April 24, 2024
UnchainedTV: Meet The Ultimate Vegan Business Insider!
The player is loading ...
Meet Jody Rasch, a man of many talents, who went from being a banker to an investor in vegan enterprises and a supporter of many animal organizations including Woodstock Farm Sanctuary and Rowdy Girl Sanctuary. He’s also become an accomplished visual artist and a novelist. The Silver Forest is the first in a series of books. He says this novel began as a thought experiment. We’ll find out what that means. Rasch is also a partner at Beyond Impact Advisors, which facilitates investment in vegan and cruelty-free products, many of them very cutting-edge. He’s considered to be a pioneer alternative protein investor. So, where is the vegan and alt-protein movement right now and where’s it headed? This ultimate insider will help us figure that out with UnchainedTV’s Jane Velez-Mitchell.
1
00:00:00,900 --> 00:00:05,800
You are meeting an extraordinary novelist, artist, and
2
00:00:05,800 --> 00:00:08,400
vegan investor and philanthropist.
3
00:00:08,620 --> 00:00:12,660
We are gonna learn all about the many,
4
00:00:12,820 --> 00:00:16,680
many projects J.D. Rash is involved in.
5
00:00:17,160 --> 00:00:21,760
And it's truly unbelievable to me how he
6
00:00:21,760 --> 00:00:24,900
is able to do so many things at
7
00:00:24,900 --> 00:00:25,420
once.
8
00:00:25,980 --> 00:00:30,400
Just to give you an idea, this man
9
00:00:30,400 --> 00:00:34,480
has helped so many vegan organisations and sanctuaries.
10
00:00:34,900 --> 00:00:36,220
He started out as a banker.
11
00:00:36,460 --> 00:00:39,060
Now he's working with Beyond Impact, which helps
12
00:00:39,060 --> 00:00:43,760
vegan companies like Wicked Kitchen and many other
13
00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:47,460
up-and-coming companies that are compassionate.
14
00:00:47,660 --> 00:00:50,500
He's also written this trilogy called The Silver
15
00:00:50,500 --> 00:00:55,400
Forest, as well as this extraordinary artwork, which
16
00:00:55,400 --> 00:00:57,260
may seem familiar to you.
17
00:00:57,260 --> 00:00:59,420
It's based on something very scientific.
18
00:00:59,800 --> 00:01:01,980
So I wanna go straight out to J
19
00:01:01,980 --> 00:01:02,560
.D. Rash.
20
00:01:02,980 --> 00:01:07,420
Please tell us about your work specifically.
21
00:01:07,700 --> 00:01:12,580
Let's start with your novel and we'll move
22
00:01:12,580 --> 00:01:13,940
on to all your philanthropy.
23
00:01:18,140 --> 00:01:19,760
What is The Silver Forest?
24
00:01:21,180 --> 00:01:23,280
The Silver Forest is an ideal.
25
00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:24,240
It's like an Eden.
26
00:01:24,720 --> 00:01:27,800
And the book is based on the concept
27
00:01:27,800 --> 00:01:29,820
of a return to Eden, return to our
28
00:01:29,820 --> 00:01:30,720
basic principles.
29
00:01:31,620 --> 00:01:35,080
And that's the trajectory that the main character
30
00:01:35,080 --> 00:01:36,300
has to go through.
31
00:01:36,740 --> 00:01:40,440
It's something that the wizards seek, the golden
32
00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:43,520
tree and the silver forest, the tree of
33
00:01:43,520 --> 00:01:45,080
knowledge, the tree of understanding.
34
00:01:45,540 --> 00:01:47,460
And the question is, how do we get
35
00:01:47,460 --> 00:01:47,760
there?
36
00:01:47,940 --> 00:01:50,740
How do we regain this innocence?
37
00:01:50,920 --> 00:01:52,420
How do we regain the knowledge?
38
00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:55,360
How do we regain the respect that we're
39
00:01:55,360 --> 00:01:57,560
missing in this novel and I think also
40
00:01:57,560 --> 00:01:58,180
in the world?
41
00:01:59,860 --> 00:02:02,520
So how the heck do you have time
42
00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:06,140
to do that while at the same time,
43
00:02:06,420 --> 00:02:10,380
you are doing so much extraordinary work in
44
00:02:10,380 --> 00:02:11,600
other areas?
45
00:02:11,940 --> 00:02:17,340
Again, you are the ultimate vegan business insider.
46
00:02:17,700 --> 00:02:21,720
You've worked with Beyond Impact, which you're a
47
00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:24,580
partner there, helping so many vegan companies like
48
00:02:24,580 --> 00:02:26,400
Wicked Kitchen, but many others, we're gonna get
49
00:02:26,400 --> 00:02:26,800
to that.
50
00:02:27,140 --> 00:02:29,620
And you also are writing this trilogy.
51
00:02:29,960 --> 00:02:31,920
This is book one, book two and three
52
00:02:31,920 --> 00:02:32,280
coming.
53
00:02:32,500 --> 00:02:34,700
And then you also do this art.
54
00:02:35,080 --> 00:02:36,860
I mean, this is absolutely extraordinary.
55
00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:39,740
Where on earth do you get the time
56
00:02:39,740 --> 00:02:40,580
and the energy?
57
00:02:40,800 --> 00:02:43,900
And you are quite an acclaimed artist at
58
00:02:43,900 --> 00:02:46,840
this point, which I didn't realise knowing you
59
00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:49,000
in another world, I was Googling you and
60
00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:50,580
I'm like, oh my God, this man's also
61
00:02:50,580 --> 00:02:52,200
an acclaimed visual artist.
62
00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:54,160
How the heck do you do all this,
63
00:02:54,300 --> 00:02:54,500
Jody?
64
00:02:55,820 --> 00:02:57,440
Yeah, well, you're one to ask, Jane.
65
00:02:57,520 --> 00:03:00,200
You do quite a bit yourself too, but
66
00:03:00,200 --> 00:03:02,240
it helps to have the fact that my
67
00:03:02,240 --> 00:03:03,240
kids are grown.
68
00:03:03,460 --> 00:03:06,020
So that freed up a lot of time
69
00:03:06,020 --> 00:03:08,160
as they moved out of the house.
70
00:03:08,320 --> 00:03:09,200
So that was part of it.
71
00:03:09,260 --> 00:03:12,460
Part of it really is just an interest
72
00:03:12,460 --> 00:03:15,620
and each different thing that I do, for
73
00:03:15,620 --> 00:03:16,800
me, it's like an exploration.
74
00:03:17,140 --> 00:03:19,640
You wanna discover things about the world, about
75
00:03:19,640 --> 00:03:22,600
yourself, and there are just different ways to
76
00:03:22,600 --> 00:03:23,120
do that.
77
00:03:23,300 --> 00:03:27,460
So the art helps me think through issues
78
00:03:28,340 --> 00:03:29,380
relating to the world.
79
00:03:29,620 --> 00:03:31,800
So does the writing helps me think through
80
00:03:31,800 --> 00:03:32,820
social issues.
81
00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:36,100
And then the vegan investing and the philanthropy
82
00:03:36,100 --> 00:03:40,320
are actually more directly helping the types of
83
00:03:40,320 --> 00:03:43,560
companies that I think need to be around
84
00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:43,960
in the world.
85
00:03:44,260 --> 00:03:47,060
We need to, in order to accomplish the
86
00:03:47,060 --> 00:03:50,360
things that will bring us to more fulfilment,
87
00:03:50,620 --> 00:03:52,680
more understanding, a kinder, gentler world.
88
00:03:53,400 --> 00:03:55,900
Well, let's talk a little bit about some
89
00:03:55,900 --> 00:03:59,020
of those comments and those companies, and then
90
00:03:59,020 --> 00:04:01,280
we'll get some callers on the other side.
91
00:04:01,820 --> 00:04:07,860
So Wicked Kitchen, absolutely extraordinary company that is
92
00:04:07,860 --> 00:04:10,360
turning mushrooms into steaks.
93
00:04:10,900 --> 00:04:13,980
And of course, it's a compassionate company, but
94
00:04:13,980 --> 00:04:16,779
it's also a very successful company that beyond
95
00:04:16,779 --> 00:04:19,700
impact has really gotten behind.
96
00:04:19,820 --> 00:04:21,720
Hey guys, welcome to the Wicked Kitchen.
97
00:04:22,180 --> 00:04:24,060
Super special episode today.
98
00:04:24,220 --> 00:04:27,500
I'm gonna show you three mind-bending mushroom
99
00:04:27,500 --> 00:04:30,320
cooking techniques with three amazing mushrooms.
100
00:04:30,560 --> 00:04:34,000
We're gonna make sweet chilli maitake steaks and
101
00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:36,800
turn an alliance main into the super herbaceous,
102
00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:39,520
flavorful steak that is gonna blow your mind.
103
00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:44,540
And then also the Asian inspired barbecue brown
104
00:04:44,540 --> 00:04:45,580
oyster mushroom, you guys.
105
00:04:45,580 --> 00:04:47,180
You're not gonna wanna miss this.
106
00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:50,340
Three amazing mushroom recipes coming your way.
107
00:04:55,680 --> 00:04:59,020
So beyond impact got behind Wicked Kitchen.
108
00:04:59,400 --> 00:05:01,960
What's the criteria you use for determining, well,
109
00:05:02,020 --> 00:05:04,580
I'm gonna get back this vegan company versus
110
00:05:04,580 --> 00:05:05,760
this vegan company?
111
00:05:06,880 --> 00:05:09,160
Well, there's a number of different criteria you
112
00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:09,620
use.
113
00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:11,640
The first thing is, will it have an
114
00:05:11,640 --> 00:05:15,200
impact on animal abuse and animal use?
115
00:05:15,920 --> 00:05:17,080
And so that's our first test.
116
00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:20,880
So obviously companies like Wicked are very good
117
00:05:20,880 --> 00:05:21,340
on that.
118
00:05:21,700 --> 00:05:23,100
But then it has to work from a
119
00:05:23,100 --> 00:05:24,540
financial standpoint as well.
120
00:05:24,700 --> 00:05:28,620
So we look at the founders, how motivated
121
00:05:28,620 --> 00:05:30,680
they are, how much skin they've got in
122
00:05:30,680 --> 00:05:31,200
the game.
123
00:05:31,880 --> 00:05:35,280
We'll look at their business trajectory as well.
124
00:05:35,440 --> 00:05:38,740
So expected earnings and market demand, things like
125
00:05:38,740 --> 00:05:39,180
that.
126
00:05:39,180 --> 00:05:41,960
And then we're a smaller fund.
127
00:05:42,020 --> 00:05:43,960
So we generally get involved with the companies
128
00:05:44,460 --> 00:05:46,680
initially at a very early stage and try
129
00:05:46,680 --> 00:05:48,860
to help them build up so that they
130
00:05:48,860 --> 00:05:52,380
can start attracting more and more capital as
131
00:05:52,380 --> 00:05:52,780
they grow.
132
00:05:54,280 --> 00:05:55,860
Wow, well, I wanna talk to you more
133
00:05:55,860 --> 00:05:56,480
about that.
134
00:05:56,600 --> 00:05:58,680
We've got some callers who are lined up
135
00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:00,040
to ask you questions.
136
00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:04,260
Tiffany in Los Angeles, your question or thought
137
00:06:04,260 --> 00:06:05,160
for J.D. Rash.
138
00:06:08,450 --> 00:06:08,890
Tiffany?
139
00:06:13,150 --> 00:06:15,250
Okay, go ahead, Tiffany.
140
00:06:19,510 --> 00:06:20,250
Tiffany, are you there?
141
00:06:21,490 --> 00:06:23,170
All right, well, the next caller then.
142
00:06:24,190 --> 00:06:24,810
Great, Niloufar.
143
00:06:28,960 --> 00:06:33,900
Hi, considering your leadership role in investment and
144
00:06:33,900 --> 00:06:38,560
sustainable finance, how do your clients and or
145
00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:43,480
audience respond to discussions about veganism and investments
146
00:06:43,480 --> 00:06:45,160
in vegan products?
147
00:06:48,390 --> 00:06:51,770
J.D.? Well, I think, yeah, I think
148
00:06:51,770 --> 00:06:54,290
it's necessary to invest.
149
00:06:54,410 --> 00:06:56,410
I mean, I started off more on the
150
00:06:56,410 --> 00:06:58,650
not-for-profit side and I served on
151
00:06:58,650 --> 00:07:02,690
a few not-for-profit boards, specifically vegan
152
00:07:02,690 --> 00:07:03,630
sanctuaries.
153
00:07:03,910 --> 00:07:06,830
One was a veg fund, which gave grants
154
00:07:06,830 --> 00:07:08,490
to entrepreneurs.
155
00:07:08,670 --> 00:07:13,270
But then I thought, we can tell people
156
00:07:13,270 --> 00:07:15,810
they should go vegan, but if the products
157
00:07:15,810 --> 00:07:17,710
aren't there, it makes it very difficult.
158
00:07:18,590 --> 00:07:22,150
So how do you fill that need for
159
00:07:22,150 --> 00:07:22,730
the products?
160
00:07:22,770 --> 00:07:24,190
Because there definitely is demand.
161
00:07:24,330 --> 00:07:26,310
People are very interested in it for a
162
00:07:26,310 --> 00:07:27,190
lot of different reasons.
163
00:07:27,310 --> 00:07:29,450
Obviously, a lot of them are for ethical
164
00:07:29,450 --> 00:07:32,190
reasons, which is basically why I got involved
165
00:07:32,190 --> 00:07:32,510
in it.
166
00:07:32,530 --> 00:07:33,790
But there are also a lot of people
167
00:07:33,790 --> 00:07:37,950
who like the vegan products for health or
168
00:07:37,950 --> 00:07:39,470
environmental reasons as well.
169
00:07:40,530 --> 00:07:43,390
So the fund that I originally started, which
170
00:07:43,390 --> 00:07:45,610
I turned over to somebody else, we were
171
00:07:45,610 --> 00:07:48,770
one of the first investors in this space
172
00:07:49,290 --> 00:07:53,530
because basically our backer liked the idea of
173
00:07:53,530 --> 00:07:57,850
actually making things available to people, making products
174
00:07:57,850 --> 00:07:58,810
available to people.
175
00:07:59,070 --> 00:08:01,090
And the good thing about it is, if
176
00:08:01,090 --> 00:08:03,070
your investments do pay off or at least
177
00:08:03,070 --> 00:08:05,590
a certain portion of them, then that you
178
00:08:05,590 --> 00:08:08,970
feed back into the ecosystem and it creates
179
00:08:08,970 --> 00:08:09,990
more and more companies.
180
00:08:10,710 --> 00:08:12,610
So that's what I would tell them the
181
00:08:12,610 --> 00:08:15,490
reason to invest in vegan products is, one
182
00:08:15,490 --> 00:08:18,870
is it's a growing market, but also it's
183
00:08:18,870 --> 00:08:22,470
needed if veganism is going to take root
184
00:08:22,470 --> 00:08:24,510
and we're gonna make it as easy as
185
00:08:24,510 --> 00:08:25,950
possible for people to switch.
186
00:08:27,860 --> 00:08:28,560
Interesting.
187
00:08:29,020 --> 00:08:32,520
There's so much there because vegan products have
188
00:08:32,520 --> 00:08:35,179
been under attack by the mainstream media lately.
189
00:08:35,600 --> 00:08:38,580
And it seems like there's an article that
190
00:08:38,580 --> 00:08:41,080
comes out every day trying to knock either
191
00:08:41,080 --> 00:08:45,280
alternative proteins like a plant-based burgers or
192
00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:46,120
restaurateurs.
193
00:08:47,000 --> 00:08:50,880
If somebody gets into trouble like Sam Bankman
194
00:08:50,880 --> 00:08:54,000
Freed, it's always, oh, he's a vegan, he's
195
00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:54,320
a vegan.
196
00:08:54,420 --> 00:08:55,880
Well, what about all the people who are
197
00:08:55,880 --> 00:08:57,400
criminals who are eating meat?
198
00:08:57,480 --> 00:08:59,260
Nobody mentions the fact that they eat meat.
199
00:08:59,420 --> 00:09:00,840
It's absolutely ridiculous.
200
00:09:01,460 --> 00:09:04,020
It's really an unfair comparison or what I'd
201
00:09:04,020 --> 00:09:05,420
call selective indignation.
202
00:09:05,780 --> 00:09:08,280
But let's go to our next caller, Lindsay
203
00:09:08,280 --> 00:09:10,680
in Woodland Hills, your question or thought for
204
00:09:10,680 --> 00:09:11,240
JD Rash.
205
00:09:13,300 --> 00:09:17,020
Yes, my question is a little unusual perhaps.
206
00:09:17,600 --> 00:09:24,220
I'm wondering how feasible it is to open
207
00:09:24,220 --> 00:09:29,580
vegan restaurants, small ones perhaps in areas that
208
00:09:29,580 --> 00:09:33,720
are rural or there's just really no vegan
209
00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:35,280
options at all.
210
00:09:35,380 --> 00:09:38,540
Do you think that it's possible to open
211
00:09:38,540 --> 00:09:41,100
vegan restaurants in areas like that?
212
00:09:43,500 --> 00:09:44,480
Good question.
213
00:09:45,140 --> 00:09:48,240
Having never lived in a rural area, basically
214
00:09:48,240 --> 00:09:51,600
growing up in New York, I'm not sure
215
00:09:51,600 --> 00:09:54,940
what the demand is there for that.
216
00:09:55,080 --> 00:09:57,380
I mean, when you travel out of the
217
00:09:57,380 --> 00:10:01,260
main cities into the outlying areas and rural
218
00:10:01,260 --> 00:10:03,600
areas, you can see that there is certainly
219
00:10:03,600 --> 00:10:04,640
a need for that.
220
00:10:04,780 --> 00:10:07,900
I mean, the city is running rampant in
221
00:10:07,900 --> 00:10:08,980
many of those communities.
222
00:10:09,220 --> 00:10:10,760
So there is a need for it.
223
00:10:11,060 --> 00:10:14,040
I think the answer is, it depends on
224
00:10:14,040 --> 00:10:18,600
how you present it to the community and
225
00:10:18,600 --> 00:10:20,420
what types of foods you present.
226
00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:23,860
So the first thing I would do if
227
00:10:23,860 --> 00:10:26,900
you're looking at doing that is finding out
228
00:10:26,900 --> 00:10:29,140
what the local cuisine is and then figuring
229
00:10:29,140 --> 00:10:32,280
out how to veganize it and then try
230
00:10:32,280 --> 00:10:36,300
to market it as good healthy alternatives to
231
00:10:36,300 --> 00:10:36,740
what they have.
232
00:10:36,740 --> 00:10:40,040
Because if you just basically try to sell
233
00:10:40,040 --> 00:10:43,780
people on some type of food that like,
234
00:10:43,900 --> 00:10:47,380
do like a Beyond Sushi out in rural
235
00:10:47,380 --> 00:10:49,800
Arkansas, that probably won't work.
236
00:10:50,180 --> 00:10:52,160
But if you come up with your vegan
237
00:10:52,160 --> 00:10:54,840
baby back ribs, I think you have a
238
00:10:54,840 --> 00:10:56,780
better chance of making it successful.
239
00:10:57,480 --> 00:11:00,640
And in terms of like starting up smaller
240
00:11:02,320 --> 00:11:05,160
like restaurants and things like that, it's great
241
00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:07,240
if you can get kind of local people
242
00:11:07,240 --> 00:11:10,500
involved in investing in it because then they
243
00:11:10,500 --> 00:11:13,160
spread the word and they'll eat there, they'll
244
00:11:13,160 --> 00:11:14,380
get their friends to eat there.
245
00:11:14,620 --> 00:11:16,940
And you have, I think a really good
246
00:11:16,940 --> 00:11:19,160
chance of being successful that way.
247
00:11:19,680 --> 00:11:22,480
All right, we've got another caller for you.
248
00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:25,400
And this one is Tiffany in Los Angeles.
249
00:11:25,560 --> 00:11:27,280
Your question or thought for J.D. Rash,
250
00:11:27,580 --> 00:11:30,760
the ultimate vegan business insider.
251
00:11:32,300 --> 00:11:34,820
Hi, Jane, thank you for taking my call
252
00:11:34,820 --> 00:11:38,380
and I'm excited to get your new book
253
00:11:38,380 --> 00:11:39,840
or your book.
254
00:11:39,920 --> 00:11:40,840
I wanna check it out.
255
00:11:41,040 --> 00:11:43,680
And I love your work with Wicked.
256
00:11:43,940 --> 00:11:46,060
They even have it in my local bonds
257
00:11:46,060 --> 00:11:46,440
now.
258
00:11:46,580 --> 00:11:47,740
So that's very exciting.
259
00:11:48,540 --> 00:11:51,340
And I wanted to ask you, what made
260
00:11:51,340 --> 00:11:54,200
you make the connection to the animals to
261
00:11:54,200 --> 00:11:56,180
go vegan since you were in business?
262
00:11:56,760 --> 00:11:59,920
Sounds like you're in regular banking business.
263
00:12:00,500 --> 00:12:02,180
So I was wondering what made you make
264
00:12:02,180 --> 00:12:02,860
that connection?
265
00:12:04,620 --> 00:12:09,520
Yeah, I became vegetarian back in 1983.
266
00:12:11,160 --> 00:12:13,080
And I'd like to say it was my
267
00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:14,940
idea to do it, but I have to
268
00:12:14,940 --> 00:12:16,760
congratulate my wife on that.
269
00:12:17,660 --> 00:12:21,560
She read a phrase, be the change you
270
00:12:21,560 --> 00:12:22,100
wanna be.
271
00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:26,360
And she just decided eating meat was something
272
00:12:26,360 --> 00:12:27,360
that she didn't wanna do.
273
00:12:27,500 --> 00:12:29,340
And you're right, I was working in finance
274
00:12:29,340 --> 00:12:31,680
at the Fortune 500 companies.
