BOSH! How to Live Vegan. Henry Firth
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BOSH!
How to Live Vegan
SAVE THE PLANET AND FEEL AMAZING
Henry Firth & Ian Theasby
HQ
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
First published in Great Britain by
HQ, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2019
Copyright © Henry Firth & Ian Theasby 2019
Henry Firth & Ian Theasby assert the moral right to be identified as the authors of this work.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
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E-book Edition © 2019 ISBN: 9780008349974
Version: 2019-09-12
We’d like to dedicate this book to you. The very fact that you have this book in your hands is proof that you care greatly about the planet and all its inhabitants. It’s people like you who are going to make a difference and, ultimately, change the world.
CONTENTS
COPYRIGHT
DEDICATION
A NOTE FROM HENRY
A NOTE FROM IAN
WHAT DOES VEGAN MEAN?
WHY?
1. SAVE THE PLANET
2. FEEL AMAZING
3. YOU CAN DO IT
NOW IT’S YOUR TURN
HOW?
INGREDIENTS
SHOPPING
DRINKS
COOKING
EATING OUT AND ORDERING IN
BEYOND FOOD
WHAT NEXT?
FAQS
RESOURCES
REFERENCES
THANK YOUS
ABOUT THE PUBLISHER
You’ll have come to this book because you are ready to make a change. My journey to veganism started at a pretty tough time in my life.
At my lowest point, I was running a company that had raised millions of pounds, but I wasn’t happy. My silicon dream had become a silicon nightmare. Around then, I took a trip to Japan to try to gain some clarity, and while I was there, I realised I needed to change my focus to make my mind healthy again. I rediscovered meditation, reading, exercise and a work–life balance. On returning to the UK, I took the decision to act more responsibly with regards to my personal health, and to find a meaningful purpose to my life. I wanted to use my skills to help the planet and, specifically, to help stop climate change in whatever way I could.
At the time, I was working with a close friend of mine, Ian. He went through all those dark times at work with me, and we not only worked together but also shared a house. Then one day he went vegan. I thought it was ridiculous. I made fun of him all the time. I was that guy. I had a freezer full of high-welfare meat and a personal trainer that had me on a high-fat ketogenic diet. I wasn’t going to eat his dubious-looking curries.
Then I watched a documentary – Cowspiracy – that changed everything. I went vegan overnight. With the help of some friends, Ian and I set up our video channel, BOSH.TV, to show the world how to cook plant-based meals that meat eaters would love, and before long we’d had a billion views and were two-time Sunday Times bestselling authors.
Now we are regularly called upon to talk about vegan food on TV, radio and at live events. And we love to share what we know and how we feel. But we think it’s also important to recognise that we each have our own opinions, patterns and issues.
To us, eating vegan food is the proverbial plaster that we can personally stick on the broken planet to help it heal. But we know it’s not that black and white. My dad was the first to let me know that flying to America a couple of times a year can generate as much carbon as being vegan can save. His choice to eat just a bit of meat every now and again, combined with his love of seasonal and locally grown vegetables, and a lifestyle which involves very little air travel, is an environmentally friendly choice that works for him.
But however we look at it, the way most of us are eating now is not OK. The way we farm and make food is destroying the planet, the rainforests and our health, and it is causing huge suffering for billions of animals.
The topic of food is a huge one – and our habits are all so ingrained in us around the world that it can be hard to imagine a different system from the one we currently live in. Yet, we are at a place in our history where we are lucky enough to be able to choose what we eat – in fact, there has never been so much choice! And with this choice comes the responsibility to make informed decisions.
We aren’t preachy, holier-than-thou people, and this book won’t be filled with propaganda and made-up facts. As Northern sons of meat eaters, surrounded by meat eaters, who were brought up eating meat, we’re going to show you why and how we went vegan. We’re going to walk you through why we chose to live a vegan life, and why eating vegan, whether it’s a few times a week or every day, could literally help you to save the planet, feel amazing and live longer.
Whoever you are, wherever you are on your journey, we respect you, and we