2015 – 2016), and the UK’s first Vegan Trade Show in 2017. VegfestUK London returns in the autumn of 2023.