275
00:12:32,000 --> 00:12:34,740
And it's like, yeah, you can do that,
276
00:12:35,000 --> 00:12:37,940
but in the world I live in, it
277
00:12:37,940 --> 00:12:38,600
can't be done.
278
00:12:38,680 --> 00:12:40,220
And that lasts for about six months.
279
00:12:40,700 --> 00:12:43,260
And then I said, I just not comfortable
280
00:12:43,260 --> 00:12:44,660
eating the meat.
281
00:12:45,440 --> 00:12:49,340
Just admitting that my wife was right about
282
00:12:49,340 --> 00:12:51,920
that and admitting that my wife is right
283
00:12:51,920 --> 00:12:54,440
has been why we've been married for 40
284
00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:54,740
years.
285
00:12:56,840 --> 00:12:58,380
And so I just did it.
286
00:12:58,380 --> 00:13:02,420
And it wasn't, the sky didn't fall.
287
00:13:02,580 --> 00:13:05,900
It wasn't as earth shaking as people thought.
288
00:13:05,980 --> 00:13:07,980
It was actually relatively easy to do.
289
00:13:08,660 --> 00:13:11,740
At the time I would even take clients
290
00:13:11,740 --> 00:13:14,340
out to steakhouses and I researched which one
291
00:13:14,340 --> 00:13:16,380
had the best vegetarian options.
292
00:13:17,340 --> 00:13:20,000
And then about, I guess it was about
293
00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:22,880
17 years ago, my wife and I were
294
00:13:22,880 --> 00:13:24,820
going up to Canada.
295
00:13:25,040 --> 00:13:26,140
I had some work up there.
296
00:13:26,180 --> 00:13:28,340
And so we drove up and someone told
297
00:13:28,340 --> 00:13:29,600
us about Farm Sanctuary.
298
00:13:29,840 --> 00:13:32,100
So we stopped there and it was pouring
299
00:13:32,100 --> 00:13:34,260
rain, like mud knee deep.
300
00:13:34,860 --> 00:13:37,740
And we got the tour with our three
301
00:13:37,740 --> 00:13:40,760
kids and they started talking about the dairy
302
00:13:40,760 --> 00:13:43,180
industry and the egg industry.
303
00:13:45,640 --> 00:13:47,840
And one of my daughters who was 10
304
00:13:47,840 --> 00:13:50,840
years old at the time looked at us
305
00:13:50,840 --> 00:13:53,860
after the tour and said, I'm going vegan.
306
00:13:54,420 --> 00:13:57,100
And it was one of those times where
307
00:13:57,100 --> 00:13:59,260
I figured, well, I could try to talk
308
00:13:59,260 --> 00:14:01,940
her out of it, but yes, she's right.
309
00:14:02,260 --> 00:14:05,220
And so that's how I became vegan.
310
00:14:05,440 --> 00:14:08,240
And then I knew all this stuff about
311
00:14:08,240 --> 00:14:08,860
finance.
312
00:14:08,920 --> 00:14:10,800
So the question is, how can I make
313
00:14:10,800 --> 00:14:16,460
my day job match what my philosophy was?
314
00:14:16,880 --> 00:14:18,260
And one of the things that I thought
315
00:14:18,260 --> 00:14:22,080
was really interesting, later on, I started getting
316
00:14:22,080 --> 00:14:23,720
involved in business.
317
00:14:23,920 --> 00:14:26,080
I was working at Moody's Corporation, a big
318
00:14:26,080 --> 00:14:26,840
rating agency.
319
00:14:27,420 --> 00:14:33,180
And I convinced them to do alternative ratings,
320
00:14:33,360 --> 00:14:36,760
non-financial rating, specifically environmental and social.
321
00:14:36,920 --> 00:14:39,600
So we were doing ratings on microfinance banks.
322
00:14:39,980 --> 00:14:41,940
And those are banks that give small loans
323
00:14:41,940 --> 00:14:43,740
to poor entrepreneurs.
324
00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:47,360
And we were doing a conference on that.
325
00:14:47,360 --> 00:14:50,800
And it was Moody's, Deutsche Bank and New
326
00:14:50,800 --> 00:14:51,700
York University.
327
00:14:52,780 --> 00:14:55,340
And we were gonna have about 300 people
328
00:14:55,340 --> 00:14:56,780
and it was like a three-day conference.
329
00:14:57,280 --> 00:15:00,200
I remember being on the phone and my
330
00:15:00,200 --> 00:15:03,320
boss was on it, guys from Deutsche Bank
331
00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:03,840
and NYU.
332
00:15:04,100 --> 00:15:06,680
And they said, you know, microfinance is all
333
00:15:06,680 --> 00:15:10,380
about our social justice and doing good.
334
00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:13,980
So maybe we should make the catering conform
335
00:15:13,980 --> 00:15:14,940
to that as well.
336
00:15:15,520 --> 00:15:17,960
And my boss who knows me says, you
337
00:15:17,960 --> 00:15:19,460
want this to be vegan, don't you?
338
00:15:20,020 --> 00:15:20,960
I said, absolutely.
339
00:15:21,720 --> 00:15:23,540
And they did and people loved it.
340
00:15:23,600 --> 00:15:26,340
This is like 300 people for three days
341
00:15:26,340 --> 00:15:31,740
and everything from the pastries to the lunches
342
00:15:31,740 --> 00:15:33,140
and the dinners we always did, it was
343
00:15:33,140 --> 00:15:33,660
all vegan.
344
00:15:34,880 --> 00:15:37,580
And the only complaint we got is one
345
00:15:37,580 --> 00:15:40,140
guy didn't like the fact that there was
346
00:15:40,140 --> 00:15:41,720
only soy milk for his coffee.
347
00:15:43,280 --> 00:15:44,200
Well, yeah.
348
00:15:44,380 --> 00:15:46,940
And I just think that's how change happens
349
00:15:46,940 --> 00:15:48,700
where you stick your neck out.
350
00:15:48,840 --> 00:15:52,240
You know, as a banker and myself having
351
00:15:52,240 --> 00:15:54,880
been in mainstream media, when you start sticking
352
00:15:54,880 --> 00:15:56,940
your neck out, it's a risk.
353
00:15:57,120 --> 00:16:00,760
But the rewards when you have a response
354
00:16:00,760 --> 00:16:02,420
like that are enormous.
355
00:16:02,700 --> 00:16:06,060
So hopefully you convince some people there that
356
00:16:06,060 --> 00:16:08,660
it's not such a big deal to eat
357
00:16:08,660 --> 00:16:11,500
products that don't have animal parts in them.
358
00:16:11,500 --> 00:16:12,920
I mean, it's that simple.
359
00:16:13,580 --> 00:16:15,680
We've got another caller, Michelle in Los Angeles.
360
00:16:15,800 --> 00:16:17,580
Your question or thought for J.D. Rash.
361
00:16:18,920 --> 00:16:21,640
Hi, I wanted to know your opinion on
362
00:16:21,640 --> 00:16:24,420
cultivated meat and how you think that may
363
00:16:24,420 --> 00:16:26,400
further the plant-based movement.
364
00:16:28,760 --> 00:16:30,300
Yeah, I mean, I think it's important.
365
00:16:31,560 --> 00:16:34,560
I've over the course of years invested in
366
00:16:34,560 --> 00:16:36,540
a lot of cultivated meat companies.
367
00:16:37,520 --> 00:16:40,580
You know, initially there were some ethical issues
368
00:16:40,580 --> 00:16:47,540
that they use bovine serum to start the
369
00:16:47,540 --> 00:16:49,520
growth process of that.
370
00:16:49,580 --> 00:16:51,440
But most of the companies have been able
371
00:16:51,440 --> 00:16:54,120
to get beyond that and their products don't
372
00:16:54,120 --> 00:16:55,880
require the killing of animals.
373
00:16:57,080 --> 00:17:00,440
You know, it's a product that's really not
374
00:17:00,440 --> 00:17:01,580
meant for people like me.
375
00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:03,720
I mean, I'm not interested in it, but
376
00:17:03,720 --> 00:17:06,359
I don't have a problem with it from
377
00:17:06,359 --> 00:17:07,339
an ethical standpoint.
378
00:17:07,819 --> 00:17:10,180
And if it can get people who are
379
00:17:10,180 --> 00:17:15,300
eating and killing animals now to switch over,
380
00:17:15,720 --> 00:17:16,819
I think it's important.
381
00:17:17,079 --> 00:17:19,359
I think it's still a number of years
382
00:17:19,359 --> 00:17:22,180
off from being at the point where it
383
00:17:22,180 --> 00:17:26,599
will be competitive to the traditional meat business,
384
00:17:27,180 --> 00:17:29,360
but the science certainly is there.
385
00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:32,800
And, you know, it's just more getting efficiencies
386
00:17:32,800 --> 00:17:34,260
of scale, I think at this point.
387
00:17:36,720 --> 00:17:39,880
Okay, Karen in Venice, California, your question or
388
00:17:39,880 --> 00:17:41,180
thought for J.D. Rash.
389
00:17:43,490 --> 00:17:44,270
Hi there.
390
00:17:44,390 --> 00:17:46,270
Sorry, the connection is tough.
391
00:17:46,410 --> 00:17:47,990
Thank you so much for what you're doing.
392
00:17:48,830 --> 00:17:51,610
I have a question about guidelines.
393
00:17:51,890 --> 00:17:53,930
Do you have any quick guidelines that you
394
00:17:53,930 --> 00:17:55,750
can share with us for somebody wanting to
395
00:17:55,750 --> 00:18:00,590
start a vegan business as far as getting,
396
00:18:00,810 --> 00:18:03,750
you know, investors and et cetera, you know,
397
00:18:03,790 --> 00:18:05,410
just some quick, easy ones that we can
398
00:18:05,410 --> 00:18:05,790
follow?
399
00:18:07,290 --> 00:18:07,710
Yeah, sure.
400
00:18:07,850 --> 00:18:10,030
I mean, the first thing is do your
401
00:18:10,030 --> 00:18:13,170
market research because, you know, the investors are
402
00:18:13,170 --> 00:18:14,110
going to look into this.
403
00:18:14,190 --> 00:18:17,450
And if it's not a viable market, and
404
00:18:17,450 --> 00:18:22,110
it's not a big enough market, then the
405
00:18:22,110 --> 00:18:23,810
investors are not going to be interested in
406
00:18:23,810 --> 00:18:23,970
it.
407
00:18:24,410 --> 00:18:25,890
You also need to know what type of
408
00:18:25,890 --> 00:18:27,850
business you want to start.
409
00:18:28,310 --> 00:18:29,890
So if you're going to a venture capital
410
00:18:29,890 --> 00:18:34,710
business, like venture capitalists, like we are at
411
00:18:34,710 --> 00:18:38,910
Beyond Impact or other venture capitalists, what they're
412
00:18:38,910 --> 00:18:40,150
going to want is they're going to want
413
00:18:40,150 --> 00:18:41,050
an eventual exit.
414
00:18:41,330 --> 00:18:42,510
So you're going to have to grow.
415
00:18:43,210 --> 00:18:44,670
And you're going to have to, at some
416
00:18:44,670 --> 00:18:46,090
point, figure out how you get out of
417
00:18:46,090 --> 00:18:48,190
this, either selling it, going public, things like
418
00:18:48,190 --> 00:18:48,670
that.
419
00:18:50,230 --> 00:18:52,470
If it's more of a lifestyle business, and
420
00:18:52,470 --> 00:18:54,510
I ran my own company for like 15
421
00:18:54,510 --> 00:18:57,190
years, it was a financial training company, and
422
00:18:57,190 --> 00:18:59,310
it was a lifestyle business, which is fine.
423
00:18:59,850 --> 00:19:03,150
But you can't raise venture money because you
424
00:19:03,150 --> 00:19:04,650
want this to earn a living, and you
425
00:19:04,650 --> 00:19:06,370
can make a very good living out of
426
00:19:06,370 --> 00:19:06,550
it.
427
00:19:07,030 --> 00:19:10,510
So understand first what type of business you're
428
00:19:10,510 --> 00:19:14,550
going to do, do your research on it.
429
00:19:14,610 --> 00:19:18,450
And then if you need money, understand that
430
00:19:18,450 --> 00:19:21,050
there are different types of investors who go
431
00:19:21,050 --> 00:19:23,570
into one type of business than another type
432
00:19:23,570 --> 00:19:24,050
of business.
433
00:19:24,150 --> 00:19:26,470
But the key is, you know, if you
434
00:19:26,470 --> 00:19:27,990
wouldn't invest in this, and that's one of
435
00:19:27,990 --> 00:19:29,630
the things they're going to ask is, have
436
00:19:29,630 --> 00:19:31,050
you put any of your money in this?
437
00:19:31,170 --> 00:19:33,110
Because if you don't have skin in the
438
00:19:33,110 --> 00:19:34,710
game, then it's really easy for you to
439
00:19:34,710 --> 00:19:35,070
walk.
440
00:19:35,470 --> 00:19:37,350
So every investor is going to say, well,
441
00:19:37,690 --> 00:19:38,490
what have you put in?
442
00:19:38,810 --> 00:19:40,150
And it doesn't have to be a million
443
00:19:40,150 --> 00:19:40,550
bucks.
444
00:19:40,670 --> 00:19:42,110
You know, it depends on your situation.
445
00:19:42,530 --> 00:19:45,110
It just has to be something meaningful, given
446
00:19:45,110 --> 00:19:48,930
your personal situation, that you're not going to
447
00:19:48,930 --> 00:19:51,870
just get up and leave and walk out
448
00:19:51,870 --> 00:19:53,390
and leave the investors high and dry.
449
00:19:55,230 --> 00:19:58,450
I've got a very special guest who wants
450
00:19:58,450 --> 00:19:59,410
to say something to you.
451
00:19:59,430 --> 00:20:01,630
But first I'd like to play a clip.
452
00:20:01,870 --> 00:20:04,250
As I've mentioned, you've helped a lot of
453
00:20:04,250 --> 00:20:09,470
sanctuaries, Woodstock Farm Sanctuary and Rowdy Girl Sanctuary
454
00:20:09,470 --> 00:20:12,010
in the heart of Texas cattle country.
455
00:20:12,430 --> 00:20:15,350
Let's watch a little clip of Renee King
456
00:20:15,350 --> 00:20:18,650
-Sounan, the founder of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary.
457
00:20:18,810 --> 00:20:20,330
And then we'll join her on the phone
458
00:20:20,330 --> 00:20:21,830
because she would like to say thank you
459
00:20:21,830 --> 00:20:23,110
for all the help you give her.
460
00:20:23,110 --> 00:20:24,430
All right, this is Buster.
461
00:20:25,050 --> 00:20:27,470
He's like, I guess going on eight weeks
462
00:20:27,470 --> 00:20:28,490
old for two months.
463
00:20:29,330 --> 00:20:31,790
And I've heard say he looks like a
464
00:20:31,790 --> 00:20:34,470
chocolate brown lab, which he does.
465
00:20:35,490 --> 00:20:41,050
He was surrendered by a cattle rancher that
466
00:20:41,050 --> 00:20:42,690
fell in love with this baby.
467
00:20:44,510 --> 00:20:49,350
And we are extremely grateful that that cattle
468
00:20:49,350 --> 00:20:51,630
rancher had a change of heart and loved
469
00:20:51,630 --> 00:20:55,410
this sweet child named Buster.
470
00:20:55,610 --> 00:20:57,250
The reason why he called him Buster is
471
00:20:57,250 --> 00:20:59,370
because he will bust right into you with
472
00:20:59,370 --> 00:21:01,430
his nose when he's eating.
473
00:21:02,190 --> 00:21:02,950
Like that.
474
00:21:04,490 --> 00:21:06,290
Anyway, oh, like that.
475
00:21:06,370 --> 00:21:10,450
If you'd like to sponsor, adopt Buster, we
476
00:21:10,450 --> 00:21:11,130
would love that.
477
00:21:11,390 --> 00:21:14,630
If you'd like to donate today on behalf
478
00:21:14,630 --> 00:21:16,870
of Buster or become a member, it'd be
479
00:21:16,870 --> 00:21:17,850
a great time to do that.
480
00:21:17,850 --> 00:21:22,470
Buster, cows live to be about 20 years
481
00:21:22,470 --> 00:21:24,530
old or more, you know, 20 to 25
482
00:21:24,530 --> 00:21:28,390
years in the real world without being slaughtered.
483
00:21:28,530 --> 00:21:31,190
So Buster here will be living a long
484
00:21:31,190 --> 00:21:34,150
time if everything goes well.
485
00:21:34,510 --> 00:21:36,370
Thank you guys and peace out from Rowdy
486
00:21:36,370 --> 00:21:36,530
Girl.
487
00:21:37,630 --> 00:21:40,650
All right, let's go straight out to Renee
488
00:21:40,650 --> 00:21:44,030
King-Sonnen in Texas, the heart of cattle
489
00:21:44,030 --> 00:21:44,450
country.
490
00:21:44,450 --> 00:21:47,650
She's a former cattle rancher.
491
00:21:48,110 --> 00:21:49,910
She and her husband went vegan and turned
492
00:21:49,910 --> 00:21:53,210
their calf-cow operation into a vegan farmed
493
00:21:53,210 --> 00:21:53,950
animal sanctuary.
494
00:21:54,110 --> 00:21:54,290
Renee?
495
00:21:56,170 --> 00:21:57,310
Hi, Jane.
496
00:21:57,590 --> 00:21:58,610
Hello, Jody.
497
00:21:58,790 --> 00:22:00,990
So great to see you on Unsanctioned.
498
00:22:00,990 --> 00:22:01,330
Hey, Renee.
499
00:22:03,490 --> 00:22:06,730
Hi, I just wanted to call.
500
00:22:06,890 --> 00:22:08,350
I saw, you know, that you were gonna
501
00:22:08,350 --> 00:22:09,950
be on the show and I was like,
502
00:22:10,430 --> 00:22:12,110
I am so thrilled.
503
00:22:12,390 --> 00:22:14,050
I couldn't be happier to see this.
504
00:22:14,050 --> 00:22:17,550
You are somebody that's just always been behind
505
00:22:17,550 --> 00:22:20,330
the scenes, like Jane just said a while
506
00:22:20,330 --> 00:22:23,370
ago, kind of on the inside, always looking
507
00:22:23,370 --> 00:22:26,350
in at what we do and just big
508
00:22:26,350 --> 00:22:27,090
support.
509
00:22:28,090 --> 00:22:31,550
You guided us, you directed us, you supported
510
00:22:31,550 --> 00:22:36,210
our campaigns and just been an amazing friend.
511
00:22:36,710 --> 00:22:38,670
I can always count on your insight, your
512
00:22:38,670 --> 00:22:39,410
advice.
513
00:22:39,810 --> 00:22:42,190
And when I heard about your book, I
514
00:22:42,190 --> 00:22:43,710
think it was like a year ago when
515
00:22:43,710 --> 00:22:45,950
you sent me the whole manuscript, I was
516
00:22:45,950 --> 00:22:48,770
over the top because of all the people
517
00:22:48,770 --> 00:22:49,950
in the world, you are the one of
518
00:22:49,950 --> 00:22:51,970
the most well-rounded people.
519
00:22:52,130 --> 00:22:54,970
I mean, you are creative, you're brilliant, you're
520
00:22:54,970 --> 00:22:55,650
a mathematician.
521
00:22:56,310 --> 00:22:58,770
I mean, like, you know, you're just, your
522
00:22:58,770 --> 00:23:01,110
left and your right brains are so well
523
00:23:01,110 --> 00:23:01,950
-balanced.
524
00:23:03,250 --> 00:23:05,510
Anyway, and I'm just really, really grateful you're
525
00:23:05,510 --> 00:23:07,190
in our corner and I wanna say thank
526
00:23:07,190 --> 00:23:07,470
you.
527
00:23:07,670 --> 00:23:08,770
The animals thank you.
528
00:23:09,790 --> 00:23:11,070
Oh, that was beautiful.
529
00:23:11,070 --> 00:23:14,070
Jody, tell us how you work with Rowdy
530
00:23:14,070 --> 00:23:17,070
Girl Sanctuary and how you help various sanctuaries.
531
00:23:18,430 --> 00:23:22,010
Yeah, well, mutual friend put me in touch
532
00:23:22,010 --> 00:23:23,190
with Renee.
533
00:23:24,370 --> 00:23:26,390
I was trying to think, you know, when
534
00:23:26,390 --> 00:23:30,110
we're looking at investing, one of the kind
535
00:23:30,110 --> 00:23:31,870
of, what I think are kind of one
536
00:23:31,870 --> 00:23:34,250
of the dumber questions you get asked, and
537
00:23:34,250 --> 00:23:35,370
we all know that there are a lot
538
00:23:35,370 --> 00:23:37,990
of dumb questions that we get asked, was,
539
00:23:38,170 --> 00:23:39,870
you know, you're gonna, if everyone went vegan,
540
00:23:40,050 --> 00:23:42,070
then, you know, you put all these farmers
541
00:23:42,070 --> 00:23:42,850
out of business.
542
00:23:43,610 --> 00:23:46,650
And, you know, we don't expect everyone to
543
00:23:46,650 --> 00:23:48,690
go vegan overnight, although it would be nice,
544
00:23:48,750 --> 00:23:51,090
but, you know, how do you deal with
545
00:23:51,090 --> 00:23:53,170
those types of situations that this will be
546
00:23:53,170 --> 00:23:53,690
displaced?
547
00:23:53,870 --> 00:23:57,290
So I started looking at, well, maybe we
548
00:23:57,290 --> 00:23:59,810
can use, the farmers have assets, they have
549
00:23:59,810 --> 00:24:05,310
the land, and so is there an alternative
550
00:24:05,310 --> 00:24:06,130
use for that?
551
00:24:06,130 --> 00:24:08,950
And Rowdy Girl Renee was also looking to
552
00:24:08,950 --> 00:24:10,850
that with their Rancher Advocacy Programme.
