When I went vegan in 2014, it felt a little like I’d stepped back into the twilight zone of 1993 when I became vegetarian. It wasn’t as though it was completely weird – back in the ’90s, veggie restaurants like Cranks and Food for Thought were synonymous with underground cool – but it definitely wasn’t normal. Don’t get me wrong, both times had their trailblazers and long-stayers, but it’s crazy to think that not quite seven years feels like a lifetime ago in terms of veganism.
How’s that then? Well let’s do a little comparison… In 2014, being vegan couldn’t be called impossible, but it certainly wasn’t easy either. There wasn’t much in the way of convenience food, so you had to have a plan! I used to leave home with a peanut butter sandwich stuffed in my bag as emergency back-up, and I regularly joked whether it was possible to overdose on Nakd bars (often the only option if out and about). If lunch was provided at a work conference, mine would be the forlorn little plate in the far corner of a table; ‘vegan’ written in rushed handwriting on the sticker on the side, limp lettuce and a smattering of houmous sandwiched between quarters of dry bread that was curling at the edges (why so little houmous, sandwich chef, why?). This magnificent feast was usually accompanied by pitying looks from fellow attendees, who enquired about my protein levels while munching on kebabs and mini quiche. I’m usually an upbeat herbivore, but even I have to admit that back then there were some dark days.