Hyderabad, December 06, 2021: The first-ever day long Vegan Market/Expo held on Sunday in the city at Phoenix Area, Hi-Tech City in Madhapur.
Vegan Market is an exhibition of plant-based food, edible items, foods made from plants. It was the place for Vegans who stay away from foods that come from animals, including dairy products and eggs. More than 40 exhibitors showcased various products.
It was organised jointly by Alt Mart & Enya, the women led Vegan startups and passionate Vegans who believe in a more compassionate world.
Some of the exhibitors include: Enya; Alt Mart; Disguise; The Weekend Cafe; Nobeef Vegan Dairy; Wild Berry Organics; Chokalat; Breakfast in a bottle; Vegan Healthy Bites; Woofing Tales; Chit Chat Chai; Nut-O-Butter; Plantarium; FlyBerry Gourmet; Tapovanam; Akimi’s Gourmet; Navya Agro; Lush Fuel; Grow Greens; Green Footprint; Delena; StoneSoup; Sustainaholics; Urban Tiller; Sintra Naturals; The Thrifted Closet; Light Green Oven; Pulp Brew; Nuts and Oats Bakes; Frostie Ice creams; New Earth Foods; Chidiaghar; WABS; Grabenord & HealthyGut.
The expo organized by the two women led Vegan Startups showcased a wide variety of plant foods, vegetarian alternatives to non-vegetarian foods, meatless meat, meatless burgers, cruelty-free, guilt-free sweets, veganised Mysorepak, Ghee Mysorepak using just coconut milk and many more.
Beyond Meat, producer of plant-based meat substitutes showcased beyond meat products such as plant-based burgers and others. It is the world famous mock meat brand. Beyond Meat is plant-based, vegan meat that’s tasty and better fo the planet. This plant based meat maker creates its version of “meat” from ingredients such as pea protein, canola oil and beet juice.
Other exhibitors include ‘No Beef’, is a food startup founded in lockdown in 2020 experimenting with healthy food. Along with a shortage of toilet paper at the grocery store, the two discovered that stores were also running out of milk, butter and cheese when they went grocery shopping in Los Angeles. The only shelf completely stocked was the vegan. They decided to give plant-based dairy a shot!
A sustainable practices blog on Instagram as organicwildberri during the lockdown turned out to be a startup that provides organic and eco-friendly products in plastic-free packaging. Since then it has been serving people in their journey of shifting to a sustainable lifestyle.
Vijay Sweets, a 100% plant-based online sweets store, sells traditional Indian sweets and namkeen across the globe and is known for Vegan Mysorepak and others. While the whole sweet market is dominated by dairy-based sweets, it has come out after months of research on cruelty-free sweets, introducing veganised Mysorepak as an alternative to one of the most loved ghee-laden sweets. It is the pioneer in bringing out to consumers cruelty-free sweets without compromise on taste and quality. It has been constantly working on curating plant-powered sweets that are not just loved by vegans but for all consumers alike.
Chit Chat Chai, as the name says everything, it brings a wide variety of teas, the nectars of heaven in a cup. It is a place for chai lovers and quick snacks is also one of the exhibitors.
Chokalat is a Homemade Vegan Artisan Chocolate too makes its way to the exhibition.
You’ve tried breakfast in a bowl but have you tried them in a bottle? No, right? Now you can have your Breakfast in a Bottle (BIB). Making this possible is a Hyderabad-based brand floated during the pandemic to provide nutritious breakfast…in a bottle. They offer juices of favourite fruits and nuts. And they are home delivered too, every morning,
One of the hosts of the show was Alt Mart founded by Rupa Obulreddigari is a one stop Vegan ecommerce marketpklace that services pan Indian markets. The other host is Enya is a dairy alternatives brand and cloud kitchen founded by Pranavi Pangnuri and Vishwatej that aims to change the way people perceive Veganism
It was organised in association with Beyond Meat, Vijay Sweets(who shot into fame for introducing veganised Mysorepak), Vegan First( an online vegan portal in India, a one-stop solution to going vegan), People For Animals(India’s largest animal welfare organisations), The Weekend Cafe(the health food cuisine restaurant, a vegan cafe), AWBP Trust(a non-profit organisation that connect people to animals so that animals get water round the clock), Hyderabad Save etc.
The maiden Vegan Market brought Vegan and Conscious Businesses together to put forth a splendid Vegan & Cruelty-free assortment for a day. The brands that are home-grown and much-loved ones displayed their products. It features food, beverage, personal care, microgreens, fresh veggies, healthy snacks to mock meat, ice creams, dairy alternatives, lip-smacking desserts and more.
The city’s upcoming artists enthralled the visitors with live music all through the day.
“People are looking to be happy vegetarians. This unique expo helps them to explore more options”, said Ms Rupa Obulreddigari, one of the organisers, who is also the founder of Alt Mart, a Vegan Food Startup. The objective of this event, according to her, is to showcase alternative plant-based foods and promote people, the environment, animal-friendly products and lifestyle.
“Animal and planet-friendly products are the order of the day which is core to our business,” says Ms Pranavi Pangnuri and Mr. Vishwatej Muddu, the co-host of Vegan Market and founder of Enya, a local Vegan startup. Vegan food startups, meatless meat startups are changing the food industry and saving the world now, she adds.
While there is so much happening in this space in the west, unfortunately, Hyderabad, the city of nawabs, the IT Capital of the world never had an opportunity to witness such a marketplace. That is why this event is planned, added Ms Rupa Obulreddigari, Ms Pranavi Pangnuri, the two hosts of the event.