553
00:24:11,410 --> 00:24:13,090
So we got put together, and I started
554
00:24:13,090 --> 00:24:18,150
initially doing advisory work with her on the
555
00:24:18,150 --> 00:24:19,050
RAP programme.
556
00:24:19,650 --> 00:24:21,790
And we worked with some of the ranchers
557
00:24:21,790 --> 00:24:24,890
who wanted to do conversions, and, you know,
558
00:24:24,910 --> 00:24:27,690
there were business plans to be done, financing
559
00:24:27,690 --> 00:24:28,610
to be arranged.
560
00:24:28,630 --> 00:24:30,590
So I helped out on all of that.
561
00:24:31,010 --> 00:24:32,430
I mean, Renee is fantastic.
562
00:24:32,590 --> 00:24:34,830
She's got so much energy that she put
563
00:24:34,830 --> 00:24:35,790
into all this stuff.
564
00:24:35,790 --> 00:24:37,610
So, you know, it was really fun to
565
00:24:37,610 --> 00:24:38,850
help her.
566
00:24:39,390 --> 00:24:41,610
And since then, you know, running a sanctuary,
567
00:24:42,330 --> 00:24:44,990
she's asked me to be an advisor on
568
00:24:44,990 --> 00:24:45,950
their finance committee.
569
00:24:46,150 --> 00:24:48,710
So I helped them out with the finance
570
00:24:48,710 --> 00:24:51,190
committee meetings and budgeting and things like that.
571
00:24:51,450 --> 00:24:53,570
And all the fun stuff of taking care
572
00:24:53,570 --> 00:24:55,090
of the animals, other people do.
573
00:24:55,270 --> 00:24:57,710
I get to look at numbers and look
574
00:24:57,710 --> 00:24:59,110
at balance sheets and all that kind of
575
00:24:59,110 --> 00:24:59,390
stuff.
576
00:24:59,490 --> 00:25:01,450
But, you know, for people like me, that
577
00:25:01,450 --> 00:25:02,730
can be fun as well.
578
00:25:03,050 --> 00:25:05,870
And I'm also on the board- How
579
00:25:05,870 --> 00:25:08,930
are these transformations going?
580
00:25:09,490 --> 00:25:14,430
And Renee's got it with her organisation, Agricultural
581
00:25:14,430 --> 00:25:16,890
Fairness Alliance, and then there's Mercy for Animals
582
00:25:16,890 --> 00:25:17,790
Transformation.
583
00:25:18,610 --> 00:25:21,910
I just attended their 25th gala anniversary where
584
00:25:21,910 --> 00:25:22,850
they spoke about that.
585
00:25:23,230 --> 00:25:24,910
What is happening on that front?
586
00:25:25,850 --> 00:25:30,950
Are animal producers transitioning to plant-based and
587
00:25:30,950 --> 00:25:32,050
if so, at what level?
588
00:25:33,010 --> 00:25:36,570
Yeah, I would say it's, honestly, it's slow.
589
00:25:36,890 --> 00:25:40,450
I know Miyoko is also working with dairy
590
00:25:40,450 --> 00:25:43,370
farmers to convert to oats for her products
591
00:25:43,370 --> 00:25:43,870
as well.
592
00:25:44,970 --> 00:25:49,890
The problem is each farmer is like a
593
00:25:49,890 --> 00:25:53,290
unique case so that what they produce will
594
00:25:53,290 --> 00:25:55,150
depend on local situations.
595
00:25:55,850 --> 00:25:58,650
A lot of times they have loans that
596
00:25:58,650 --> 00:26:02,690
they got from the meat companies that ties
597
00:26:02,690 --> 00:26:03,090
them in.
598
00:26:03,330 --> 00:26:06,250
So, you know, everyone's kind of working on
599
00:26:06,250 --> 00:26:11,090
it and you get successes and sometimes, you
600
00:26:11,090 --> 00:26:12,450
know, there's nothing that you can do.
601
00:26:12,970 --> 00:26:17,450
So it will be great is if there
602
00:26:17,450 --> 00:26:20,510
was like one organisation where it all could
603
00:26:20,510 --> 00:26:22,650
be put under an umbrella and they can
604
00:26:22,650 --> 00:26:26,730
get a budget and work with the farmers.
605
00:26:26,730 --> 00:26:28,830
I think there's a big enough demand.
606
00:26:29,850 --> 00:26:32,830
There's just, it's just a hard nut to
607
00:26:32,830 --> 00:26:33,930
crack with this.
608
00:26:34,150 --> 00:26:36,150
But, you know, there are a number of
609
00:26:36,150 --> 00:26:38,810
success stories and everyone that you can get
610
00:26:38,810 --> 00:26:41,690
to convert to something else, I think is
611
00:26:41,690 --> 00:26:42,210
positive.
612
00:26:43,410 --> 00:26:45,210
Well, you mentioned something that I think is
613
00:26:45,210 --> 00:26:48,950
really significant and that is that the meat
614
00:26:48,950 --> 00:26:51,110
industry locks these farmers in.
615
00:26:51,270 --> 00:26:53,210
They become almost like indentured servants.
616
00:26:53,430 --> 00:26:54,890
They have to buy the grain.
617
00:26:55,340 --> 00:26:58,810
They don't own the animals often themselves.
618
00:26:59,350 --> 00:27:02,150
They're pitted against each other in tournaments.
619
00:27:02,390 --> 00:27:04,470
So who can produce the animals the fastest?
620
00:27:05,250 --> 00:27:08,530
And it's very cutthroat from what I've heard.
621
00:27:08,710 --> 00:27:09,850
Is this the case?
622
00:27:10,990 --> 00:27:13,230
Yeah, well, I mean, Renee knows more about
623
00:27:13,230 --> 00:27:14,930
the actual industry than I do.
624
00:27:15,010 --> 00:27:16,950
I just know, you know, one of the
625
00:27:16,950 --> 00:27:21,150
farmers that we were working with her, they
626
00:27:21,150 --> 00:27:22,450
had a bank loan and in the bank
627
00:27:22,450 --> 00:27:28,370
loan, it specifically said that the property had
628
00:27:28,370 --> 00:27:30,350
to be used for animal production.
629
00:27:31,250 --> 00:27:33,330
So the bank was kind of liberal in
630
00:27:33,330 --> 00:27:36,570
not foreclosing, but, you know, you've got a
631
00:27:36,570 --> 00:27:39,190
million dollar mortgage and you're just, you're thinking
632
00:27:39,190 --> 00:27:41,730
about going to something else, the bank could
633
00:27:41,730 --> 00:27:43,770
come in tomorrow and totally close you down.
634
00:27:44,050 --> 00:27:48,790
Plus they had loans to the chicken companies
635
00:27:48,790 --> 00:27:51,670
as well that they needed to pay off
636
00:27:51,670 --> 00:27:52,730
if they're gonna do this.
637
00:27:52,730 --> 00:27:54,290
So, you know, they certainly don't make it
638
00:27:54,290 --> 00:27:54,550
easy.
639
00:27:55,290 --> 00:27:57,950
Yeah, and I guess my point is that
640
00:27:57,950 --> 00:28:00,830
the big industries, the big conglomerates make a
641
00:28:00,830 --> 00:28:02,630
lot of the money, but from what I've
642
00:28:02,630 --> 00:28:05,790
heard and just exploring this, not being an
643
00:28:05,790 --> 00:28:07,710
expert, but exploring it to a certain degree
644
00:28:07,710 --> 00:28:09,930
is that a lot of these quote unquote
645
00:28:09,930 --> 00:28:14,050
farmers are basically food processors dealing with giant
646
00:28:14,050 --> 00:28:16,290
warehouses and they're not making the money.
647
00:28:16,930 --> 00:28:19,310
They're sort of just sort of living hand
648
00:28:19,310 --> 00:28:21,310
to mouth with all the loans and everything
649
00:28:21,310 --> 00:28:21,690
else.
650
00:28:21,690 --> 00:28:26,770
It's the big conglomerates that are making the
651
00:28:26,770 --> 00:28:26,970
money.
652
00:28:27,210 --> 00:28:28,970
And I don't know, Renee, if you're still
653
00:28:28,970 --> 00:28:30,870
on, what are your thoughts on this?
654
00:28:35,310 --> 00:28:37,310
Oh, we gotta have you on again, sorry.
655
00:28:37,750 --> 00:28:38,610
Get closer.
656
00:28:40,230 --> 00:28:41,790
I'm right here, can you hear me?
657
00:28:41,790 --> 00:28:42,930
Great, we can hear you now, perfect.
658
00:28:43,150 --> 00:28:45,910
Yeah, yeah, I was just gonna say, you
659
00:28:45,910 --> 00:28:51,710
know, the transitioning the farms is until the
660
00:28:51,710 --> 00:28:55,410
government, our government does something to help farmers,
661
00:28:56,110 --> 00:29:00,350
but for individuals and nonprofits and, you know,
662
00:29:00,490 --> 00:29:03,350
and investors to try to do this work
663
00:29:03,350 --> 00:29:05,930
is, it just doesn't work.
664
00:29:06,210 --> 00:29:08,870
I have done everything to try and I
665
00:29:08,870 --> 00:29:12,150
won't keep trying to do it individually anymore
666
00:29:12,150 --> 00:29:14,070
with individual funding.
667
00:29:14,230 --> 00:29:17,910
It's just not at all, it's not sustainable.
668
00:29:18,150 --> 00:29:19,190
It doesn't make any sense.
669
00:29:19,190 --> 00:29:21,730
But what I do do is I work
670
00:29:21,730 --> 00:29:25,210
very, very, very aggressively with the Agriculture Fairness
671
00:29:25,210 --> 00:29:28,950
Alliance to do whatever we can possibly do
672
00:29:28,950 --> 00:29:33,030
there to help change, you know, legislation because
673
00:29:33,030 --> 00:29:36,470
unless we are doing that, you know, it's
674
00:29:36,470 --> 00:29:37,870
just really, really hard.
675
00:29:37,990 --> 00:29:40,590
These farmers need the same fairness.
676
00:29:40,890 --> 00:29:42,850
They need the fairness that all these other
677
00:29:42,850 --> 00:29:45,450
farmers get for all these egregious bailouts and
678
00:29:45,450 --> 00:29:47,510
insurance fraud and everything else.
679
00:29:47,510 --> 00:29:50,350
So that's the way I look at it
680
00:29:50,350 --> 00:29:50,550
now.
681
00:29:50,730 --> 00:29:52,490
It's been, it's pretty much beat me down.
682
00:29:52,610 --> 00:29:55,870
It's been really, really tough to see just
683
00:29:55,870 --> 00:29:58,070
and feel just how difficult it really, really
684
00:29:58,070 --> 00:29:58,450
is.
685
00:29:58,630 --> 00:30:00,250
Well, it seems to me what you're saying
686
00:30:00,250 --> 00:30:04,470
is that the government is subsidising the meat
687
00:30:04,470 --> 00:30:05,450
and dairy industry.
688
00:30:06,030 --> 00:30:09,530
For example, if animals die as a result
689
00:30:09,530 --> 00:30:11,850
of a disaster, they're treated like widgets.
690
00:30:12,010 --> 00:30:14,370
They're just replaced like a government insurance.
691
00:30:14,930 --> 00:30:18,470
And so that's really an unfair playing field
692
00:30:19,430 --> 00:30:22,410
because the government's propping up the industry, the
693
00:30:22,410 --> 00:30:23,010
meat industry.
694
00:30:23,170 --> 00:30:23,890
Is that what you're saying?
695
00:30:24,930 --> 00:30:27,390
It is an unfair playing field, and it
696
00:30:27,390 --> 00:30:29,070
is the playing field.
697
00:30:29,210 --> 00:30:30,270
That is the game.
698
00:30:30,390 --> 00:30:32,510
And they have all the power.
699
00:30:32,650 --> 00:30:33,690
They have all the money.
700
00:30:34,110 --> 00:30:36,210
You know, they have all the resources.
701
00:30:38,090 --> 00:30:41,770
And it's just really incumbent upon all of
702
00:30:41,770 --> 00:30:44,050
us out here that are vegans, that love
703
00:30:44,050 --> 00:30:47,690
animals to really get behind Agriculture Fairness Alliance
704
00:30:47,690 --> 00:30:48,690
and help them.
705
00:30:49,830 --> 00:30:52,550
I mean, because AFA is doing whatever they
706
00:30:52,550 --> 00:30:52,790
can.
707
00:30:52,890 --> 00:30:55,190
I mean, we just can't keep trying to
708
00:30:55,190 --> 00:30:58,370
transition farms one farmer at a time with
709
00:30:58,370 --> 00:30:59,630
individuals' money.
710
00:30:59,830 --> 00:31:01,790
It's just, you just can't do it because
711
00:31:01,790 --> 00:31:04,490
these farmers to your point are usually indentured
712
00:31:04,490 --> 00:31:07,430
servants and they just don't have the way,
713
00:31:07,510 --> 00:31:10,090
they don't think like business people typically.
714
00:31:10,870 --> 00:31:14,110
And so they need a lot of help.
715
00:31:15,070 --> 00:31:17,390
Well, this is a fascinating conversation.
716
00:31:17,550 --> 00:31:18,710
We should have more of it.
717
00:31:19,190 --> 00:31:23,590
One aspect of all the work that not
718
00:31:23,590 --> 00:31:25,570
just Renee King-Sonin of the Rowdy Girls
719
00:31:25,570 --> 00:31:27,410
Sanctuary, and please support that sanctuary.
720
00:31:27,550 --> 00:31:31,490
It's an amazing, amazing sanctuary, but also Jodi
721
00:31:31,490 --> 00:31:32,190
Rash does.
722
00:31:32,490 --> 00:31:35,850
And again, we're bouncing around a little bit
723
00:31:35,850 --> 00:31:38,250
because you do so much.
724
00:31:38,770 --> 00:31:40,710
And I just got to hit a couple
725
00:31:40,710 --> 00:31:43,350
of other aspects of your amazing work.
726
00:31:44,270 --> 00:31:46,330
As part of- I love y'all,
727
00:31:46,450 --> 00:31:47,190
I gotta run.
728
00:31:47,450 --> 00:31:48,510
All right, thank you, Renee.
729
00:31:48,710 --> 00:31:49,230
Thank you.
730
00:31:49,450 --> 00:31:49,750
Bye, Renee.
731
00:31:49,930 --> 00:31:52,310
As part of what you're doing with Beyond
732
00:31:52,310 --> 00:31:57,410
Impact, you are supporting and pushing cutting edge
733
00:31:57,410 --> 00:31:57,970
companies.
734
00:31:58,190 --> 00:32:00,910
Now we discussed cultivated meat for a second,
735
00:32:01,230 --> 00:32:05,070
but there's also something called bio-identical meat.
736
00:32:05,450 --> 00:32:08,730
And there's a company called Paleo that Beyond
737
00:32:08,730 --> 00:32:11,350
Impact has supported.
738
00:32:11,650 --> 00:32:14,210
We interviewed the head of Paleo.
739
00:32:14,410 --> 00:32:16,170
Here's a little clip because what they're doing
740
00:32:16,170 --> 00:32:18,850
is truly, truly revolutionary.
741
00:32:19,950 --> 00:32:22,810
Hermes Sanctorum, who is the CEO and co
742
00:32:22,810 --> 00:32:25,770
-founder of the food tech startup, Paleo, has
743
00:32:25,770 --> 00:32:27,590
come up with a revolutionary product.
744
00:32:28,190 --> 00:32:30,470
It doesn't just taste sort of like meat.
745
00:32:31,150 --> 00:32:32,950
It is, and correct me if I'm wrong,
746
00:32:33,810 --> 00:32:38,090
bio-identically equal and the same as meat,
747
00:32:38,170 --> 00:32:40,770
but it does not come from animals, so
748
00:32:40,770 --> 00:32:41,770
it's also vegan.
749
00:32:42,070 --> 00:32:44,530
We are totally animal free because we, in
750
00:32:44,530 --> 00:32:46,090
fact, just use information.
751
00:32:46,650 --> 00:32:51,850
I mean, there is information available of DNA
752
00:32:51,850 --> 00:32:56,130
from animals that is historically built up, that
753
00:32:56,130 --> 00:32:56,790
information.
754
00:32:57,410 --> 00:33:00,150
And in fact, when you know the sequence
755
00:33:00,150 --> 00:33:02,670
of DNA for a certain protein, for a
756
00:33:02,670 --> 00:33:04,490
certain compound that you would like to make,
757
00:33:04,850 --> 00:33:08,950
you just insert that piece of DNA in
758
00:33:08,950 --> 00:33:11,590
a yeast and that yeast starts producing the
759
00:33:11,590 --> 00:33:13,690
protein that you want it to produce.
760
00:33:13,810 --> 00:33:14,450
That's basically it.
761
00:33:14,510 --> 00:33:16,850
So you start from information, you make a
762
00:33:16,850 --> 00:33:19,390
small part of DNA, you add that to
763
00:33:19,390 --> 00:33:23,530
a yeast, and magic, you have your protein
764
00:33:23,530 --> 00:33:24,570
that you would like to have.
765
00:33:25,490 --> 00:33:28,910
So tell us about this aspect of the
766
00:33:28,910 --> 00:33:30,950
all-protein market that doesn't get a lot
767
00:33:30,950 --> 00:33:31,470
of publicity.
768
00:33:31,930 --> 00:33:32,930
It's extraordinary.
769
00:33:33,350 --> 00:33:38,010
It's meat that is completely vegan by copying
770
00:33:38,010 --> 00:33:39,550
the DNA sequence?
771
00:33:41,330 --> 00:33:45,030
Yeah, I mean, with meat, it's fairly unique,
772
00:33:45,270 --> 00:33:50,130
but this process has been used for, actually,
773
00:33:50,270 --> 00:33:51,810
it's been used for thousands of years.
774
00:33:53,210 --> 00:33:54,630
That's how wine is made.
775
00:33:55,090 --> 00:33:58,250
You have yeast that turns the sugar into
776
00:33:58,250 --> 00:34:02,690
alcohol, and by controlling the yeast, you can,
777
00:34:02,950 --> 00:34:05,010
by engineering the yeast, you can have it
778
00:34:05,010 --> 00:34:09,010
turn proteins into something else.
779
00:34:09,030 --> 00:34:14,250
Other companies do that for making eggs, making
780
00:34:14,250 --> 00:34:17,630
milk, so they'll replicate the proteins.
781
00:34:18,730 --> 00:34:20,929
Paleo is one of the few that's doing
782
00:34:20,929 --> 00:34:22,090
it for meat.
783
00:34:22,770 --> 00:34:24,730
But it's an interesting process.
784
00:34:24,909 --> 00:34:28,010
So the main processes of doing this conversion
785
00:34:28,010 --> 00:34:32,210
is either cultivation, where you start out with
786
00:34:32,210 --> 00:34:35,889
cells from the animal, or this fermentation process,
787
00:34:36,250 --> 00:34:39,150
where through the yeast transformation, you make the
788
00:34:39,150 --> 00:34:42,250
DNA and the cell structure that you need.
789
00:34:43,290 --> 00:34:46,010
So that would actually be a vegan product.
790
00:34:46,210 --> 00:34:48,730
It would not be a product that has
791
00:34:48,730 --> 00:34:50,090
any animal.
792
00:34:50,370 --> 00:34:54,429
It's simply copying sequences and putting in plant
793
00:34:54,429 --> 00:34:58,790
proteins that will then, in turn, create the
794
00:34:58,790 --> 00:34:59,850
DNA structure of meat.
795
00:35:00,810 --> 00:35:02,090
Right, that's right.
796
00:35:02,490 --> 00:35:02,870
Wow.
797
00:35:03,330 --> 00:35:05,210
To me, that is one of the most
798
00:35:05,210 --> 00:35:09,110
fascinating aspects of the alternative protein story, and
799
00:35:09,110 --> 00:35:12,430
I really would be excited to see that
800
00:35:12,430 --> 00:35:14,650
come to market, and I can't wait.
801
00:35:15,050 --> 00:35:18,070
Christina in Los Angeles, your question or thought
802
00:35:18,070 --> 00:35:19,030
for Jodi Rash.
803
00:35:20,290 --> 00:35:21,310
Hi there.
804
00:35:21,790 --> 00:35:23,750
I called in just when you all were
805
00:35:23,750 --> 00:35:26,730
talking about subsidies from the government.
806
00:35:27,110 --> 00:35:30,510
So I guess I won't be asking about
807
00:35:30,510 --> 00:35:34,370
that, but apparently that is a major issue
808
00:35:34,370 --> 00:35:37,930
and challenge, correct, for plant-based products.
809
00:35:38,790 --> 00:35:41,290
So I guess I'll stick my question to
810
00:35:41,290 --> 00:35:41,950
something else.
811
00:35:42,510 --> 00:35:44,290
I keep hearing that we're trying to get
812
00:35:44,290 --> 00:35:48,390
cutting-edge investment companies involved in alternative plant
813
00:35:48,390 --> 00:35:48,970
proteins.
814
00:35:49,870 --> 00:35:53,090
I'd like to get insight, if it's not
815
00:35:53,090 --> 00:35:57,270
already been discussed, about how do we utilise
816
00:35:57,270 --> 00:36:00,410
what has traditionally been used in the investment
817
00:36:00,410 --> 00:36:07,810
world of investors and stock folks who create
818
00:36:07,810 --> 00:36:11,910
this hype over certain technologies or products or
819
00:36:11,910 --> 00:36:13,930
new methods of manufacturing.
820
00:36:14,690 --> 00:36:17,050
I mean, they create this to get everybody
821
00:36:17,050 --> 00:36:17,910
on board.
822
00:36:18,970 --> 00:36:20,870
In the past, I mean, whether it's legit
823
00:36:20,870 --> 00:36:23,590
or not, and they create this to get
824
00:36:23,590 --> 00:36:27,390
publicity and to, it's partly educational, right?
