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Vegan condoms
Who knew condoms weren't vegan? I got quite the education at Expo West, thanks to the fun folks at Sir Richard's Condom Company. These casein-free, 100% natural latex condoms are vegan certified by the American Vegetarian Association and free of parabens and spermicides. The company's on a contraceptive mission to help developing countries—in fact, they donated 500,000 to Haiti in February. Now that's safe sex.
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Vegan gourmet seitan burritos
I'm generally not a fan of vegan frozen meals, but one bite of Sweet Earth Natural Foods' The Curry Tiger Burrito and that all may change. The company's "It's a wheat meat world" debut at Expo West 2012 had all our editors buzzing about their seitan. The four vegan burritos are memorable and nourishing and the company's veg mission has been around since 1978. Finally, a frozen aisle option that acknowledges vegans as plant-based gourmands.
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Organic vegan cocoa bar
The engaged entrepreneurs behind Squarebar literally launched their product at Expo West—the final bars showed up just in time for sampling. Vegan, soy- and gluten-free, these bars taste way too indulgent to have 11 to 12g protein (surprise!). Sweetened with coconut nectar and already Non-GMO Project Verified, Squarebar and this vegan are going to live happily ever after.
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Vegan nutella
The vegan answer to Nutella, Choc&Nut's hazelnut cashew cocoa organic spread is super creamy and decadent while surprisingly moderate on sugar. This French import is already appearing on U.S.soil—no need to wait for the EU/USDA organic equivalency. How darling is that packaging?
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Veganic bread
Imagine: sprouted grain bread that doesn't taste like cardboard. But the folks at One Degree Organic Foods didn't stop there. They're pioneering veganic farming—organic farming without animal-based fertilizers—and raising the bar on the definition of pure food. Plus, a QR code lets you learn about the farmers who contributed to your loaf. The Lentil Grain and Sesame Sunflower are my favorites.
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Vegan Greek yogurt
Before I went vegan, I used to eat a Greek yogurt a day. Now, I still can with So Delicious Dairy Free's improved Greek style yogurt. The cultured coconut milk Greek yogurt comes in plain, blueberry, chocolate, vanilla, raspberry and strawberry flavors, but it’s the creamy, thick texture that's a miracle among non-dairy yogurts. I love that it packs 6g of dairy- and soy-free protein a cup, with 40 percent less sugar than other cultured products.
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Vegan energy bar
Thunderbird Energetica's Almond Cookie Pow Wow is a party in your mouth. I picked the company as an exhibitor to watch before Expo West, and they didn't disappoint with their newest vegan flavors. I still can't believe that an eight-ingredient bar can taste this good, while containing 7g of quinoa and pea protein.
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Vegan cheese slices
Grilled cheese just met its non-dairy match. Daiya's new cheese style wedges don't have the aftertaste of their shreds, and instead are deliciously creamy, not gummy, and pop with flavor. Havarti (my fave), cheddar and jack flavors taste great on crackers, but I imagine we'll see these slices available in delis and sandwich shops as Daiya expands into food service.
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Vegan nacho cheese chips
Vegan Doritos made without corn or cheese? Beanfields' new Nacho Bean & Rice Chips are tasty proof that anything can be veganized without compromising flavor. I don't know what I love more: that they have twice as much protein and fiber as most tortilla chips or that they're Non-GMO Project Verified.
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Vegan, raw superfood nut butters
Artisana said goodbye to boring in the nut butter category with their organic, superfood squeezepacks in five flavors: Acai Berry, Berry AntiOxidant, Blue Algae, Goji & Milk Thistle and Marine Phytoplankton. While my taste buds couldn't wrap their head around the phytoplankton flavor, they absolutely adored the goji. Win for health-conscious vegans!
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Vegan refried beans
The father and daughter Kullberg team behind Better Bean have truly "rethought beans" in a fresh-packed, refrigerated product. The tasty refried recipes are sans animal products, while their preparation and cooking process cuts down on gassy aftereffects. And the taste? As flavorful as the containers are colorful. Bonus: The resealable tubs are the first of their kind to eliminate that annoying inner plastic seal.
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Vegan tofu+
Black soybean flour gives the latest vegan tofu from Nasoya an edge. Even the Spork Foods sisters, vegan chefs who cooked up some special flavors at the Nasoya booth, wondered, "Why hasn't anyone done this before?" Nasoya's Organic Black Soybean TofuPlus could convince tofu skeptics who crave flavor that the non-GMO bean is worth eating.
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Vegan dark chocolate
A 30-, 60- or 90-day supply of dark vegan chocolate delivered to my door? Yes, please. TCHO-A-DAY includes their chocolatey, fruity, nutty and citrus flavors, which in actuality do not contain any fruity flavors—just the cocoa bean itself. I'm convinced that, like a fine vegan wine, these melt-in-your-mouth chocolates just get better over time.
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Vegan falafel wrap
Whether you're looking for a great falafel wrap or a way to support non-profits, TaDah!'s got you covered. Their vegan flavor, the Lemony Roasted Garlic Hummus, was addictively delicious—even more so when founder John Sorial told me they give more than 25 percent of their earnings to D.C.-area non-profits (think TOMS Shoes). As TaDah says, they don't just taste good—they do good.
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Organic vegan coconut bar
Oh, bars. The darlings of the natural industry have come so far from their tasteless beginnings. Pure Bar stands out among vegan bars with its newest flavor: organic banana coconut. Creamy, soft and surprisingly light in taste, this bar is packed with fiber and protein—and I suspect will become a best-seller as it rides the coconut craze.
From cheese to condoms, there's no product that can't be made vegan—and nowhere was this more evident than at Natural Products Expo West 2012. We review the vegan foods that satisfied our plant-based appetites and the companies shaping the future of veganism.