Get ready for the raw food revolution

Raw food has long been seen as the preserve of Woody Harrelson and health nuts, but now it seems to be moving into the mainstream due to environmental concerns. Greenies, get ready for the Raw Food Revolution.

Orthodox raw foodists do what they say on the tin -- they only eat raw food. They believe that when food is heated above 40 degrees Celcius the molecular structure changes, which can create unnatural and potentially dangerous chemical compounds. By treating food by means of fermenting, pickling or dehydrating, they preserve the nutrients and enzymes that raw food contains. While most raw foodists joined the 'crusade' for health reasons, new raw revolutionaries have joined the fun for environmental and animal welfare reasons.

Christina Agnew, the co-founder of raw food delivery company Raw Fairies (with chef Anya Ladra), became a vegan raw foodist for health, environmental and animal welfare reasons. Being part of the new generation of raw foodists, she tells us: "All three reasons work very well together. What's naturally healthy for us coincides very happily with what is the best for animals and the rest of the planet."

Theoretically, raw foodists could eat meat, fish and dairy products raw, but according to Agnew the reality is that most raw foodists are vegan.

Amanda Baker from the Vegan Society tells us that the organisation has been getting about twice as many enquiries as they did this time last year. Although it's not a given that this increase has to do with the rise of raw foodism, based on what Agnew says, we'd be surprised if there was no connection at all. Baker's explanation also ties in smoothly with the raw foodists new raison d'etre. She says: "We think that all the reasons for being vegan are becoming more widely appreciated -- a balanced vegan diet is great for personal health, for the global hungry, for the animals and for the planet."

Famous nutritionist and Green Cuisine founder Daphne Lambert went vegan "as a way of rebelling against the crazy world of animal farming", she tells us. And when she realised she could be fit and healthy without involving animals in her diet, she decided to go down the raw route, too. She now mainly eats raw, pickled, dried and fermented foods, and believes, like Agnew and Baker, that eating a high proportion of raw food is good for our health, animals and the planet.

Agnew explains that the new generation of raw foodists is generally more relaxed than the 'original' raw foodists. "In the UK in the past, only eating raw food was quite an alternative and a hippy-ish thing to do, and some people have been really extreme about it. The more moderate of us recognise that we all from time to time put things in our body that aren't particularly good for it, but as long as the majority of the time we make the right choices and eat well, we can get away with it."

She tells us that if she goes to supper with one of her friends and they've gone to loads of trouble to cook, she wouldn't dream of saying: "Sorry I won't eat that." And that's whether it's non-vegan, non-raw or even if they give her meat to eat. "I would eat it because they prepared it already. What difference does it make other than causing them offence?" she asks.

Lambert agrees with Agnew, saying: "I'm sure we could make a positive difference by only eating raw but I feel it's a bit unrealistic." Being 100 per cent vegan herself, she emphasises that eating as little an amount of animal products as possible (and only organic at that) is of the highest importance if we want to be green. We should eat the crops, not the animals.

Whereas the mere thought of being a vegan raw foodist makes us tremble, Agnew and Lambert's semi-relaxed way of doing it attracts us. We could see this particular way of viewing raw food come marching in on the mainstream green food scene. You'd keep up your belief that the more raw food you eat, the better you are to yourself, animals and the planet; but you wouldn't have to be too rigid. And you could keep your friends, too.

The upcoming launch of the gourmet vegan and raw food restaurant, Saf, and a growing number of cafes offering raw options other than salad attest to the growing appetite for raw stuff. Some of these places, such as Daylesford Organic's cafes, the all-raw Red Sugar Café in Edinburgh and Vita Organic restaurant in London are all built around sustainable principles.

The most popular 'raw' places to hang out online however, still mostly cater for 'original' raw foodists -- The Fresh Network, Shazzie.com and The Lifeco.com, for example. Viva's vegan section appeals to the green raw food followers, and on the mainstream note, Shazzie is campaigning to get more mainstream restaurants to offer raw dishes.

Both Daphne Lambert and Raw Fairies run courses that very much focus on the environmental aspects of eating raw food, in addition to the culinary ones. They mostly use ingredients that are seasonal, organic and as local as possible.

It makes sense and we know it does. But if you -- like a couple of us SmartPlaneteers-- still struggle with the idea of going vegetarian, let alone becoming a vegan raw foodist, Agnew's take on the concept allows a few sneaky cheats now and then. If you want to be down with the coolest green kids, though, you really do need to get your sprouting going and get hold of a dehydrator 'cos the raw revolution ain't stopping. When we talked to raw food hero Chad Sarno himself in our recent interview about Saf, he said, "Trends come and go because some celebrity is doing it and it's fashionable. I would rather call [raw food] a revolution."

Take the Green Poll and let us know if you would unplug your stove and switch to a raw diet.

Raw Fairies 'cheese' starter

Raw Fairies dehydrated crackers

Raw Fairies broccoli and carrot salad

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