825
00:36:27,430 --> 00:36:30,570
Now everybody's reading about their stock portfolios.
826
00:36:31,470 --> 00:36:33,950
I mean, can we also do that for
827
00:36:33,950 --> 00:36:38,030
all these alternative plant-based protein industries and
828
00:36:38,030 --> 00:36:41,710
companies and use the same sort of trick
829
00:36:41,710 --> 00:36:45,210
or phenomenon that's been used in investment world
830
00:36:45,210 --> 00:36:46,410
for centuries?
831
00:36:47,110 --> 00:36:47,630
Thank you.
832
00:36:47,850 --> 00:36:48,470
Go ahead.
833
00:36:48,470 --> 00:36:49,370
Thanks, Christina.
834
00:36:51,510 --> 00:36:54,910
Yeah, I mean, I think we are using
835
00:36:54,910 --> 00:36:55,910
the techniques.
836
00:36:56,070 --> 00:36:59,270
I mean, we're using venture capital that's going
837
00:36:59,270 --> 00:37:06,550
into this market is actually not just vegan
838
00:37:06,550 --> 00:37:09,150
funds or funds that specialise in it.
839
00:37:09,210 --> 00:37:13,870
You have mainstream investors who are in this,
840
00:37:13,950 --> 00:37:16,070
what Bill Gates said, the future of food
841
00:37:16,070 --> 00:37:16,890
is vegan.
842
00:37:17,450 --> 00:37:19,790
So it is getting that hype, but just
843
00:37:19,790 --> 00:37:24,470
like any area that gets the hype, the
844
00:37:24,470 --> 00:37:26,090
question is, do you create bubbles?
845
00:37:26,790 --> 00:37:28,830
And so that's kind of what's going on
846
00:37:28,830 --> 00:37:30,570
with vegan companies right now.
847
00:37:30,790 --> 00:37:32,870
I think as Jane said, you said before,
848
00:37:33,370 --> 00:37:35,650
I think a lot of the vegan companies
849
00:37:35,650 --> 00:37:39,010
are being attacked somewhat unfairly, when they start
850
00:37:39,010 --> 00:37:42,110
talking about Beyond Burger and it's not healthy.
851
00:37:42,410 --> 00:37:45,330
Well, it certainly is.
852
00:37:45,330 --> 00:37:47,290
And they really admit it.
853
00:37:47,370 --> 00:37:49,870
It certainly is healthier than the alternative, but
854
00:37:49,870 --> 00:37:51,890
then they say, well, look how many ingredients
855
00:37:51,890 --> 00:37:52,510
they have.
856
00:37:53,010 --> 00:37:53,810
Yeah, that's true.
857
00:37:53,870 --> 00:37:56,210
But none of those ingredients are meat and
858
00:37:56,210 --> 00:37:58,290
meat is only one ingredient, but it has
859
00:37:58,290 --> 00:38:04,130
huge ecological and health costs to it, not
860
00:38:04,130 --> 00:38:05,350
to mention ethical costs.
861
00:38:05,510 --> 00:38:08,070
So just because it's one ingredient doesn't mean
862
00:38:08,070 --> 00:38:08,590
it's healthy.
863
00:38:08,990 --> 00:38:10,590
I mean, I wouldn't need an arsenic burger.
864
00:38:10,730 --> 00:38:12,330
That would be one ingredient as well.
865
00:38:12,330 --> 00:38:15,530
So those types of attacks are somewhat disingenuous,
866
00:38:15,730 --> 00:38:17,890
but we have to weather those.
867
00:38:18,150 --> 00:38:22,970
And right now the investment market is, particularly
868
00:38:22,970 --> 00:38:25,710
the venture capital market, there's a lot of
869
00:38:25,710 --> 00:38:28,510
contraction in that market, which is hurting companies
870
00:38:28,510 --> 00:38:29,790
that need money to grow.
871
00:38:30,490 --> 00:38:33,170
But I think that's beginning to come to
872
00:38:33,170 --> 00:38:33,570
an end.
873
00:38:34,070 --> 00:38:36,590
So people kind of be loosening up their
874
00:38:36,590 --> 00:38:38,790
purse strings a little bit more and it
875
00:38:38,790 --> 00:38:40,490
should be getting to be a little bit
876
00:38:40,490 --> 00:38:42,710
easier for these companies to raise money.
877
00:38:43,410 --> 00:38:45,470
Yeah, and I was just over at Beyond
878
00:38:45,470 --> 00:38:46,150
Meat headquarters.
879
00:38:46,570 --> 00:38:49,230
Unchained TV is putting together a profile that's
880
00:38:49,230 --> 00:38:49,890
coming out soon.
881
00:38:49,970 --> 00:38:53,390
They have a new 4.0. And what
882
00:38:53,390 --> 00:38:57,010
I said was, look, processed meat is officially
883
00:38:57,010 --> 00:38:57,930
cancer causing.
884
00:38:58,790 --> 00:39:01,330
Okay, so anything that's an alternative to processed
885
00:39:01,330 --> 00:39:03,090
meat is much healthier.
886
00:39:04,030 --> 00:39:06,970
And so you're dealing with a product on
887
00:39:06,970 --> 00:39:09,310
the one hand that's a carcinogen, and the
888
00:39:09,310 --> 00:39:12,310
other hand is a bunch of vegetables mushed
889
00:39:12,310 --> 00:39:12,650
together.
890
00:39:13,450 --> 00:39:18,250
And nonetheless, they've decided to take the challenge
891
00:39:18,250 --> 00:39:20,790
and come up with an even healthier product.
892
00:39:21,030 --> 00:39:23,690
And it's called Beyond Meat 4.0. It's
893
00:39:23,690 --> 00:39:25,970
hitting the store shelves and I tried it.
894
00:39:26,070 --> 00:39:27,170
It's absolutely delicious.
895
00:39:27,570 --> 00:39:31,030
It has 75% less saturated fat than
896
00:39:31,030 --> 00:39:31,790
an average burger.
897
00:39:32,210 --> 00:39:34,650
And it's just really delicious.
898
00:39:34,650 --> 00:39:38,230
So I think that's a great response to
899
00:39:38,230 --> 00:39:38,750
criticism.
900
00:39:38,970 --> 00:39:40,650
Just say, okay, yeah, you want it healthier?
901
00:39:40,770 --> 00:39:42,230
We'll make it even healthier.
902
00:39:43,070 --> 00:39:45,570
And I think that's the kind of response
903
00:39:45,570 --> 00:39:47,270
that's going to win out in the end,
904
00:39:47,330 --> 00:39:48,250
right, Jody?
905
00:39:49,170 --> 00:39:50,110
Yeah, absolutely.
906
00:39:50,290 --> 00:39:52,690
I think the vegan market is going through
907
00:39:52,690 --> 00:39:53,950
various changes.
908
00:39:54,290 --> 00:39:56,670
The first thing was just have anything out
909
00:39:56,670 --> 00:39:56,970
there.
910
00:39:57,210 --> 00:40:01,210
And you'd have burgers that come out of
911
00:40:01,210 --> 00:40:02,130
a cardboard box.
912
00:40:02,190 --> 00:40:03,530
You weren't sure which you should eat.
913
00:40:04,090 --> 00:40:06,530
And then they went to, I would say,
914
00:40:06,630 --> 00:40:10,250
Vegan 2.0, where the products tasted good,
915
00:40:10,350 --> 00:40:11,910
but in order to get them to taste
916
00:40:11,910 --> 00:40:16,290
good, they had probably more fat and salts
917
00:40:16,290 --> 00:40:18,330
and things like that than you needed.
918
00:40:18,470 --> 00:40:20,470
And now we're going through, I think, the
919
00:40:20,470 --> 00:40:24,170
next phase where people think that vegan is
920
00:40:24,170 --> 00:40:25,230
healthier for you.
921
00:40:25,590 --> 00:40:28,390
It is, but now I think what people
922
00:40:28,390 --> 00:40:33,010
are looking for is even healthier vegan alternatives.
923
00:40:33,650 --> 00:40:35,430
And that's why what you said about what
924
00:40:35,430 --> 00:40:37,870
Beyond Burger is doing is great.
925
00:40:37,970 --> 00:40:39,270
And I think there's going to be more
926
00:40:39,270 --> 00:40:41,030
and more companies that are going to be
927
00:40:41,030 --> 00:40:44,830
coming out that are offering vegan options that
928
00:40:44,830 --> 00:40:47,450
truly are healthy and tasty.
929
00:40:48,150 --> 00:40:51,950
Are you concerned at all about the state
930
00:40:51,950 --> 00:40:55,090
of the vegan business world right now, given
931
00:40:55,090 --> 00:40:57,250
that, and I was in mainstream media for
932
00:40:57,250 --> 00:41:00,310
more than three decades, and I know a
933
00:41:00,310 --> 00:41:02,290
concerted attack when I see one.
934
00:41:03,770 --> 00:41:06,450
When Beyond Meat went public in 2019, it
935
00:41:06,450 --> 00:41:08,890
was the most successful IPO since the 2008
936
00:41:08,890 --> 00:41:10,150
financial crisis.
937
00:41:10,370 --> 00:41:11,730
It skyrocketed.
938
00:41:11,910 --> 00:41:13,090
Everybody was talking about it.
939
00:41:13,390 --> 00:41:15,210
Well, of course, it couldn't sustain that high
940
00:41:15,210 --> 00:41:15,590
level.
941
00:41:16,230 --> 00:41:18,570
And as you said, you create a bubble
942
00:41:18,570 --> 00:41:21,430
with all that excitement, and then it's like
943
00:41:21,430 --> 00:41:23,050
you build them up and then you knock
944
00:41:23,050 --> 00:41:23,370
them down.
945
00:41:23,430 --> 00:41:24,450
That's what the media does.
946
00:41:24,510 --> 00:41:25,670
It does that with celebrities.
947
00:41:25,850 --> 00:41:27,070
It does that with some companies.
948
00:41:27,790 --> 00:41:30,990
Where do you see vegan business, let's say,
949
00:41:31,090 --> 00:41:32,850
in five years?
950
00:41:35,360 --> 00:41:38,420
Yeah, I mean, I think that fundamentally the
951
00:41:38,420 --> 00:41:42,840
concept of vegan foods and other products and
952
00:41:42,840 --> 00:41:45,180
vegan investing is solid.
953
00:41:45,500 --> 00:41:47,900
Like you said, it goes through its ups
954
00:41:47,900 --> 00:41:48,500
and downs.
955
00:41:48,860 --> 00:41:51,900
It's in a down phase right now because
956
00:41:51,900 --> 00:41:54,020
of some of the media hype.
957
00:41:54,600 --> 00:41:57,860
But I think coming out with these new
958
00:41:57,860 --> 00:42:01,140
products that actually are healthy will help overcome
959
00:42:01,140 --> 00:42:01,540
that.
960
00:42:01,700 --> 00:42:04,320
I think there's a huge pent-up demand
961
00:42:04,320 --> 00:42:07,060
for healthy products.
962
00:42:07,860 --> 00:42:10,080
And quite honestly, if you have animal products
963
00:42:10,080 --> 00:42:12,520
in it, it's not healthy, no matter what.
964
00:42:13,180 --> 00:42:15,840
So I think there's a huge potential demand.
965
00:42:16,040 --> 00:42:18,520
So I think five years is probably a
966
00:42:18,520 --> 00:42:21,580
good timeframe to look at some of the
967
00:42:21,580 --> 00:42:24,400
companies that are in this market now, I
968
00:42:24,400 --> 00:42:25,340
think really exploding.
969
00:42:25,340 --> 00:42:28,520
The thing that I'm most concerned about is
970
00:42:28,520 --> 00:42:30,620
getting them through the next year, year and
971
00:42:30,620 --> 00:42:35,360
a half, because the availability of investment funds
972
00:42:35,360 --> 00:42:37,920
has been a challenge.
973
00:42:39,480 --> 00:42:42,380
Tom Vansell asks, what's the best vegan investment
974
00:42:42,380 --> 00:42:43,040
to make?
975
00:42:43,140 --> 00:42:44,300
That would be great to know.
976
00:42:44,540 --> 00:42:48,760
You know how Motley Fool says, if you
977
00:42:48,760 --> 00:42:52,060
had $1,000, you should invest in, well,
978
00:42:52,180 --> 00:42:53,440
let's play that game.
979
00:42:54,720 --> 00:42:57,840
Well, the first problem is that most vegan
980
00:42:57,840 --> 00:43:00,580
companies, except for like Beyond Meat and some
981
00:43:00,580 --> 00:43:03,420
of those, you have to be an accredited
982
00:43:03,420 --> 00:43:07,020
investor, which is a strict legal definition.
983
00:43:07,320 --> 00:43:10,220
I think it's income of over $200,000
984
00:43:10,220 --> 00:43:14,820
for the last two years, or net income
985
00:43:14,820 --> 00:43:17,320
of over, I think it's a million dollars.
986
00:43:17,420 --> 00:43:19,860
I'm not 100% sure what the rules
987
00:43:19,860 --> 00:43:20,160
are.
988
00:43:20,520 --> 00:43:22,920
So if you're not an accredited investor, you
989
00:43:22,920 --> 00:43:27,860
have very limited opportunity to invest in non
990
00:43:27,860 --> 00:43:29,040
-public companies.
991
00:43:29,660 --> 00:43:34,400
So there is a index out there called
992
00:43:34,400 --> 00:43:38,740
VGN, vegan, that- I think it's V
993
00:43:38,740 --> 00:43:39,480
-E-G-N.
994
00:43:39,840 --> 00:43:43,100
Yes, you're right, V-E-G-N, that
995
00:43:43,100 --> 00:43:48,320
basically invests in publicly traded companies that don't
996
00:43:48,320 --> 00:43:51,440
specifically use animal products.
997
00:43:51,970 --> 00:43:55,680
And they also, whatever publicly available plant-based
998
00:43:55,680 --> 00:43:57,880
companies, they also invest in them.
999
00:43:57,920 --> 00:44:00,800
And they've tracked the S&P 500 quite
1000
00:44:00,800 --> 00:44:03,320
well, in fact, have outperformed it.
1001
00:44:03,460 --> 00:44:06,500
Now, Beyond Impact, which I'm associated with, they
1002
00:44:06,500 --> 00:44:08,040
didn't come up with it, but the woman
1003
00:44:08,040 --> 00:44:12,600
who started Beyond Impact, the fund, this was
1004
00:44:12,600 --> 00:44:14,980
an idea that she had, and that she's
1005
00:44:14,980 --> 00:44:17,600
made this very, very successful.
1006
00:44:18,220 --> 00:44:20,520
So that's, at this point, if you're not
1007
00:44:20,520 --> 00:44:23,080
an accredited investor, the best way to do
1008
00:44:23,080 --> 00:44:23,300
it.
1009
00:44:23,960 --> 00:44:26,880
If you are an accredited investor, typically putting
1010
00:44:26,880 --> 00:44:30,420
your money in a fund like Beyond Impact
1011
00:44:30,420 --> 00:44:32,480
would be the way to go because you
1012
00:44:32,480 --> 00:44:33,520
get diversification.
1013
00:44:34,080 --> 00:44:36,140
But just remember, when you're investing in venture
1014
00:44:36,140 --> 00:44:38,640
capital, you only invest as much as you
1015
00:44:38,640 --> 00:44:39,640
can afford to lose.
1016
00:44:40,020 --> 00:44:41,540
So this is not something you put your
1017
00:44:41,540 --> 00:44:44,920
401k in or other money that you need
1018
00:44:44,920 --> 00:44:45,580
for retirement.
1019
00:44:45,940 --> 00:44:48,400
This is money that if all the companies
1020
00:44:48,400 --> 00:44:50,520
crash and you totally lose it, it's like,
1021
00:44:51,100 --> 00:44:53,360
you're not happy about it, but it's not
1022
00:44:53,360 --> 00:44:54,660
going to impact your lifestyle.
1023
00:44:55,740 --> 00:44:57,360
Yeah, and I guess full disclosure, I didn't
1024
00:44:57,360 --> 00:44:58,840
know we were gonna talk about VEGN, but
1025
00:44:58,840 --> 00:45:01,200
I have a little of VEGN just as
1026
00:45:01,200 --> 00:45:01,840
a disclosure.
1027
00:45:02,300 --> 00:45:04,760
Okay, here you go, your art.
1028
00:45:05,340 --> 00:45:05,800
Yes.
1029
00:45:05,900 --> 00:45:09,100
It's absolutely extraordinary, and it's based on what?
1030
00:45:10,680 --> 00:45:13,160
The underlying imagery for all of my art
1031
00:45:13,160 --> 00:45:15,240
is based on scientific themes.
1032
00:45:15,660 --> 00:45:17,260
So the ones you have here, the one
1033
00:45:17,260 --> 00:45:19,960
on the left is based on a galaxy,
1034
00:45:20,140 --> 00:45:22,000
and the one on the right, I believe,
1035
00:45:22,200 --> 00:45:23,440
is a white blood cell.
1036
00:45:23,580 --> 00:45:26,520
So the main themes that I use are
1037
00:45:26,520 --> 00:45:32,660
physics, radio astronomy, and electron microscopy.
1038
00:45:33,280 --> 00:45:36,400
I branch out somewhat from those areas as
1039
00:45:36,400 --> 00:45:40,700
well, but I've actually, after many, many years,
1040
00:45:40,760 --> 00:45:42,380
I've gone back, I'm actually talking to you
1041
00:45:42,380 --> 00:45:43,500
from my studio.
1042
00:45:43,500 --> 00:45:45,860
I've gone back to school to get my
1043
00:45:45,860 --> 00:45:47,320
third degree.
1044
00:45:47,540 --> 00:45:49,160
I have a BA in economics, I have
1045
00:45:49,160 --> 00:45:51,960
an MBA in finance, and now I'm going
1046
00:45:51,960 --> 00:45:53,580
for my MFA in painting.
1047
00:45:54,240 --> 00:45:55,840
All right, well, you're making me feel bad.
1048
00:45:55,840 --> 00:45:57,340
By the way, I'm the oldest student in
1049
00:45:57,340 --> 00:45:57,880
the class.
1050
00:45:59,240 --> 00:46:00,840
You're making me feel bad.
1051
00:46:01,260 --> 00:46:03,100
I'm gonna get cracking on that piano and
1052
00:46:03,100 --> 00:46:04,620
that French that I always say I'm gonna
1053
00:46:04,620 --> 00:46:05,660
learn, and I never do.
1054
00:46:06,480 --> 00:46:06,800
Caribbean.
1055
00:46:07,560 --> 00:46:09,660
Yeah, and I just wanted to throw up
1056
00:46:09,660 --> 00:46:11,140
some of the other companies.
1057
00:46:11,140 --> 00:46:14,240
There are many that Beyond Impact has helped.
1058
00:46:15,620 --> 00:46:17,240
Now, some of them we've heard of, like
1059
00:46:17,240 --> 00:46:19,920
Wicked Kitchen's quite well-known, but some of
1060
00:46:19,920 --> 00:46:23,460
them are a little less well-known.
1061
00:46:24,040 --> 00:46:26,940
What is the statistical chance of any company
1062
00:46:26,940 --> 00:46:27,480
succeeding?
1063
00:46:27,820 --> 00:46:29,400
Like, sometimes people are saying, well, a lot
1064
00:46:29,400 --> 00:46:30,880
of these vegan companies aren't succeeding.
1065
00:46:31,180 --> 00:46:32,960
First of all, the ones that have succeeded,
1066
00:46:33,460 --> 00:46:37,660
like Tofurky, like Daiya, like Violife, like Silk
1067
00:46:37,660 --> 00:46:39,720
Soymilk, I could go on and on.
1068
00:46:39,720 --> 00:46:42,040
They've been acquired by big conglomerates.
1069
00:46:42,180 --> 00:46:43,220
Is that not the case?
1070
00:46:44,640 --> 00:46:45,140
Yeah, yeah.
1071
00:46:45,280 --> 00:46:47,740
So the basic rule with venture capital is
1072
00:46:47,740 --> 00:46:50,040
that half the companies you invest in will
1073
00:46:50,040 --> 00:46:50,520
go bankrupt.
1074
00:46:51,120 --> 00:46:53,000
So you'll lose everything on them.
1075
00:46:53,320 --> 00:46:57,400
And then another 10 to 20%, you'll either
1076
00:46:57,400 --> 00:47:01,460
break even or you'll make a little bit
1077
00:47:01,460 --> 00:47:02,680
of money or lose a little bit of
1078
00:47:02,680 --> 00:47:03,360
money on them.
1079
00:47:03,800 --> 00:47:06,240
So what you're looking at really is maybe
1080
00:47:06,240 --> 00:47:08,140
10% of your company.
1081
00:47:08,140 --> 00:47:12,200
So one company in 10, that's gonna be
1082
00:47:12,200 --> 00:47:13,260
a big winner.
1083
00:47:14,520 --> 00:47:18,280
And what they say is half your advertising
1084
00:47:18,280 --> 00:47:20,180
is worthless.
1085
00:47:20,460 --> 00:47:21,620
You just don't know which half.
1086
00:47:22,260 --> 00:47:23,960
It's kind of like the same thing in
1087
00:47:23,960 --> 00:47:27,120
venture capital is that you know that 80
1088
00:47:27,120 --> 00:47:28,840
% of your companies are not gonna give
1089
00:47:28,840 --> 00:47:31,660
you a return, but you just don't know
1090
00:47:31,660 --> 00:47:32,560
what 80%.
1091
00:47:32,560 --> 00:47:35,780
So you go into these companies, you hope
1092
00:47:35,780 --> 00:47:39,940
for a Beyond Burger or one of those
1093
00:47:39,940 --> 00:47:41,200
is in your portfolio.
1094
00:47:41,840 --> 00:47:43,420
So you just gotta look at the different
1095
00:47:43,420 --> 00:47:46,160
industries, where the potential is and take your
1096
00:47:46,160 --> 00:47:49,440
chances, which is why I said, this is
1097
00:47:49,440 --> 00:47:52,820
not a field for the faint of heart.
