Plant Forward ABQ

Have you noticed more plant-based eating options at your local stores and restaurants? The movement of eating plant-based items has been growing not only around the country but here in Albuquerque as well.

One organization that is working to help grow the plant-based eating movement is Animal Projection of New Mexico (APNM). APNM is committed to increasing plant-based eating in New Mexico through a variety of strategies. They are dedicated to working to make plant-based food more available and accessible to New Mexicans by engaging restaurants, entertainment venues, and grocery stores to add plant-based options to their offerings.

APNM also plans community outreach and education initiatives about plant-based eating and nutrition to help people get a better understanding of what plant-based foods offer. This includes cooking classes, continuing education classes, community events, and more. “Our ultimate goal is to increase plant-based eating in New Mexico. We do that in a variety of ways through creating media, like we have some podcast episodes, a recipe database, a blog,” said Marisa Sleeter, Program Director of the Promoting Plant-Based Eating Program at APNM.

The plant-based eating movement is just getting started and has been seeing a lot of growth within the past few years. Roughly, 51% of chefs in the US added plant-based options to their menus in 2018 and 39% of Americans are actively trying to eat more plant-based foods. The growth has been on a steady incline for the USA for a good amount of time now and New Mexico has seemingly joined the trend.

According to APNM, at least 19 Food establishments in New Mexico added the Impossible Burger4 to their menus in 2018, including The World Famous Laguna Burger. There’s also a lot of engagement on social media on especially with Facebook groups that are groups of folks who help each other find plant-based food around the Albuquerque area. Some of the more popular Facebook groups are ABQ Vegan and Vegan New Mexico.

Plant-based eating doesn’t always equate with veganism. Being vegan is not eating or using any product or foods with animal by-products. APNM focuses more on plant-based foods rather than the full vegan lifestyle. “Our programs specifically plant-based eating so that just deals with, you know, diet and what people are putting on their plate. I think veganism is more of a lifestyle,” said Sleeter.

Plant-based eating can be more accessible for the average person and is becoming a fast trend for those interested in eating a bit healthier and living more consciously. If you are interested in learning more about plant-based food option you can go to the Animal Protection of New Mexico website, https://apnm.org/what-we-do/promoting-plant-based-eating/.