The Search For Enlightenment

The inaugural Bournemouth Vegan Fair was held today at the Highcliff Marriot hotel in Bournemouth.

Lizzi Shaw, aka Dorset Vegan, did a magnificent job of putting the event together, and was rewarded today by a torrent of visitors, all keen to discover what veganism could offer them.

The exhibitors list read like a who’s who of proudly ethical vegan companies, organisations who put their actions ahead of their profits, service before their shareholders and ethics before anything else.

The first couple of hours saw over six hundred visitors coming into the arena. At times there was a queue as the organisers adhered to the rules of health and safety, but the sun shone and everyone was patient.

Many of the exhibitors actually ran out of products to sell within an hour of the doors opening, just a single example of the success of the event. Everyone I spoke to was glowing in their praise of Lizzi, and expressed desire to attend the event in 2015, before the dust had settled.

So success for the exhibitors, those whose products adhere to the ethics of veganism, empty boxes and full tills. Success also for Lizzi and all of us who are working so hard to get the vegan message out there. Success too for Bournemouth, which now has a long overdue Vegan fair as part of the Food Festival.