1098
00:47:53,360 --> 00:47:56,080
You need to, people go into this, they
1099
00:47:56,080 --> 00:47:57,120
understand the risks.
1100
00:47:57,360 --> 00:48:00,700
If they end up losing it all, that's
1101
00:48:00,700 --> 00:48:02,260
life, they go on.
1102
00:48:03,620 --> 00:48:06,480
If they get one hit out of that,
1103
00:48:06,740 --> 00:48:09,840
that could give them 20, 30% return
1104
00:48:09,840 --> 00:48:10,940
on their total investment.
1105
00:48:11,140 --> 00:48:12,340
So that's what they're looking for.
1106
00:48:13,220 --> 00:48:15,960
Yeah, it's funny because people always say, well,
1107
00:48:16,020 --> 00:48:18,000
if you had invested in and then they
1108
00:48:18,000 --> 00:48:20,640
named these companies, whether it's Amazon or Apple,
1109
00:48:20,980 --> 00:48:23,960
way back when, way back when we didn't
1110
00:48:23,960 --> 00:48:26,160
know which ones were gonna be the big
1111
00:48:26,160 --> 00:48:26,540
ones.
1112
00:48:27,220 --> 00:48:29,360
So- Well, look, given that I have
1113
00:48:29,360 --> 00:48:31,040
the book out, I'm glad Amazon did well.
1114
00:48:31,700 --> 00:48:33,680
Yes, well, let's get back to that.
1115
00:48:33,880 --> 00:48:36,960
The Silver Forest, I have an advanced copy.
1116
00:48:37,420 --> 00:48:39,320
You can order it now on Amazon.
1117
00:48:39,780 --> 00:48:41,260
I've been diving into it.
1118
00:48:41,620 --> 00:48:43,100
It's really fascinating.
1119
00:48:43,440 --> 00:48:44,920
And this is the first of a trilogy.
1120
00:48:45,520 --> 00:48:47,900
And I expect you wanna turn this into
1121
00:48:47,900 --> 00:48:49,200
a movie at some point, right?
1122
00:48:50,260 --> 00:48:51,560
I would love to.
1123
00:48:51,780 --> 00:48:52,460
I would love to.
1124
00:48:52,560 --> 00:48:54,000
So if you've got any contacts in that
1125
00:48:54,000 --> 00:48:55,200
business, Jane, let me know.
1126
00:48:57,060 --> 00:49:01,020
Again, I'm just flabbergasted at the incredible amount
1127
00:49:01,020 --> 00:49:03,620
of accomplishments you have across the board.
1128
00:49:04,180 --> 00:49:07,040
So many different things, but everybody get this.
1129
00:49:07,180 --> 00:49:09,000
It's available on Amazon for pre-order.
1130
00:49:09,240 --> 00:49:11,220
It's coming out very soon.
1131
00:49:11,400 --> 00:49:14,920
And I really hope that everybody supports this.
1132
00:49:15,060 --> 00:49:17,180
Again, this is somebody who has done so
1133
00:49:17,180 --> 00:49:19,940
much for our movement, is always giving to
1134
00:49:19,940 --> 00:49:22,720
others, always helping other organisations.
1135
00:49:23,140 --> 00:49:25,360
So let's give him a little boost and
1136
00:49:25,360 --> 00:49:27,220
order and read his book.
1137
00:49:27,600 --> 00:49:29,120
And I gotta tell you, I think it's
1138
00:49:29,120 --> 00:49:30,140
absolutely fantastic.
1139
00:49:31,060 --> 00:49:32,160
We've got one minute.
1140
00:49:32,280 --> 00:49:33,380
What are your final thoughts?
1141
00:49:33,440 --> 00:49:35,980
What would you like to tell people in
1142
00:49:35,980 --> 00:49:40,280
general about bringing this all together?
1143
00:49:41,640 --> 00:49:43,760
Yeah, I think, you know, in order to
1144
00:49:43,760 --> 00:49:47,880
really make veganism more mainstream, you have to
1145
00:49:47,880 --> 00:49:50,920
attack it from a lot of different areas,
1146
00:49:51,080 --> 00:49:52,820
which is, I guess, one of the reasons
1147
00:49:52,820 --> 00:49:55,400
why I ended up doing so many different
1148
00:49:55,400 --> 00:49:55,920
things.
1149
00:49:56,780 --> 00:49:59,360
And, you know, just like the book, I
1150
00:49:59,360 --> 00:50:02,560
think what was important for me is that
1151
00:50:02,560 --> 00:50:05,800
the main character is vegan, but I don't
1152
00:50:05,800 --> 00:50:07,000
make a big deal about that.
1153
00:50:07,220 --> 00:50:09,100
It just happens to be the way he
1154
00:50:09,100 --> 00:50:09,340
is.
1155
00:50:09,360 --> 00:50:10,180
It's just natural.
1156
00:50:10,680 --> 00:50:13,120
And so there's not big discussions about veganism
1157
00:50:13,120 --> 00:50:14,780
and all this stuff in the book.
1158
00:50:14,960 --> 00:50:17,080
It's just part of a normal life.
1159
00:50:17,180 --> 00:50:19,420
And that's what I think we need to
1160
00:50:19,420 --> 00:50:19,660
do.
1161
00:50:19,760 --> 00:50:21,560
So we need to take a lot of
1162
00:50:21,560 --> 00:50:27,240
different and disparate areas, investing, art, writing, and
1163
00:50:27,240 --> 00:50:29,580
just make it part of the community.
1164
00:50:30,820 --> 00:50:32,400
I love what you just said.
1165
00:50:32,580 --> 00:50:33,880
It's not a big deal.
1166
00:50:34,200 --> 00:50:35,600
It's just what he is.
1167
00:50:35,880 --> 00:50:39,640
And hopefully everybody will get that message that
1168
00:50:39,640 --> 00:50:44,680
it's not like a conversion to some extreme
1169
00:50:44,680 --> 00:50:45,280
group.
1170
00:50:45,400 --> 00:50:48,840
It's just, you know, a healthy, compassionate way
1171
00:50:48,840 --> 00:50:50,700
of living that we can all embrace.
1172
00:50:50,700 --> 00:50:54,580
It's a joyous adventure, not a sacrifice.
1173
00:50:54,960 --> 00:50:57,160
And thank you so much, Jodi Rash.
1174
00:50:57,240 --> 00:50:59,660
I also wanna urge everybody, please download the
1175
00:50:59,660 --> 00:51:00,780
Unshamed TV app.
1176
00:51:01,140 --> 00:51:02,640
It is 100% free.
1177
00:51:02,980 --> 00:51:05,940
It is the world's only vegan streaming television
1178
00:51:05,940 --> 00:51:07,580
network available on your phone.
1179
00:51:07,680 --> 00:51:10,420
You just put Unshamed TV right into your
1180
00:51:10,420 --> 00:51:13,380
app store and download it for free.
1181
00:51:13,520 --> 00:51:16,860
It's also free to watch on any TV.
1182
00:51:17,240 --> 00:51:19,620
It's on all Samsung TVs and on any
1183
00:51:19,620 --> 00:51:22,240
TV with Amazon Fire Stick, Roku device or
1184
00:51:22,240 --> 00:51:23,020
Apple TV device.
1185
00:51:23,140 --> 00:51:26,900
So please download Unshamed TV and join our
1186
00:51:26,900 --> 00:51:31,740
happy, joyous community fighting for animals, speaking for
1187
00:51:31,740 --> 00:51:33,260
them because they can't speak for themselves.
1188
00:51:33,420 --> 00:51:33,860
See you next.
00:00:00,900 --> 00:00:05,800
You are meeting an extraordinary novelist, artist, and
2
00:00:05,800 --> 00:00:08,400
vegan investor and philanthropist.
3
00:00:08,620 --> 00:00:12,660
We are gonna learn all about the many,
4
00:00:12,820 --> 00:00:16,680
many projects J.D. Rash is involved in.
5
00:00:17,160 --> 00:00:21,760
And it's truly unbelievable to me how he
6
00:00:21,760 --> 00:00:24,900
is able to do so many things at
7
00:00:24,900 --> 00:00:25,420
once.
8
00:00:25,980 --> 00:00:30,400
Just to give you an idea, this man
9
00:00:30,400 --> 00:00:34,480
has helped so many vegan organisations and sanctuaries.
10
00:00:34,900 --> 00:00:36,220
He started out as a banker.
11
00:00:36,460 --> 00:00:39,060
Now he's working with Beyond Impact, which helps
12
00:00:39,060 --> 00:00:43,760
vegan companies like Wicked Kitchen and many other
13
00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:47,460
up-and-coming companies that are compassionate.
14
00:00:47,660 --> 00:00:50,500
He's also written this trilogy called The Silver
15
00:00:50,500 --> 00:00:55,400
Forest, as well as this extraordinary artwork, which
16
00:00:55,400 --> 00:00:57,260
may seem familiar to you.
17
00:00:57,260 --> 00:00:59,420
It's based on something very scientific.
18
00:00:59,800 --> 00:01:01,980
So I wanna go straight out to J
19
00:01:01,980 --> 00:01:02,560
.D. Rash.
20
00:01:02,980 --> 00:01:07,420
Please tell us about your work specifically.
21
00:01:07,700 --> 00:01:12,580
Let's start with your novel and we'll move
22
00:01:12,580 --> 00:01:13,940
on to all your philanthropy.
23
00:01:18,140 --> 00:01:19,760
What is The Silver Forest?
24
00:01:21,180 --> 00:01:23,280
The Silver Forest is an ideal.
25
00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:24,240
It's like an Eden.
26
00:01:24,720 --> 00:01:27,800
And the book is based on the concept
27
00:01:27,800 --> 00:01:29,820
of a return to Eden, return to our
28
00:01:29,820 --> 00:01:30,720
basic principles.
29
00:01:31,620 --> 00:01:35,080
And that's the trajectory that the main character
30
00:01:35,080 --> 00:01:36,300
has to go through.
31
00:01:36,740 --> 00:01:40,440
It's something that the wizards seek, the golden
32
00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:43,520
tree and the silver forest, the tree of
33
00:01:43,520 --> 00:01:45,080
knowledge, the tree of understanding.
34
00:01:45,540 --> 00:01:47,460
And the question is, how do we get
35
00:01:47,460 --> 00:01:47,760
there?
36
00:01:47,940 --> 00:01:50,740
How do we regain this innocence?
37
00:01:50,920 --> 00:01:52,420
How do we regain the knowledge?
38
00:01:52,960 --> 00:01:55,360
How do we regain the respect that we're
39
00:01:55,360 --> 00:01:57,560
missing in this novel and I think also
40
00:01:57,560 --> 00:01:58,180
in the world?
41
00:01:59,860 --> 00:02:02,520
So how the heck do you have time
42
00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:06,140
to do that while at the same time,
43
00:02:06,420 --> 00:02:10,380
you are doing so much extraordinary work in
44
00:02:10,380 --> 00:02:11,600
other areas?
45
00:02:11,940 --> 00:02:17,340
Again, you are the ultimate vegan business insider.
46
00:02:17,700 --> 00:02:21,720
You've worked with Beyond Impact, which you're a
47
00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:24,580
partner there, helping so many vegan companies like
48
00:02:24,580 --> 00:02:26,400
Wicked Kitchen, but many others, we're gonna get
49
00:02:26,400 --> 00:02:26,800
to that.
50
00:02:27,140 --> 00:02:29,620
And you also are writing this trilogy.
51
00:02:29,960 --> 00:02:31,920
This is book one, book two and three
52
00:02:31,920 --> 00:02:32,280
coming.
53
00:02:32,500 --> 00:02:34,700
And then you also do this art.
54
00:02:35,080 --> 00:02:36,860
I mean, this is absolutely extraordinary.
55
00:02:37,760 --> 00:02:39,740
Where on earth do you get the time
56
00:02:39,740 --> 00:02:40,580
and the energy?
57
00:02:40,800 --> 00:02:43,900
And you are quite an acclaimed artist at
58
00:02:43,900 --> 00:02:46,840
this point, which I didn't realise knowing you
59
00:02:46,840 --> 00:02:49,000
in another world, I was Googling you and
60
00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:50,580
I'm like, oh my God, this man's also
61
00:02:50,580 --> 00:02:52,200
an acclaimed visual artist.
62
00:02:52,760 --> 00:02:54,160
How the heck do you do all this,
63
00:02:54,300 --> 00:02:54,500
Jody?
64
00:02:55,820 --> 00:02:57,440
Yeah, well, you're one to ask, Jane.
65
00:02:57,520 --> 00:03:00,200
You do quite a bit yourself too, but
66
00:03:00,200 --> 00:03:02,240
it helps to have the fact that my
67
00:03:02,240 --> 00:03:03,240
kids are grown.
68
00:03:03,460 --> 00:03:06,020
So that freed up a lot of time
69
00:03:06,020 --> 00:03:08,160
as they moved out of the house.
70
00:03:08,320 --> 00:03:09,200
So that was part of it.
71
00:03:09,260 --> 00:03:12,460
Part of it really is just an interest
72
00:03:12,460 --> 00:03:15,620
and each different thing that I do, for
73
00:03:15,620 --> 00:03:16,800
me, it's like an exploration.
74
00:03:17,140 --> 00:03:19,640
You wanna discover things about the world, about
75
00:03:19,640 --> 00:03:22,600
yourself, and there are just different ways to
76
00:03:22,600 --> 00:03:23,120
do that.
77
00:03:23,300 --> 00:03:27,460
So the art helps me think through issues
78
00:03:28,340 --> 00:03:29,380
relating to the world.
79
00:03:29,620 --> 00:03:31,800
So does the writing helps me think through
80
00:03:31,800 --> 00:03:32,820
social issues.
81
00:03:32,960 --> 00:03:36,100
And then the vegan investing and the philanthropy
82
00:03:36,100 --> 00:03:40,320
are actually more directly helping the types of
83
00:03:40,320 --> 00:03:43,560
companies that I think need to be around
84
00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:43,960
in the world.
85
00:03:44,260 --> 00:03:47,060
We need to, in order to accomplish the
86
00:03:47,060 --> 00:03:50,360
things that will bring us to more fulfilment,
87
00:03:50,620 --> 00:03:52,680
more understanding, a kinder, gentler world.
88
00:03:53,400 --> 00:03:55,900
Well, let's talk a little bit about some
89
00:03:55,900 --> 00:03:59,020
of those comments and those companies, and then
90
00:03:59,020 --> 00:04:01,280
we'll get some callers on the other side.
91
00:04:01,820 --> 00:04:07,860
So Wicked Kitchen, absolutely extraordinary company that is
92
00:04:07,860 --> 00:04:10,360
turning mushrooms into steaks.
93
00:04:10,900 --> 00:04:13,980
And of course, it's a compassionate company, but
94
00:04:13,980 --> 00:04:16,779
it's also a very successful company that beyond
95
00:04:16,779 --> 00:04:19,700
impact has really gotten behind.
96
00:04:19,820 --> 00:04:21,720
Hey guys, welcome to the Wicked Kitchen.
97
00:04:22,180 --> 00:04:24,060
Super special episode today.
98
00:04:24,220 --> 00:04:27,500
I'm gonna show you three mind-bending mushroom
99
00:04:27,500 --> 00:04:30,320
cooking techniques with three amazing mushrooms.
100
00:04:30,560 --> 00:04:34,000
We're gonna make sweet chilli maitake steaks and
101
00:04:34,000 --> 00:04:36,800
turn an alliance main into the super herbaceous,
102
00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:39,520
flavorful steak that is gonna blow your mind.
103
00:04:39,720 --> 00:04:44,540
And then also the Asian inspired barbecue brown
104
00:04:44,540 --> 00:04:45,580
oyster mushroom, you guys.
105
00:04:45,580 --> 00:04:47,180
You're not gonna wanna miss this.
106
00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:50,340
Three amazing mushroom recipes coming your way.
107
00:04:55,680 --> 00:04:59,020
So beyond impact got behind Wicked Kitchen.
108
00:04:59,400 --> 00:05:01,960
What's the criteria you use for determining, well,
109
00:05:02,020 --> 00:05:04,580
I'm gonna get back this vegan company versus
110
00:05:04,580 --> 00:05:05,760
this vegan company?
111
00:05:06,880 --> 00:05:09,160
Well, there's a number of different criteria you
112
00:05:09,160 --> 00:05:09,620
use.
113
00:05:09,760 --> 00:05:11,640
The first thing is, will it have an
114
00:05:11,640 --> 00:05:15,200
impact on animal abuse and animal use?
115
00:05:15,920 --> 00:05:17,080
And so that's our first test.
116
00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:20,880
So obviously companies like Wicked are very good
117
00:05:20,880 --> 00:05:21,340
on that.
118
00:05:21,700 --> 00:05:23,100
But then it has to work from a
119
00:05:23,100 --> 00:05:24,540
financial standpoint as well.
120
00:05:24,700 --> 00:05:28,620
So we look at the founders, how motivated
121
00:05:28,620 --> 00:05:30,680
they are, how much skin they've got in
122
00:05:30,680 --> 00:05:31,200
the game.
123
00:05:31,880 --> 00:05:35,280
We'll look at their business trajectory as well.
124
00:05:35,440 --> 00:05:38,740
So expected earnings and market demand, things like
125
00:05:38,740 --> 00:05:39,180
that.
126
00:05:39,180 --> 00:05:41,960
And then we're a smaller fund.
127
00:05:42,020 --> 00:05:43,960
So we generally get involved with the companies
128
00:05:44,460 --> 00:05:46,680
initially at a very early stage and try
129
00:05:46,680 --> 00:05:48,860
to help them build up so that they
130
00:05:48,860 --> 00:05:52,380
can start attracting more and more capital as
131
00:05:52,380 --> 00:05:52,780
they grow.
132
00:05:54,280 --> 00:05:55,860
Wow, well, I wanna talk to you more
133
00:05:55,860 --> 00:05:56,480
about that.
134
00:05:56,600 --> 00:05:58,680
We've got some callers who are lined up
135
00:05:58,680 --> 00:06:00,040
to ask you questions.
136
00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:04,260
Tiffany in Los Angeles, your question or thought
137
00:06:04,260 --> 00:06:05,160
for J.D. Rash.
138
00:06:08,450 --> 00:06:08,890
Tiffany?
139
00:06:13,150 --> 00:06:15,250
Okay, go ahead, Tiffany.
140
00:06:19,510 --> 00:06:20,250
Tiffany, are you there?
141
00:06:21,490 --> 00:06:23,170
All right, well, the next caller then.
142
00:06:24,190 --> 00:06:24,810
Great, Niloufar.
143
00:06:28,960 --> 00:06:33,900
Hi, considering your leadership role in investment and
144
00:06:33,900 --> 00:06:38,560
sustainable finance, how do your clients and or
145
00:06:38,560 --> 00:06:43,480
audience respond to discussions about veganism and investments
146
00:06:43,480 --> 00:06:45,160
in vegan products?
147
00:06:48,390 --> 00:06:51,770
J.D.? Well, I think, yeah, I think
148
00:06:51,770 --> 00:06:54,290
it's necessary to invest.
149
00:06:54,410 --> 00:06:56,410
I mean, I started off more on the
150
00:06:56,410 --> 00:06:58,650
not-for-profit side and I served on
151
00:06:58,650 --> 00:07:02,690
a few not-for-profit boards, specifically vegan
152
00:07:02,690 --> 00:07:03,630
sanctuaries.
153
00:07:03,910 --> 00:07:06,830
One was a veg fund, which gave grants
154
00:07:06,830 --> 00:07:08,490
to entrepreneurs.
155
00:07:08,670 --> 00:07:13,270
But then I thought, we can tell people
156
00:07:13,270 --> 00:07:15,810
they should go vegan, but if the products
157
00:07:15,810 --> 00:07:17,710
aren't there, it makes it very difficult.
158
00:07:18,590 --> 00:07:22,150
So how do you fill that need for
159
00:07:22,150 --> 00:07:22,730
the products?
160
00:07:22,770 --> 00:07:24,190
Because there definitely is demand.
161
00:07:24,330 --> 00:07:26,310
People are very interested in it for a
162
00:07:26,310 --> 00:07:27,190
lot of different reasons.
163
00:07:27,310 --> 00:07:29,450
Obviously, a lot of them are for ethical
164
00:07:29,450 --> 00:07:32,190
reasons, which is basically why I got involved
165
00:07:32,190 --> 00:07:32,510
in it.
166
00:07:32,530 --> 00:07:33,790
But there are also a lot of people
167
00:07:33,790 --> 00:07:37,950
who like the vegan products for health or
168
00:07:37,950 --> 00:07:39,470
environmental reasons as well.
169
00:07:40,530 --> 00:07:43,390
So the fund that I originally started, which
170
00:07:43,390 --> 00:07:45,610
I turned over to somebody else, we were
171
00:07:45,610 --> 00:07:48,770
one of the first investors in this space
172
00:07:49,290 --> 00:07:53,530
because basically our backer liked the idea of
173
00:07:53,530 --> 00:07:57,850
actually making things available to people, making products
174
00:07:57,850 --> 00:07:58,810
available to people.
175
00:07:59,070 --> 00:08:01,090
And the good thing about it is, if
176
00:08:01,090 --> 00:08:03,070
your investments do pay off or at least
177
00:08:03,070 --> 00:08:05,590
a certain portion of them, then that you
178
00:08:05,590 --> 00:08:08,970
feed back into the ecosystem and it creates
179
00:08:08,970 --> 00:08:09,990
more and more companies.
180
00:08:10,710 --> 00:08:12,610
So that's what I would tell them the
181
00:08:12,610 --> 00:08:15,490
reason to invest in vegan products is, one
182
00:08:15,490 --> 00:08:18,870
is it's a growing market, but also it's
183
00:08:18,870 --> 00:08:22,470
needed if veganism is going to take root
184
00:08:22,470 --> 00:08:24,510
and we're gonna make it as easy as
185
00:08:24,510 --> 00:08:25,950
possible for people to switch.
