VegNews Fuels Movement to Eat Less Meat

[Guest guest]

Article from the December Sunset Beacon, a monthly community

newspaper covering the Sunset & Parkside neighborhoods of San

Francisco.

 

VegNews Fuels Movement to Eat Less Meat

 

By Alastair Bland

 

At San Francisco's southwest corner, the SF Zoo, Carousel Diner and

Sloat Garden Center create a slow pulse in this subtly commercial

neighborhood by the beach. But hidden among these quiet

establishments and breathing the same salty air is a most unlikely

presence: the inconspicuous headquarters of a major international

magazine called VegNews.

 

Founded six years ago, VegNews today boasts a readership of 150,000,

with a new issue coming off the press every two months.

 

VegNews has grown immensely since its creation and it both thrives on

and drives the increasing interest in vegetarian living and eating in

San Francisco and around the world.

 

" The Outer Sunset is not exactly a hotbed for magazine publishing, "

acknowledged Colleen Holland, co-founder and associate publisher of

VegNews. " But in these humble little offices we're making waves

across the country. This is a glossy magazine that can be found next

to Oprah and Martha Stewart in the supermarket, and we're proud that

it's published in this small organic place across the street from the

ocean. "

 

In the years since its first issue in July 2000, VegNews has matured

from a community newspaper-style publication into a 120-page glossy

magazine. The 50,000 circulation publication is printed in Little

Rock, Arkansas and distributed in 36 countries.

 

The magazine frequently features celebrities with snapshots from

their private lives. Darryl Hannah is on the cover of the current

issue. Unlike most lifestyle magazines, however, VegNews keeps a

strong, tight focus on the ideals that inspired Holland and co-

founder Joseph Connelly to begin their enterprise.

 

" One of the biggest reasons for starting the magazine was to break

stereotypes and show that we are more than granola-eating, sandal-

wearing hippies from the '70s, " Connelly said.

 

VegNews strives to promote vegetarianism and showcases it as a

mainstream and intelligent lifestyle choice and as a proactive means

of leading a minimum impact existence. More than simply portraying

vegetarianism as a fashionable way of life, the magazine's central

office abides strictly to a code of ethics that it promotes.

 

Unlike most publications, VegNews is printed on recycled, recyclable

and " post-consumer waste " paper. The ink is soy-based and all paper

used in the office is printed on both of its sides before being

recycled.

 

While parking is a cinch in the Outer Sunset, no employees at VegNews

drive a car to work, opting instead for bicycles, feet or Muni, for

which VegNews management provides compensation. A communal lunch for

the staff of nine is eaten every day at 12:30 p.m., often at a long

collapsible table set up on the sidewalk in front. The cuisine is, of

course, strictly vegetarian and is either ordered from a local

restaurant or prepared in the office kitchen. The staff uses only

cloth napkins, silverware and china for their meals, throwing away

nothing.

 

VegNews works with scores of freelance writers around the nation. The

pages of the magazine include book reviews, vegetarian product

reviews, celebrity profiles, late-breaking scientific research news,

input on current topics of debate, recipes and an outlet for

vegetarian-oriented companies wishing to advertise its products.

 

" The magazine basically creates a vegetarian economy, " Connelly

said. " We use ads from vegetarian businesses and we've created a

viable realm for companies, large and small, that are selling

vegetarian products. We feel we've helped build the vegetarian

community. "

 

And that community is growing fast. Eighteen million people in the

United States choose not to eat meat, and an increasing number are

vegans, people who eat no animal products at all. There are many

more " flexitarians, " who are conscientious individuals who waver on

the edge, eating some meat while considering seriously the virtues of

eating none. The readership at VegNews consists of all three

categories, and the young publication's foothold in the magazine

market appears stable.

 

" We're only six years old, and we're still getting our legs, "

Connelly said. " We've got plenty of growing up to do, but we're going

to ride this wave as long as we can. "

 

VegNews is available at Whole Foods, Borders Books, Barnes and Nobles

and many other bookstores. More information is available via the

publication's Web site at www.vegnews.com.