186
00:08:27,860 --> 00:08:28,560
Interesting.
187
00:08:29,020 --> 00:08:32,520
There's so much there because vegan products have
188
00:08:32,520 --> 00:08:35,179
been under attack by the mainstream media lately.
189
00:08:35,600 --> 00:08:38,580
And it seems like there's an article that
190
00:08:38,580 --> 00:08:41,080
comes out every day trying to knock either
191
00:08:41,080 --> 00:08:45,280
alternative proteins like a plant-based burgers or
192
00:08:45,280 --> 00:08:46,120
restaurateurs.
193
00:08:47,000 --> 00:08:50,880
If somebody gets into trouble like Sam Bankman
194
00:08:50,880 --> 00:08:54,000
Freed, it's always, oh, he's a vegan, he's
195
00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:54,320
a vegan.
196
00:08:54,420 --> 00:08:55,880
Well, what about all the people who are
197
00:08:55,880 --> 00:08:57,400
criminals who are eating meat?
198
00:08:57,480 --> 00:08:59,260
Nobody mentions the fact that they eat meat.
199
00:08:59,420 --> 00:09:00,840
It's absolutely ridiculous.
200
00:09:01,460 --> 00:09:04,020
It's really an unfair comparison or what I'd
201
00:09:04,020 --> 00:09:05,420
call selective indignation.
202
00:09:05,780 --> 00:09:08,280
But let's go to our next caller, Lindsay
203
00:09:08,280 --> 00:09:10,680
in Woodland Hills, your question or thought for
204
00:09:10,680 --> 00:09:11,240
JD Rash.
205
00:09:13,300 --> 00:09:17,020
Yes, my question is a little unusual perhaps.
206
00:09:17,600 --> 00:09:24,220
I'm wondering how feasible it is to open
207
00:09:24,220 --> 00:09:29,580
vegan restaurants, small ones perhaps in areas that
208
00:09:29,580 --> 00:09:33,720
are rural or there's just really no vegan
209
00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:35,280
options at all.
210
00:09:35,380 --> 00:09:38,540
Do you think that it's possible to open
211
00:09:38,540 --> 00:09:41,100
vegan restaurants in areas like that?
212
00:09:43,500 --> 00:09:44,480
Good question.
213
00:09:45,140 --> 00:09:48,240
Having never lived in a rural area, basically
214
00:09:48,240 --> 00:09:51,600
growing up in New York, I'm not sure
215
00:09:51,600 --> 00:09:54,940
what the demand is there for that.
216
00:09:55,080 --> 00:09:57,380
I mean, when you travel out of the
217
00:09:57,380 --> 00:10:01,260
main cities into the outlying areas and rural
218
00:10:01,260 --> 00:10:03,600
areas, you can see that there is certainly
219
00:10:03,600 --> 00:10:04,640
a need for that.
220
00:10:04,780 --> 00:10:07,900
I mean, the city is running rampant in
221
00:10:07,900 --> 00:10:08,980
many of those communities.
222
00:10:09,220 --> 00:10:10,760
So there is a need for it.
223
00:10:11,060 --> 00:10:14,040
I think the answer is, it depends on
224
00:10:14,040 --> 00:10:18,600
how you present it to the community and
225
00:10:18,600 --> 00:10:20,420
what types of foods you present.
226
00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:23,860
So the first thing I would do if
227
00:10:23,860 --> 00:10:26,900
you're looking at doing that is finding out
228
00:10:26,900 --> 00:10:29,140
what the local cuisine is and then figuring
229
00:10:29,140 --> 00:10:32,280
out how to veganize it and then try
230
00:10:32,280 --> 00:10:36,300
to market it as good healthy alternatives to
231
00:10:36,300 --> 00:10:36,740
what they have.
232
00:10:36,740 --> 00:10:40,040
Because if you just basically try to sell
233
00:10:40,040 --> 00:10:43,780
people on some type of food that like,
234
00:10:43,900 --> 00:10:47,380
do like a Beyond Sushi out in rural
235
00:10:47,380 --> 00:10:49,800
Arkansas, that probably won't work.
236
00:10:50,180 --> 00:10:52,160
But if you come up with your vegan
237
00:10:52,160 --> 00:10:54,840
baby back ribs, I think you have a
238
00:10:54,840 --> 00:10:56,780
better chance of making it successful.
239
00:10:57,480 --> 00:11:00,640
And in terms of like starting up smaller
240
00:11:02,320 --> 00:11:05,160
like restaurants and things like that, it's great
241
00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:07,240
if you can get kind of local people
242
00:11:07,240 --> 00:11:10,500
involved in investing in it because then they
243
00:11:10,500 --> 00:11:13,160
spread the word and they'll eat there, they'll
244
00:11:13,160 --> 00:11:14,380
get their friends to eat there.
245
00:11:14,620 --> 00:11:16,940
And you have, I think a really good
246
00:11:16,940 --> 00:11:19,160
chance of being successful that way.
247
00:11:19,680 --> 00:11:22,480
All right, we've got another caller for you.
248
00:11:22,880 --> 00:11:25,400
And this one is Tiffany in Los Angeles.
249
00:11:25,560 --> 00:11:27,280
Your question or thought for J.D. Rash,
250
00:11:27,580 --> 00:11:30,760
the ultimate vegan business insider.
251
00:11:32,300 --> 00:11:34,820
Hi, Jane, thank you for taking my call
252
00:11:34,820 --> 00:11:38,380
and I'm excited to get your new book
253
00:11:38,380 --> 00:11:39,840
or your book.
254
00:11:39,920 --> 00:11:40,840
I wanna check it out.
255
00:11:41,040 --> 00:11:43,680
And I love your work with Wicked.
256
00:11:43,940 --> 00:11:46,060
They even have it in my local bonds
257
00:11:46,060 --> 00:11:46,440
now.
258
00:11:46,580 --> 00:11:47,740
So that's very exciting.
259
00:11:48,540 --> 00:11:51,340
And I wanted to ask you, what made
260
00:11:51,340 --> 00:11:54,200
you make the connection to the animals to
261
00:11:54,200 --> 00:11:56,180
go vegan since you were in business?
262
00:11:56,760 --> 00:11:59,920
Sounds like you're in regular banking business.
263
00:12:00,500 --> 00:12:02,180
So I was wondering what made you make
264
00:12:02,180 --> 00:12:02,860
that connection?
265
00:12:04,620 --> 00:12:09,520
Yeah, I became vegetarian back in 1983.
266
00:12:11,160 --> 00:12:13,080
And I'd like to say it was my
267
00:12:13,080 --> 00:12:14,940
idea to do it, but I have to
268
00:12:14,940 --> 00:12:16,760
congratulate my wife on that.
269
00:12:17,660 --> 00:12:21,560
She read a phrase, be the change you
270
00:12:21,560 --> 00:12:22,100
wanna be.
271
00:12:22,840 --> 00:12:26,360
And she just decided eating meat was something
272
00:12:26,360 --> 00:12:27,360
that she didn't wanna do.
273
00:12:27,500 --> 00:12:29,340
And you're right, I was working in finance
274
00:12:29,340 --> 00:12:31,680
at the Fortune 500 companies.
275
00:12:32,000 --> 00:12:34,740
And it's like, yeah, you can do that,
276
00:12:35,000 --> 00:12:37,940
but in the world I live in, it
277
00:12:37,940 --> 00:12:38,600
can't be done.
278
00:12:38,680 --> 00:12:40,220
And that lasts for about six months.
279
00:12:40,700 --> 00:12:43,260
And then I said, I just not comfortable
280
00:12:43,260 --> 00:12:44,660
eating the meat.
281
00:12:45,440 --> 00:12:49,340
Just admitting that my wife was right about
282
00:12:49,340 --> 00:12:51,920
that and admitting that my wife is right
283
00:12:51,920 --> 00:12:54,440
has been why we've been married for 40
284
00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:54,740
years.
285
00:12:56,840 --> 00:12:58,380
And so I just did it.
286
00:12:58,380 --> 00:13:02,420
And it wasn't, the sky didn't fall.
287
00:13:02,580 --> 00:13:05,900
It wasn't as earth shaking as people thought.
288
00:13:05,980 --> 00:13:07,980
It was actually relatively easy to do.
289
00:13:08,660 --> 00:13:11,740
At the time I would even take clients
290
00:13:11,740 --> 00:13:14,340
out to steakhouses and I researched which one
291
00:13:14,340 --> 00:13:16,380
had the best vegetarian options.
292
00:13:17,340 --> 00:13:20,000
And then about, I guess it was about
293
00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:22,880
17 years ago, my wife and I were
294
00:13:22,880 --> 00:13:24,820
going up to Canada.
295
00:13:25,040 --> 00:13:26,140
I had some work up there.
296
00:13:26,180 --> 00:13:28,340
And so we drove up and someone told
297
00:13:28,340 --> 00:13:29,600
us about Farm Sanctuary.
298
00:13:29,840 --> 00:13:32,100
So we stopped there and it was pouring
299
00:13:32,100 --> 00:13:34,260
rain, like mud knee deep.
300
00:13:34,860 --> 00:13:37,740
And we got the tour with our three
301
00:13:37,740 --> 00:13:40,760
kids and they started talking about the dairy
302
00:13:40,760 --> 00:13:43,180
industry and the egg industry.
303
00:13:45,640 --> 00:13:47,840
And one of my daughters who was 10
304
00:13:47,840 --> 00:13:50,840
years old at the time looked at us
305
00:13:50,840 --> 00:13:53,860
after the tour and said, I'm going vegan.
306
00:13:54,420 --> 00:13:57,100
And it was one of those times where
307
00:13:57,100 --> 00:13:59,260
I figured, well, I could try to talk
308
00:13:59,260 --> 00:14:01,940
her out of it, but yes, she's right.
309
00:14:02,260 --> 00:14:05,220
And so that's how I became vegan.
310
00:14:05,440 --> 00:14:08,240
And then I knew all this stuff about
311
00:14:08,240 --> 00:14:08,860
finance.
312
00:14:08,920 --> 00:14:10,800
So the question is, how can I make
313
00:14:10,800 --> 00:14:16,460
my day job match what my philosophy was?
314
00:14:16,880 --> 00:14:18,260
And one of the things that I thought
315
00:14:18,260 --> 00:14:22,080
was really interesting, later on, I started getting
316
00:14:22,080 --> 00:14:23,720
involved in business.
317
00:14:23,920 --> 00:14:26,080
I was working at Moody's Corporation, a big
318
00:14:26,080 --> 00:14:26,840
rating agency.
319
00:14:27,420 --> 00:14:33,180
And I convinced them to do alternative ratings,
320
00:14:33,360 --> 00:14:36,760
non-financial rating, specifically environmental and social.
321
00:14:36,920 --> 00:14:39,600
So we were doing ratings on microfinance banks.
322
00:14:39,980 --> 00:14:41,940
And those are banks that give small loans
323
00:14:41,940 --> 00:14:43,740
to poor entrepreneurs.
324
00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:47,360
And we were doing a conference on that.
325
00:14:47,360 --> 00:14:50,800
And it was Moody's, Deutsche Bank and New
326
00:14:50,800 --> 00:14:51,700
York University.
327
00:14:52,780 --> 00:14:55,340
And we were gonna have about 300 people
328
00:14:55,340 --> 00:14:56,780
and it was like a three-day conference.
329
00:14:57,280 --> 00:15:00,200
I remember being on the phone and my
330
00:15:00,200 --> 00:15:03,320
boss was on it, guys from Deutsche Bank
331
00:15:03,320 --> 00:15:03,840
and NYU.
332
00:15:04,100 --> 00:15:06,680
And they said, you know, microfinance is all
333
00:15:06,680 --> 00:15:10,380
about our social justice and doing good.
334
00:15:10,920 --> 00:15:13,980
So maybe we should make the catering conform
335
00:15:13,980 --> 00:15:14,940
to that as well.
336
00:15:15,520 --> 00:15:17,960
And my boss who knows me says, you
337
00:15:17,960 --> 00:15:19,460
want this to be vegan, don't you?
338
00:15:20,020 --> 00:15:20,960
I said, absolutely.
339
00:15:21,720 --> 00:15:23,540
And they did and people loved it.
340
00:15:23,600 --> 00:15:26,340
This is like 300 people for three days
341
00:15:26,340 --> 00:15:31,740
and everything from the pastries to the lunches
342
00:15:31,740 --> 00:15:33,140
and the dinners we always did, it was
343
00:15:33,140 --> 00:15:33,660
all vegan.
344
00:15:34,880 --> 00:15:37,580
And the only complaint we got is one
345
00:15:37,580 --> 00:15:40,140
guy didn't like the fact that there was
346
00:15:40,140 --> 00:15:41,720
only soy milk for his coffee.
347
00:15:43,280 --> 00:15:44,200
Well, yeah.
348
00:15:44,380 --> 00:15:46,940
And I just think that's how change happens
349
00:15:46,940 --> 00:15:48,700
where you stick your neck out.
350
00:15:48,840 --> 00:15:52,240
You know, as a banker and myself having
351
00:15:52,240 --> 00:15:54,880
been in mainstream media, when you start sticking
352
00:15:54,880 --> 00:15:56,940
your neck out, it's a risk.
353
00:15:57,120 --> 00:16:00,760
But the rewards when you have a response
354
00:16:00,760 --> 00:16:02,420
like that are enormous.
355
00:16:02,700 --> 00:16:06,060
So hopefully you convince some people there that
356
00:16:06,060 --> 00:16:08,660
it's not such a big deal to eat
357
00:16:08,660 --> 00:16:11,500
products that don't have animal parts in them.
358
00:16:11,500 --> 00:16:12,920
I mean, it's that simple.
359
00:16:13,580 --> 00:16:15,680
We've got another caller, Michelle in Los Angeles.
360
00:16:15,800 --> 00:16:17,580
Your question or thought for J.D. Rash.
361
00:16:18,920 --> 00:16:21,640
Hi, I wanted to know your opinion on
362
00:16:21,640 --> 00:16:24,420
cultivated meat and how you think that may
363
00:16:24,420 --> 00:16:26,400
further the plant-based movement.
364
00:16:28,760 --> 00:16:30,300
Yeah, I mean, I think it's important.
365
00:16:31,560 --> 00:16:34,560
I've over the course of years invested in
366
00:16:34,560 --> 00:16:36,540
a lot of cultivated meat companies.
367
00:16:37,520 --> 00:16:40,580
You know, initially there were some ethical issues
368
00:16:40,580 --> 00:16:47,540
that they use bovine serum to start the
369
00:16:47,540 --> 00:16:49,520
growth process of that.
370
00:16:49,580 --> 00:16:51,440
But most of the companies have been able
371
00:16:51,440 --> 00:16:54,120
to get beyond that and their products don't
372
00:16:54,120 --> 00:16:55,880
require the killing of animals.
373
00:16:57,080 --> 00:17:00,440
You know, it's a product that's really not
374
00:17:00,440 --> 00:17:01,580
meant for people like me.
375
00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:03,720
I mean, I'm not interested in it, but
376
00:17:03,720 --> 00:17:06,359
I don't have a problem with it from
377
00:17:06,359 --> 00:17:07,339
an ethical standpoint.
378
00:17:07,819 --> 00:17:10,180
And if it can get people who are
379
00:17:10,180 --> 00:17:15,300
eating and killing animals now to switch over,
380
00:17:15,720 --> 00:17:16,819
I think it's important.
381
00:17:17,079 --> 00:17:19,359
I think it's still a number of years
382
00:17:19,359 --> 00:17:22,180
off from being at the point where it
383
00:17:22,180 --> 00:17:26,599
will be competitive to the traditional meat business,
384
00:17:27,180 --> 00:17:29,360
but the science certainly is there.
385
00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:32,800
And, you know, it's just more getting efficiencies
386
00:17:32,800 --> 00:17:34,260
of scale, I think at this point.
387
00:17:36,720 --> 00:17:39,880
Okay, Karen in Venice, California, your question or
388
00:17:39,880 --> 00:17:41,180
thought for J.D. Rash.
389
00:17:43,490 --> 00:17:44,270
Hi there.
390
00:17:44,390 --> 00:17:46,270
Sorry, the connection is tough.
391
00:17:46,410 --> 00:17:47,990
Thank you so much for what you're doing.
392
00:17:48,830 --> 00:17:51,610
I have a question about guidelines.
393
00:17:51,890 --> 00:17:53,930
Do you have any quick guidelines that you
394
00:17:53,930 --> 00:17:55,750
can share with us for somebody wanting to
395
00:17:55,750 --> 00:18:00,590
start a vegan business as far as getting,
396
00:18:00,810 --> 00:18:03,750
you know, investors and et cetera, you know,
397
00:18:03,790 --> 00:18:05,410
just some quick, easy ones that we can
398
00:18:05,410 --> 00:18:05,790
follow?
399
00:18:07,290 --> 00:18:07,710
Yeah, sure.
400
00:18:07,850 --> 00:18:10,030
I mean, the first thing is do your
401
00:18:10,030 --> 00:18:13,170
market research because, you know, the investors are
402
00:18:13,170 --> 00:18:14,110
going to look into this.
403
00:18:14,190 --> 00:18:17,450
And if it's not a viable market, and
404
00:18:17,450 --> 00:18:22,110
it's not a big enough market, then the
405
00:18:22,110 --> 00:18:23,810
investors are not going to be interested in
406
00:18:23,810 --> 00:18:23,970
it.
407
00:18:24,410 --> 00:18:25,890
You also need to know what type of
408
00:18:25,890 --> 00:18:27,850
business you want to start.
409
00:18:28,310 --> 00:18:29,890
So if you're going to a venture capital
410
00:18:29,890 --> 00:18:34,710
business, like venture capitalists, like we are at
411
00:18:34,710 --> 00:18:38,910
Beyond Impact or other venture capitalists, what they're
412
00:18:38,910 --> 00:18:40,150
going to want is they're going to want
413
00:18:40,150 --> 00:18:41,050
an eventual exit.
414
00:18:41,330 --> 00:18:42,510
So you're going to have to grow.
415
00:18:43,210 --> 00:18:44,670
And you're going to have to, at some
416
00:18:44,670 --> 00:18:46,090
point, figure out how you get out of
417
00:18:46,090 --> 00:18:48,190
this, either selling it, going public, things like
418
00:18:48,190 --> 00:18:48,670
that.
419
00:18:50,230 --> 00:18:52,470
If it's more of a lifestyle business, and
420
00:18:52,470 --> 00:18:54,510
I ran my own company for like 15
421
00:18:54,510 --> 00:18:57,190
years, it was a financial training company, and
422
00:18:57,190 --> 00:18:59,310
it was a lifestyle business, which is fine.
423
00:18:59,850 --> 00:19:03,150
But you can't raise venture money because you
424
00:19:03,150 --> 00:19:04,650
want this to earn a living, and you
425
00:19:04,650 --> 00:19:06,370
can make a very good living out of
426
00:19:06,370 --> 00:19:06,550
it.
427
00:19:07,030 --> 00:19:10,510
So understand first what type of business you're
428
00:19:10,510 --> 00:19:14,550
going to do, do your research on it.
429
00:19:14,610 --> 00:19:18,450
And then if you need money, understand that
430
00:19:18,450 --> 00:19:21,050
there are different types of investors who go
431
00:19:21,050 --> 00:19:23,570
into one type of business than another type
432
00:19:23,570 --> 00:19:24,050
of business.
433
00:19:24,150 --> 00:19:26,470
But the key is, you know, if you
434
00:19:26,470 --> 00:19:27,990
wouldn't invest in this, and that's one of
435
00:19:27,990 --> 00:19:29,630
the things they're going to ask is, have
436
00:19:29,630 --> 00:19:31,050
you put any of your money in this?
437
00:19:31,170 --> 00:19:33,110
Because if you don't have skin in the
438
00:19:33,110 --> 00:19:34,710
game, then it's really easy for you to
439
00:19:34,710 --> 00:19:35,070
walk.
440
00:19:35,470 --> 00:19:37,350
So every investor is going to say, well,
441
00:19:37,690 --> 00:19:38,490
what have you put in?
442
00:19:38,810 --> 00:19:40,150
And it doesn't have to be a million
443
00:19:40,150 --> 00:19:40,550
bucks.
444
00:19:40,670 --> 00:19:42,110
You know, it depends on your situation.
445
00:19:42,530 --> 00:19:45,110
It just has to be something meaningful, given
446
00:19:45,110 --> 00:19:48,930
your personal situation, that you're not going to
447
00:19:48,930 --> 00:19:51,870
just get up and leave and walk out
448
00:19:51,870 --> 00:19:53,390
and leave the investors high and dry.
449
00:19:55,230 --> 00:19:58,450
I've got a very special guest who wants
450
00:19:58,450 --> 00:19:59,410
to say something to you.
451
00:19:59,430 --> 00:20:01,630
But first I'd like to play a clip.
452
00:20:01,870 --> 00:20:04,250
As I've mentioned, you've helped a lot of
453
00:20:04,250 --> 00:20:09,470
sanctuaries, Woodstock Farm Sanctuary and Rowdy Girl Sanctuary
454
00:20:09,470 --> 00:20:12,010
in the heart of Texas cattle country.
455
00:20:12,430 --> 00:20:15,350
Let's watch a little clip of Renee King
456
00:20:15,350 --> 00:20:18,650
-Sounan, the founder of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary.
457
00:20:18,810 --> 00:20:20,330
And then we'll join her on the phone
458
00:20:20,330 --> 00:20:21,830
because she would like to say thank you
459
00:20:21,830 --> 00:20:23,110
for all the help you give her.
460
00:20:23,110 --> 00:20:24,430
All right, this is Buster.
461
00:20:25,050 --> 00:20:27,470
He's like, I guess going on eight weeks
462
00:20:27,470 --> 00:20:28,490
old for two months.
463
00:20:29,330 --> 00:20:31,790
And I've heard say he looks like a
464
00:20:31,790 --> 00:20:34,470
chocolate brown lab, which he does.
465
00:20:35,490 --> 00:20:41,050
He was surrendered by a cattle rancher that
466
00:20:41,050 --> 00:20:42,690
fell in love with this baby.
467
00:20:44,510 --> 00:20:49,350
And we are extremely grateful that that cattle
468
00:20:49,350 --> 00:20:51,630
rancher had a change of heart and loved
469
00:20:51,630 --> 00:20:55,410
this sweet child named Buster.
470
00:20:55,610 --> 00:20:57,250
The reason why he called him Buster is
471
00:20:57,250 --> 00:20:59,370
because he will bust right into you with
472
00:20:59,370 --> 00:21:01,430
his nose when he's eating.
473
00:21:02,190 --> 00:21:02,950
Like that.
474
00:21:04,490 --> 00:21:06,290
Anyway, oh, like that.
475
00:21:06,370 --> 00:21:10,450
If you'd like to sponsor, adopt Buster, we
476
00:21:10,450 --> 00:21:11,130
would love that.
477
00:21:11,390 --> 00:21:14,630
If you'd like to donate today on behalf
478
00:21:14,630 --> 00:21:16,870
of Buster or become a member, it'd be
479
00:21:16,870 --> 00:21:17,850
a great time to do that.
480
00:21:17,850 --> 00:21:22,470
Buster, cows live to be about 20 years
481
00:21:22,470 --> 00:21:24,530
old or more, you know, 20 to 25
482
00:21:24,530 --> 00:21:28,390
years in the real world without being slaughtered.
483
00:21:28,530 --> 00:21:31,190
So Buster here will be living a long
484
00:21:31,190 --> 00:21:34,150
time if everything goes well.
485
00:21:34,510 --> 00:21:36,370
Thank you guys and peace out from Rowdy
486
00:21:36,370 --> 00:21:36,530
Girl.
487
00:21:37,630 --> 00:21:40,650
All right, let's go straight out to Renee
488
00:21:40,650 --> 00:21:44,030
King-Sonnen in Texas, the heart of cattle
489
00:21:44,030 --> 00:21:44,450
country.
490
00:21:44,450 --> 00:21:47,650
She's a former cattle rancher.
491
00:21:48,110 --> 00:21:49,910
She and her husband went vegan and turned
492
00:21:49,910 --> 00:21:53,210
their calf-cow operation into a vegan farmed
493
00:21:53,210 --> 00:21:53,950
animal sanctuary.
494
00:21:54,110 --> 00:21:54,290
Renee?
495
00:21:56,170 --> 00:21:57,310
Hi, Jane.
496
00:21:57,590 --> 00:21:58,610
Hello, Jody.
497
00:21:58,790 --> 00:22:00,990
So great to see you on Unsanctioned.
498
00:22:00,990 --> 00:22:01,330
Hey, Renee.
499
00:22:03,490 --> 00:22:06,730
Hi, I just wanted to call.
500
00:22:06,890 --> 00:22:08,350
I saw, you know, that you were gonna
501
00:22:08,350 --> 00:22:09,950
be on the show and I was like,
502
00:22:10,430 --> 00:22:12,110
I am so thrilled.
503
00:22:12,390 --> 00:22:14,050
I couldn't be happier to see this.
504
00:22:14,050 --> 00:22:17,550
You are somebody that's just always been behind
505
00:22:17,550 --> 00:22:20,330
the scenes, like Jane just said a while
506
00:22:20,330 --> 00:22:23,370
ago, kind of on the inside, always looking
507
00:22:23,370 --> 00:22:26,350
in at what we do and just big
508
00:22:26,350 --> 00:22:27,090
support.
509
00:22:28,090 --> 00:22:31,550
You guided us, you directed us, you supported
510
00:22:31,550 --> 00:22:36,210
our campaigns and just been an amazing friend.
511
00:22:36,710 --> 00:22:38,670
I can always count on your insight, your
512
00:22:38,670 --> 00:22:39,410
advice.
513
00:22:39,810 --> 00:22:42,190
And when I heard about your book, I
514
00:22:42,190 --> 00:22:43,710
think it was like a year ago when
515
00:22:43,710 --> 00:22:45,950
you sent me the whole manuscript, I was
516
00:22:45,950 --> 00:22:48,770
over the top because of all the people
517
00:22:48,770 --> 00:22:49,950
in the world, you are the one of
518
00:22:49,950 --> 00:22:51,970
the most well-rounded people.
519
00:22:52,130 --> 00:22:54,970
I mean, you are creative, you're brilliant, you're
520
00:22:54,970 --> 00:22:55,650
a mathematician.
521
00:22:56,310 --> 00:22:58,770
I mean, like, you know, you're just, your
522
00:22:58,770 --> 00:23:01,110
left and your right brains are so well
523
00:23:01,110 --> 00:23:01,950
-balanced.
524
00:23:03,250 --> 00:23:05,510
Anyway, and I'm just really, really grateful you're
525
00:23:05,510 --> 00:23:07,190
in our corner and I wanna say thank
526
00:23:07,190 --> 00:23:07,470
you.
527
00:23:07,670 --> 00:23:08,770
The animals thank you.
528
00:23:09,790 --> 00:23:11,070
Oh, that was beautiful.
529
00:23:11,070 --> 00:23:14,070
Jody, tell us how you work with Rowdy
530
00:23:14,070 --> 00:23:17,070
Girl Sanctuary and how you help various sanctuaries.
531
00:23:18,430 --> 00:23:22,010
Yeah, well, mutual friend put me in touch
532
00:23:22,010 --> 00:23:23,190
with Renee.
533
00:23:24,370 --> 00:23:26,390
I was trying to think, you know, when
534
00:23:26,390 --> 00:23:30,110
we're looking at investing, one of the kind
535
00:23:30,110 --> 00:23:31,870
of, what I think are kind of one
536
00:23:31,870 --> 00:23:34,250
of the dumber questions you get asked, and
537
00:23:34,250 --> 00:23:35,370
we all know that there are a lot
538
00:23:35,370 --> 00:23:37,990
of dumb questions that we get asked, was,
539
00:23:38,170 --> 00:23:39,870
you know, you're gonna, if everyone went vegan,
540
00:23:40,050 --> 00:23:42,070
then, you know, you put all these farmers
541
00:23:42,070 --> 00:23:42,850
out of business.
542
00:23:43,610 --> 00:23:46,650
And, you know, we don't expect everyone to
543
00:23:46,650 --> 00:23:48,690
go vegan overnight, although it would be nice,
544
00:23:48,750 --> 00:23:51,090
but, you know, how do you deal with
545
00:23:51,090 --> 00:23:53,170
those types of situations that this will be
546
00:23:53,170 --> 00:23:53,690
displaced?
547
00:23:53,870 --> 00:23:57,290
So I started looking at, well, maybe we
548
00:23:57,290 --> 00:23:59,810
can use, the farmers have assets, they have
549
00:23:59,810 --> 00:24:05,310
the land, and so is there an alternative
550
00:24:05,310 --> 00:24:06,130
use for that?
551
00:24:06,130 --> 00:24:08,950
And Rowdy Girl Renee was also looking to
552
00:24:08,950 --> 00:24:10,850
that with their Rancher Advocacy Programme.
553
00:24:11,410 --> 00:24:13,090
So we got put together, and I started
554
00:24:13,090 --> 00:24:18,150
initially doing advisory work with her on the
555
00:24:18,150 --> 00:24:19,050
RAP programme.
556
00:24:19,650 --> 00:24:21,790
And we worked with some of the ranchers
557
00:24:21,790 --> 00:24:24,890
who wanted to do conversions, and, you know,
558
00:24:24,910 --> 00:24:27,690
there were business plans to be done, financing
559
00:24:27,690 --> 00:24:28,610
to be arranged.
560
00:24:28,630 --> 00:24:30,590
So I helped out on all of that.
561
00:24:31,010 --> 00:24:32,430
I mean, Renee is fantastic.
562
00:24:32,590 --> 00:24:34,830
She's got so much energy that she put
563
00:24:34,830 --> 00:24:35,790
into all this stuff.
564
00:24:35,790 --> 00:24:37,610
So, you know, it was really fun to
565
00:24:37,610 --> 00:24:38,850
help her.
566
00:24:39,390 --> 00:24:41,610
And since then, you know, running a sanctuary,
567
00:24:42,330 --> 00:24:44,990
she's asked me to be an advisor on
568
00:24:44,990 --> 00:24:45,950
their finance committee.
569
00:24:46,150 --> 00:24:48,710
So I helped them out with the finance
570
00:24:48,710 --> 00:24:51,190
committee meetings and budgeting and things like that.
571
00:24:51,450 --> 00:24:53,570
And all the fun stuff of taking care
572
00:24:53,570 --> 00:24:55,090
of the animals, other people do.
573
00:24:55,270 --> 00:24:57,710
I get to look at numbers and look
574
00:24:57,710 --> 00:24:59,110
at balance sheets and all that kind of
575
00:24:59,110 --> 00:24:59,390
stuff.
576
00:24:59,490 --> 00:25:01,450
But, you know, for people like me, that
577
00:25:01,450 --> 00:25:02,730
can be fun as well.
578
00:25:03,050 --> 00:25:05,870
And I'm also on the board- How
579
00:25:05,870 --> 00:25:08,930
are these transformations going?
580
00:25:09,490 --> 00:25:14,430
And Renee's got it with her organisation, Agricultural
581
00:25:14,430 --> 00:25:16,890
Fairness Alliance, and then there's Mercy for Animals
582
00:25:16,890 --> 00:25:17,790
Transformation.
583
00:25:18,610 --> 00:25:21,910
I just attended their 25th gala anniversary where
584
00:25:21,910 --> 00:25:22,850
they spoke about that.
585
00:25:23,230 --> 00:25:24,910
What is happening on that front?
586
00:25:25,850 --> 00:25:30,950
Are animal producers transitioning to plant-based and
587
00:25:30,950 --> 00:25:32,050
if so, at what level?
588
00:25:33,010 --> 00:25:36,570
Yeah, I would say it's, honestly, it's slow.
589
00:25:36,890 --> 00:25:40,450
I know Miyoko is also working with dairy
590
00:25:40,450 --> 00:25:43,370
farmers to convert to oats for her products
591
00:25:43,370 --> 00:25:43,870
as well.
592
00:25:44,970 --> 00:25:49,890
The problem is each farmer is like a
593
00:25:49,890 --> 00:25:53,290
unique case so that what they produce will
594
00:25:53,290 --> 00:25:55,150
depend on local situations.
595
00:25:55,850 --> 00:25:58,650
A lot of times they have loans that
596
00:25:58,650 --> 00:26:02,690
they got from the meat companies that ties
597
00:26:02,690 --> 00:26:03,090
them in.
598
00:26:03,330 --> 00:26:06,250
So, you know, everyone's kind of working on
599
00:26:06,250 --> 00:26:11,090
it and you get successes and sometimes, you
600
00:26:11,090 --> 00:26:12,450
know, there's nothing that you can do.
601
00:26:12,970 --> 00:26:17,450
So it will be great is if there
602
00:26:17,450 --> 00:26:20,510
was like one organisation where it all could
603
00:26:20,510 --> 00:26:22,650
be put under an umbrella and they can
604
00:26:22,650 --> 00:26:26,730
get a budget and work with the farmers.
605
00:26:26,730 --> 00:26:28,830
I think there's a big enough demand.
606
00:26:29,850 --> 00:26:32,830
There's just, it's just a hard nut to
607
00:26:32,830 --> 00:26:33,930
crack with this.
608
00:26:34,150 --> 00:26:36,150
But, you know, there are a number of
609
00:26:36,150 --> 00:26:38,810
success stories and everyone that you can get
610
00:26:38,810 --> 00:26:41,690
to convert to something else, I think is
611
00:26:41,690 --> 00:26:42,210
positive.
612
00:26:43,410 --> 00:26:45,210
Well, you mentioned something that I think is
613
00:26:45,210 --> 00:26:48,950
really significant and that is that the meat
614
00:26:48,950 --> 00:26:51,110
industry locks these farmers in.
615
00:26:51,270 --> 00:26:53,210
They become almost like indentured servants.
616
00:26:53,430 --> 00:26:54,890
They have to buy the grain.
617
00:26:55,340 --> 00:26:58,810
They don't own the animals often themselves.
618
00:26:59,350 --> 00:27:02,150
They're pitted against each other in tournaments.
619
00:27:02,390 --> 00:27:04,470
So who can produce the animals the fastest?
620
00:27:05,250 --> 00:27:08,530
And it's very cutthroat from what I've heard.
621
00:27:08,710 --> 00:27:09,850
Is this the case?
622
00:27:10,990 --> 00:27:13,230
Yeah, well, I mean, Renee knows more about
623
00:27:13,230 --> 00:27:14,930
the actual industry than I do.
624
00:27:15,010 --> 00:27:16,950
I just know, you know, one of the
625
00:27:16,950 --> 00:27:21,150
farmers that we were working with her, they
626
00:27:21,150 --> 00:27:22,450
had a bank loan and in the bank
627
00:27:22,450 --> 00:27:28,370
loan, it specifically said that the property had
628
00:27:28,370 --> 00:27:30,350
to be used for animal production.
629
00:27:31,250 --> 00:27:33,330
So the bank was kind of liberal in
630
00:27:33,330 --> 00:27:36,570
not foreclosing, but, you know, you've got a
631
00:27:36,570 --> 00:27:39,190
million dollar mortgage and you're just, you're thinking
632
00:27:39,190 --> 00:27:41,730
about going to something else, the bank could
633
00:27:41,730 --> 00:27:43,770
come in tomorrow and totally close you down.
634
00:27:44,050 --> 00:27:48,790
Plus they had loans to the chicken companies
635
00:27:48,790 --> 00:27:51,670
as well that they needed to pay off
636
00:27:51,670 --> 00:27:52,730
if they're gonna do this.
637
00:27:52,730 --> 00:27:54,290
So, you know, they certainly don't make it
638
00:27:54,290 --> 00:27:54,550
easy.
639
00:27:55,290 --> 00:27:57,950
Yeah, and I guess my point is that
640
00:27:57,950 --> 00:28:00,830
the big industries, the big conglomerates make a
641
00:28:00,830 --> 00:28:02,630
lot of the money, but from what I've
642
00:28:02,630 --> 00:28:05,790
heard and just exploring this, not being an
643
00:28:05,790 --> 00:28:07,710
expert, but exploring it to a certain degree
644
00:28:07,710 --> 00:28:09,930
is that a lot of these quote unquote
645
00:28:09,930 --> 00:28:14,050
farmers are basically food processors dealing with giant
646
00:28:14,050 --> 00:28:16,290
warehouses and they're not making the money.
647
00:28:16,930 --> 00:28:19,310
They're sort of just sort of living hand
648
00:28:19,310 --> 00:28:21,310
to mouth with all the loans and everything
649
00:28:21,310 --> 00:28:21,690
else.
650
00:28:21,690 --> 00:28:26,770
It's the big conglomerates that are making the
651
00:28:26,770 --> 00:28:26,970
money.
652
00:28:27,210 --> 00:28:28,970
And I don't know, Renee, if you're still
653
00:28:28,970 --> 00:28:30,870
on, what are your thoughts on this?
654
00:28:35,310 --> 00:28:37,310
Oh, we gotta have you on again, sorry.
655
00:28:37,750 --> 00:28:38,610
Get closer.
656
00:28:40,230 --> 00:28:41,790
I'm right here, can you hear me?
657
00:28:41,790 --> 00:28:42,930
Great, we can hear you now, perfect.
658
00:28:43,150 --> 00:28:45,910
Yeah, yeah, I was just gonna say, you
659
00:28:45,910 --> 00:28:51,710
know, the transitioning the farms is until the
660
00:28:51,710 --> 00:28:55,410
government, our government does something to help farmers,
661
00:28:56,110 --> 00:29:00,350
but for individuals and nonprofits and, you know,
662
00:29:00,490 --> 00:29:03,350
and investors to try to do this work
663
00:29:03,350 --> 00:29:05,930
is, it just doesn't work.
664
00:29:06,210 --> 00:29:08,870
I have done everything to try and I
665
00:29:08,870 --> 00:29:12,150
won't keep trying to do it individually anymore
666
00:29:12,150 --> 00:29:14,070
with individual funding.
667
00:29:14,230 --> 00:29:17,910
It's just not at all, it's not sustainable.
668
00:29:18,150 --> 00:29:19,190
It doesn't make any sense.
669
00:29:19,190 --> 00:29:21,730
But what I do do is I work
670
00:29:21,730 --> 00:29:25,210
very, very, very aggressively with the Agriculture Fairness
671
00:29:25,210 --> 00:29:28,950
Alliance to do whatever we can possibly do
672
00:29:28,950 --> 00:29:33,030
there to help change, you know, legislation because
673
00:29:33,030 --> 00:29:36,470
unless we are doing that, you know, it's
674
00:29:36,470 --> 00:29:37,870
just really, really hard.
675
00:29:37,990 --> 00:29:40,590
These farmers need the same fairness.
676
00:29:40,890 --> 00:29:42,850
They need the fairness that all these other
677
00:29:42,850 --> 00:29:45,450
farmers get for all these egregious bailouts and
678
00:29:45,450 --> 00:29:47,510
insurance fraud and everything else.
679
00:29:47,510 --> 00:29:50,350
So that's the way I look at it
680
00:29:50,350 --> 00:29:50,550
now.
681
00:29:50,730 --> 00:29:52,490
It's been, it's pretty much beat me down.
682
00:29:52,610 --> 00:29:55,870
It's been really, really tough to see just
683
00:29:55,870 --> 00:29:58,070
and feel just how difficult it really, really
684
00:29:58,070 --> 00:29:58,450
is.
685
00:29:58,630 --> 00:30:00,250
Well, it seems to me what you're saying
686
00:30:00,250 --> 00:30:04,470
is that the government is subsidising the meat
687
00:30:04,470 --> 00:30:05,450
and dairy industry.
688
00:30:06,030 --> 00:30:09,530
For example, if animals die as a result
689
00:30:09,530 --> 00:30:11,850
of a disaster, they're treated like widgets.
690
00:30:12,010 --> 00:30:14,370
They're just replaced like a government insurance.
691
00:30:14,930 --> 00:30:18,470
And so that's really an unfair playing field
692
00:30:19,430 --> 00:30:22,410
because the government's propping up the industry, the
693
00:30:22,410 --> 00:30:23,010
meat industry.
694
00:30:23,170 --> 00:30:23,890
Is that what you're saying?
695
00:30:24,930 --> 00:30:27,390
It is an unfair playing field, and it
696
00:30:27,390 --> 00:30:29,070
is the playing field.
697
00:30:29,210 --> 00:30:30,270
That is the game.
698
00:30:30,390 --> 00:30:32,510
And they have all the power.
699
00:30:32,650 --> 00:30:33,690
They have all the money.
700
00:30:34,110 --> 00:30:36,210
You know, they have all the resources.
701
00:30:38,090 --> 00:30:41,770
And it's just really incumbent upon all of
702
00:30:41,770 --> 00:30:44,050
us out here that are vegans, that love
703
00:30:44,050 --> 00:30:47,690
animals to really get behind Agriculture Fairness Alliance
704
00:30:47,690 --> 00:30:48,690
and help them.
705
00:30:49,830 --> 00:30:52,550
I mean, because AFA is doing whatever they
706
00:30:52,550 --> 00:30:52,790
can.
707
00:30:52,890 --> 00:30:55,190
I mean, we just can't keep trying to
708
00:30:55,190 --> 00:30:58,370
transition farms one farmer at a time with
709
00:30:58,370 --> 00:30:59,630
individuals' money.
710
00:30:59,830 --> 00:31:01,790
It's just, you just can't do it because
711
00:31:01,790 --> 00:31:04,490
these farmers to your point are usually indentured
712
00:31:04,490 --> 00:31:07,430
servants and they just don't have the way,
713
00:31:07,510 --> 00:31:10,090
they don't think like business people typically.
714
00:31:10,870 --> 00:31:14,110
And so they need a lot of help.
715
00:31:15,070 --> 00:31:17,390
Well, this is a fascinating conversation.
716
00:31:17,550 --> 00:31:18,710
We should have more of it.
717
00:31:19,190 --> 00:31:23,590
One aspect of all the work that not
718
00:31:23,590 --> 00:31:25,570
just Renee King-Sonin of the Rowdy Girls
719
00:31:25,570 --> 00:31:27,410
Sanctuary, and please support that sanctuary.
720
00:31:27,550 --> 00:31:31,490
It's an amazing, amazing sanctuary, but also Jodi
721
00:31:31,490 --> 00:31:32,190
Rash does.
722
00:31:32,490 --> 00:31:35,850
And again, we're bouncing around a little bit
723
00:31:35,850 --> 00:31:38,250
because you do so much.
724
00:31:38,770 --> 00:31:40,710
And I just got to hit a couple
725
00:31:40,710 --> 00:31:43,350
of other aspects of your amazing work.
726
00:31:44,270 --> 00:31:46,330
As part of- I love y'all,
727
00:31:46,450 --> 00:31:47,190
I gotta run.
728
00:31:47,450 --> 00:31:48,510
All right, thank you, Renee.
729
00:31:48,710 --> 00:31:49,230
Thank you.
730
00:31:49,450 --> 00:31:49,750
Bye, Renee.
731
00:31:49,930 --> 00:31:52,310
As part of what you're doing with Beyond
732
00:31:52,310 --> 00:31:57,410
Impact, you are supporting and pushing cutting edge
733
00:31:57,410 --> 00:31:57,970
companies.
734
00:31:58,190 --> 00:32:00,910
Now we discussed cultivated meat for a second,
735
00:32:01,230 --> 00:32:05,070
but there's also something called bio-identical meat.
736
00:32:05,450 --> 00:32:08,730
And there's a company called Paleo that Beyond
737
00:32:08,730 --> 00:32:11,350
Impact has supported.
738
00:32:11,650 --> 00:32:14,210
We interviewed the head of Paleo.
739
00:32:14,410 --> 00:32:16,170
Here's a little clip because what they're doing
740
00:32:16,170 --> 00:32:18,850
is truly, truly revolutionary.
741
00:32:19,950 --> 00:32:22,810
Hermes Sanctorum, who is the CEO and co
742
00:32:22,810 --> 00:32:25,770
-founder of the food tech startup, Paleo, has
743
00:32:25,770 --> 00:32:27,590
come up with a revolutionary product.
744
00:32:28,190 --> 00:32:30,470
It doesn't just taste sort of like meat.
745
00:32:31,150 --> 00:32:32,950
It is, and correct me if I'm wrong,
746
00:32:33,810 --> 00:32:38,090
bio-identically equal and the same as meat,
747
00:32:38,170 --> 00:32:40,770
but it does not come from animals, so
748
00:32:40,770 --> 00:32:41,770
it's also vegan.
749
00:32:42,070 --> 00:32:44,530
We are totally animal free because we, in
750
00:32:44,530 --> 00:32:46,090
fact, just use information.
751
00:32:46,650 --> 00:32:51,850
I mean, there is information available of DNA
752
00:32:51,850 --> 00:32:56,130
from animals that is historically built up, that
753
00:32:56,130 --> 00:32:56,790
information.
754
00:32:57,410 --> 00:33:00,150
And in fact, when you know the sequence
755
00:33:00,150 --> 00:33:02,670
of DNA for a certain protein, for a
756
00:33:02,670 --> 00:33:04,490
certain compound that you would like to make,
757
00:33:04,850 --> 00:33:08,950
you just insert that piece of DNA in
758
00:33:08,950 --> 00:33:11,590
a yeast and that yeast starts producing the
759
00:33:11,590 --> 00:33:13,690
protein that you want it to produce.
760
00:33:13,810 --> 00:33:14,450
That's basically it.
761
00:33:14,510 --> 00:33:16,850
So you start from information, you make a
762
00:33:16,850 --> 00:33:19,390
small part of DNA, you add that to
763
00:33:19,390 --> 00:33:23,530
a yeast, and magic, you have your protein
764
00:33:23,530 --> 00:33:24,570
that you would like to have.
765
00:33:25,490 --> 00:33:28,910
So tell us about this aspect of the
766
00:33:28,910 --> 00:33:30,950
all-protein market that doesn't get a lot
767
00:33:30,950 --> 00:33:31,470
of publicity.
768
00:33:31,930 --> 00:33:32,930
It's extraordinary.
769
00:33:33,350 --> 00:33:38,010
It's meat that is completely vegan by copying
770
00:33:38,010 --> 00:33:39,550
the DNA sequence?
771
00:33:41,330 --> 00:33:45,030
Yeah, I mean, with meat, it's fairly unique,
772
00:33:45,270 --> 00:33:50,130
but this process has been used for, actually,
773
00:33:50,270 --> 00:33:51,810
it's been used for thousands of years.
774
00:33:53,210 --> 00:33:54,630
That's how wine is made.
775
00:33:55,090 --> 00:33:58,250
You have yeast that turns the sugar into
776
00:33:58,250 --> 00:34:02,690
alcohol, and by controlling the yeast, you can,
777
00:34:02,950 --> 00:34:05,010
by engineering the yeast, you can have it
778
00:34:05,010 --> 00:34:09,010
turn proteins into something else.
779
00:34:09,030 --> 00:34:14,250
Other companies do that for making eggs, making
780
00:34:14,250 --> 00:34:17,630
milk, so they'll replicate the proteins.
781
00:34:18,730 --> 00:34:20,929
Paleo is one of the few that's doing
782
00:34:20,929 --> 00:34:22,090
it for meat.
783
00:34:22,770 --> 00:34:24,730
But it's an interesting process.
784
00:34:24,909 --> 00:34:28,010
So the main processes of doing this conversion
785
00:34:28,010 --> 00:34:32,210
is either cultivation, where you start out with
786
00:34:32,210 --> 00:34:35,889
cells from the animal, or this fermentation process,
787
00:34:36,250 --> 00:34:39,150
where through the yeast transformation, you make the
788
00:34:39,150 --> 00:34:42,250
DNA and the cell structure that you need.
789
00:34:43,290 --> 00:34:46,010
So that would actually be a vegan product.
790
00:34:46,210 --> 00:34:48,730
It would not be a product that has
791
00:34:48,730 --> 00:34:50,090
any animal.
792
00:34:50,370 --> 00:34:54,429
It's simply copying sequences and putting in plant
793
00:34:54,429 --> 00:34:58,790
proteins that will then, in turn, create the
794
00:34:58,790 --> 00:34:59,850
DNA structure of meat.
795
00:35:00,810 --> 00:35:02,090
Right, that's right.
796
00:35:02,490 --> 00:35:02,870
Wow.
797
00:35:03,330 --> 00:35:05,210
To me, that is one of the most
798
00:35:05,210 --> 00:35:09,110
fascinating aspects of the alternative protein story, and
799
00:35:09,110 --> 00:35:12,430
I really would be excited to see that
800
00:35:12,430 --> 00:35:14,650
come to market, and I can't wait.
801
00:35:15,050 --> 00:35:18,070
Christina in Los Angeles, your question or thought
802
00:35:18,070 --> 00:35:19,030
for Jodi Rash.
803
00:35:20,290 --> 00:35:21,310
Hi there.
804
00:35:21,790 --> 00:35:23,750
I called in just when you all were
805
00:35:23,750 --> 00:35:26,730
talking about subsidies from the government.
806
00:35:27,110 --> 00:35:30,510
So I guess I won't be asking about
807
00:35:30,510 --> 00:35:34,370
that, but apparently that is a major issue
808
00:35:34,370 --> 00:35:37,930
and challenge, correct, for plant-based products.
809
00:35:38,790 --> 00:35:41,290
So I guess I'll stick my question to
810
00:35:41,290 --> 00:35:41,950
something else.
811
00:35:42,510 --> 00:35:44,290
I keep hearing that we're trying to get
812
00:35:44,290 --> 00:35:48,390
cutting-edge investment companies involved in alternative plant
813
00:35:48,390 --> 00:35:48,970
proteins.
814
00:35:49,870 --> 00:35:53,090
I'd like to get insight, if it's not
815
00:35:53,090 --> 00:35:57,270
already been discussed, about how do we utilise
816
00:35:57,270 --> 00:36:00,410
what has traditionally been used in the investment
817
00:36:00,410 --> 00:36:07,810
world of investors and stock folks who create
818
00:36:07,810 --> 00:36:11,910
this hype over certain technologies or products or
819
00:36:11,910 --> 00:36:13,930
new methods of manufacturing.
820
00:36:14,690 --> 00:36:17,050
I mean, they create this to get everybody
821
00:36:17,050 --> 00:36:17,910
on board.
822
00:36:18,970 --> 00:36:20,870
In the past, I mean, whether it's legit
823
00:36:20,870 --> 00:36:23,590
or not, and they create this to get
824
00:36:23,590 --> 00:36:27,390
publicity and to, it's partly educational, right?
825
00:36:27,430 --> 00:36:30,570
Now everybody's reading about their stock portfolios.
826
00:36:31,470 --> 00:36:33,950
I mean, can we also do that for
827
00:36:33,950 --> 00:36:38,030
all these alternative plant-based protein industries and
828
00:36:38,030 --> 00:36:41,710
companies and use the same sort of trick
829
00:36:41,710 --> 00:36:45,210
or phenomenon that's been used in investment world
830
00:36:45,210 --> 00:36:46,410
for centuries?
831
00:36:47,110 --> 00:36:47,630
Thank you.
832
00:36:47,850 --> 00:36:48,470
Go ahead.
833
00:36:48,470 --> 00:36:49,370
Thanks, Christina.
834
00:36:51,510 --> 00:36:54,910
Yeah, I mean, I think we are using
835
00:36:54,910 --> 00:36:55,910
the techniques.
836
00:36:56,070 --> 00:36:59,270
I mean, we're using venture capital that's going
837
00:36:59,270 --> 00:37:06,550
into this market is actually not just vegan
838
00:37:06,550 --> 00:37:09,150
funds or funds that specialise in it.
839
00:37:09,210 --> 00:37:13,870
You have mainstream investors who are in this,
840
00:37:13,950 --> 00:37:16,070
what Bill Gates said, the future of food
841
00:37:16,070 --> 00:37:16,890
is vegan.
842
00:37:17,450 --> 00:37:19,790
So it is getting that hype, but just
843
00:37:19,790 --> 00:37:24,470
like any area that gets the hype, the
844
00:37:24,470 --> 00:37:26,090
question is, do you create bubbles?
845
00:37:26,790 --> 00:37:28,830
And so that's kind of what's going on
846
00:37:28,830 --> 00:37:30,570
with vegan companies right now.
847
00:37:30,790 --> 00:37:32,870
I think as Jane said, you said before,
848
00:37:33,370 --> 00:37:35,650
I think a lot of the vegan companies
849
00:37:35,650 --> 00:37:39,010
are being attacked somewhat unfairly, when they start
850
00:37:39,010 --> 00:37:42,110
talking about Beyond Burger and it's not healthy.
851
00:37:42,410 --> 00:37:45,330
Well, it certainly is.
852
00:37:45,330 --> 00:37:47,290
And they really admit it.
853
00:37:47,370 --> 00:37:49,870
It certainly is healthier than the alternative, but
854
00:37:49,870 --> 00:37:51,890
then they say, well, look how many ingredients
855
00:37:51,890 --> 00:37:52,510
they have.
856
00:37:53,010 --> 00:37:53,810
Yeah, that's true.
857
00:37:53,870 --> 00:37:56,210
But none of those ingredients are meat and
858
00:37:56,210 --> 00:37:58,290
meat is only one ingredient, but it has
859
00:37:58,290 --> 00:38:04,130
huge ecological and health costs to it, not
860
00:38:04,130 --> 00:38:05,350
to mention ethical costs.
861
00:38:05,510 --> 00:38:08,070
So just because it's one ingredient doesn't mean
862
00:38:08,070 --> 00:38:08,590
it's healthy.
863
00:38:08,990 --> 00:38:10,590
I mean, I wouldn't need an arsenic burger.
864
00:38:10,730 --> 00:38:12,330
That would be one ingredient as well.
865
00:38:12,330 --> 00:38:15,530
So those types of attacks are somewhat disingenuous,
866
00:38:15,730 --> 00:38:17,890
but we have to weather those.
867
00:38:18,150 --> 00:38:22,970
And right now the investment market is, particularly
868
00:38:22,970 --> 00:38:25,710
the venture capital market, there's a lot of
869
00:38:25,710 --> 00:38:28,510
contraction in that market, which is hurting companies
870
00:38:28,510 --> 00:38:29,790
that need money to grow.
871
00:38:30,490 --> 00:38:33,170
But I think that's beginning to come to
872
00:38:33,170 --> 00:38:33,570
an end.
873
00:38:34,070 --> 00:38:36,590
So people kind of be loosening up their
874
00:38:36,590 --> 00:38:38,790
purse strings a little bit more and it
875
00:38:38,790 --> 00:38:40,490
should be getting to be a little bit
876
00:38:40,490 --> 00:38:42,710
easier for these companies to raise money.
877
00:38:43,410 --> 00:38:45,470
Yeah, and I was just over at Beyond
878
00:38:45,470 --> 00:38:46,150
Meat headquarters.
879
00:38:46,570 --> 00:38:49,230
Unchained TV is putting together a profile that's
880
00:38:49,230 --> 00:38:49,890
coming out soon.
881
00:38:49,970 --> 00:38:53,390
They have a new 4.0. And what
882
00:38:53,390 --> 00:38:57,010
I said was, look, processed meat is officially
883
00:38:57,010 --> 00:38:57,930
cancer causing.
884
00:38:58,790 --> 00:39:01,330
Okay, so anything that's an alternative to processed
885
00:39:01,330 --> 00:39:03,090
meat is much healthier.
886
00:39:04,030 --> 00:39:06,970
And so you're dealing with a product on
887
00:39:06,970 --> 00:39:09,310
the one hand that's a carcinogen, and the
888
00:39:09,310 --> 00:39:12,310
other hand is a bunch of vegetables mushed
889
00:39:12,310 --> 00:39:12,650
together.
890
00:39:13,450 --> 00:39:18,250
And nonetheless, they've decided to take the challenge
891
00:39:18,250 --> 00:39:20,790
and come up with an even healthier product.
892
00:39:21,030 --> 00:39:23,690
And it's called Beyond Meat 4.0. It's
893
00:39:23,690 --> 00:39:25,970
hitting the store shelves and I tried it.
894
00:39:26,070 --> 00:39:27,170
It's absolutely delicious.
895
00:39:27,570 --> 00:39:31,030
It has 75% less saturated fat than
896
00:39:31,030 --> 00:39:31,790
an average burger.
897
00:39:32,210 --> 00:39:34,650
And it's just really delicious.
898
00:39:34,650 --> 00:39:38,230
So I think that's a great response to
899
00:39:38,230 --> 00:39:38,750
criticism.
900
00:39:38,970 --> 00:39:40,650
Just say, okay, yeah, you want it healthier?
901
00:39:40,770 --> 00:39:42,230
We'll make it even healthier.
902
00:39:43,070 --> 00:39:45,570
And I think that's the kind of response
903
00:39:45,570 --> 00:39:47,270
that's going to win out in the end,
904
00:39:47,330 --> 00:39:48,250
right, Jody?
905
00:39:49,170 --> 00:39:50,110
Yeah, absolutely.
906
00:39:50,290 --> 00:39:52,690
I think the vegan market is going through
907
00:39:52,690 --> 00:39:53,950
various changes.
908
00:39:54,290 --> 00:39:56,670
The first thing was just have anything out
909
00:39:56,670 --> 00:39:56,970
there.
910
00:39:57,210 --> 00:40:01,210
And you'd have burgers that come out of
911
00:40:01,210 --> 00:40:02,130
a cardboard box.
912
00:40:02,190 --> 00:40:03,530
You weren't sure which you should eat.
913
00:40:04,090 --> 00:40:06,530
And then they went to, I would say,
914
00:40:06,630 --> 00:40:10,250
Vegan 2.0, where the products tasted good,
915
00:40:10,350 --> 00:40:11,910
but in order to get them to taste
916
00:40:11,910 --> 00:40:16,290
good, they had probably more fat and salts
917
00:40:16,290 --> 00:40:18,330
and things like that than you needed.
918
00:40:18,470 --> 00:40:20,470
And now we're going through, I think, the
919
00:40:20,470 --> 00:40:24,170
next phase where people think that vegan is
920
00:40:24,170 --> 00:40:25,230
healthier for you.
921
00:40:25,590 --> 00:40:28,390
It is, but now I think what people
922
00:40:28,390 --> 00:40:33,010
are looking for is even healthier vegan alternatives.
923
00:40:33,650 --> 00:40:35,430
And that's why what you said about what
924
00:40:35,430 --> 00:40:37,870
Beyond Burger is doing is great.
925
00:40:37,970 --> 00:40:39,270
And I think there's going to be more
926
00:40:39,270 --> 00:40:41,030
and more companies that are going to be
927
00:40:41,030 --> 00:40:44,830
coming out that are offering vegan options that
928
00:40:44,830 --> 00:40:47,450
truly are healthy and tasty.
929
00:40:48,150 --> 00:40:51,950
Are you concerned at all about the state
930
00:40:51,950 --> 00:40:55,090
of the vegan business world right now, given
931
00:40:55,090 --> 00:40:57,250
that, and I was in mainstream media for
932
00:40:57,250 --> 00:41:00,310
more than three decades, and I know a
933
00:41:00,310 --> 00:41:02,290
concerted attack when I see one.
934
00:41:03,770 --> 00:41:06,450
When Beyond Meat went public in 2019, it
935
00:41:06,450 --> 00:41:08,890
was the most successful IPO since the 2008
936
00:41:08,890 --> 00:41:10,150
financial crisis.
937
00:41:10,370 --> 00:41:11,730
It skyrocketed.
938
00:41:11,910 --> 00:41:13,090
Everybody was talking about it.
939
00:41:13,390 --> 00:41:15,210
Well, of course, it couldn't sustain that high
940
00:41:15,210 --> 00:41:15,590
level.
941
00:41:16,230 --> 00:41:18,570
And as you said, you create a bubble
942
00:41:18,570 --> 00:41:21,430
with all that excitement, and then it's like
943
00:41:21,430 --> 00:41:23,050
you build them up and then you knock
944
00:41:23,050 --> 00:41:23,370
them down.
945
00:41:23,430 --> 00:41:24,450
That's what the media does.
946
00:41:24,510 --> 00:41:25,670
It does that with celebrities.
947
00:41:25,850 --> 00:41:27,070
It does that with some companies.
948
00:41:27,790 --> 00:41:30,990
Where do you see vegan business, let's say,
949
00:41:31,090 --> 00:41:32,850
in five years?
950
00:41:35,360 --> 00:41:38,420
Yeah, I mean, I think that fundamentally the
951
00:41:38,420 --> 00:41:42,840
concept of vegan foods and other products and
952
00:41:42,840 --> 00:41:45,180
vegan investing is solid.
953
00:41:45,500 --> 00:41:47,900
Like you said, it goes through its ups
954
00:41:47,900 --> 00:41:48,500
and downs.
955
00:41:48,860 --> 00:41:51,900
It's in a down phase right now because
956
00:41:51,900 --> 00:41:54,020
of some of the media hype.
957
00:41:54,600 --> 00:41:57,860
But I think coming out with these new
958
00:41:57,860 --> 00:42:01,140
products that actually are healthy will help overcome
959
00:42:01,140 --> 00:42:01,540
that.
960
00:42:01,700 --> 00:42:04,320
I think there's a huge pent-up demand
961
00:42:04,320 --> 00:42:07,060
for healthy products.
962
00:42:07,860 --> 00:42:10,080
And quite honestly, if you have animal products
963
00:42:10,080 --> 00:42:12,520
in it, it's not healthy, no matter what.
964
00:42:13,180 --> 00:42:15,840
So I think there's a huge potential demand.
965
00:42:16,040 --> 00:42:18,520
So I think five years is probably a
966
00:42:18,520 --> 00:42:21,580
good timeframe to look at some of the
967
00:42:21,580 --> 00:42:24,400
companies that are in this market now, I
968
00:42:24,400 --> 00:42:25,340
think really exploding.
969
00:42:25,340 --> 00:42:28,520
The thing that I'm most concerned about is
970
00:42:28,520 --> 00:42:30,620
getting them through the next year, year and
971
00:42:30,620 --> 00:42:35,360
a half, because the availability of investment funds
972
00:42:35,360 --> 00:42:37,920
has been a challenge.
973
00:42:39,480 --> 00:42:42,380
Tom Vansell asks, what's the best vegan investment
974
00:42:42,380 --> 00:42:43,040
to make?
975
00:42:43,140 --> 00:42:44,300
That would be great to know.
976
00:42:44,540 --> 00:42:48,760
You know how Motley Fool says, if you
977
00:42:48,760 --> 00:42:52,060
had $1,000, you should invest in, well,
978
00:42:52,180 --> 00:42:53,440
let's play that game.
979
00:42:54,720 --> 00:42:57,840
Well, the first problem is that most vegan
980
00:42:57,840 --> 00:43:00,580
companies, except for like Beyond Meat and some
981
00:43:00,580 --> 00:43:03,420
of those, you have to be an accredited
982
00:43:03,420 --> 00:43:07,020
investor, which is a strict legal definition.
983
00:43:07,320 --> 00:43:10,220
I think it's income of over $200,000
984
00:43:10,220 --> 00:43:14,820
for the last two years, or net income
985
00:43:14,820 --> 00:43:17,320
of over, I think it's a million dollars.
986
00:43:17,420 --> 00:43:19,860
I'm not 100% sure what the rules
987
00:43:19,860 --> 00:43:20,160
are.
988
00:43:20,520 --> 00:43:22,920
So if you're not an accredited investor, you
989
00:43:22,920 --> 00:43:27,860
have very limited opportunity to invest in non
990
00:43:27,860 --> 00:43:29,040
-public companies.
991
00:43:29,660 --> 00:43:34,400
So there is a index out there called
992
00:43:34,400 --> 00:43:38,740
VGN, vegan, that- I think it's V
993
00:43:38,740 --> 00:43:39,480
-E-G-N.
994
00:43:39,840 --> 00:43:43,100
Yes, you're right, V-E-G-N, that
995
00:43:43,100 --> 00:43:48,320
basically invests in publicly traded companies that don't
996
00:43:48,320 --> 00:43:51,440
specifically use animal products.
997
00:43:51,970 --> 00:43:55,680
And they also, whatever publicly available plant-based
998
00:43:55,680 --> 00:43:57,880
companies, they also invest in them.
999
00:43:57,920 --> 00:44:00,800
And they've tracked the S&P 500 quite
1000
00:44:00,800 --> 00:44:03,320
well, in fact, have outperformed it.
1001
00:44:03,460 --> 00:44:06,500
Now, Beyond Impact, which I'm associated with, they
1002
00:44:06,500 --> 00:44:08,040
didn't come up with it, but the woman
1003
00:44:08,040 --> 00:44:12,600
who started Beyond Impact, the fund, this was
1004
00:44:12,600 --> 00:44:14,980
an idea that she had, and that she's
1005
00:44:14,980 --> 00:44:17,600
made this very, very successful.
1006
00:44:18,220 --> 00:44:20,520
So that's, at this point, if you're not
1007
00:44:20,520 --> 00:44:23,080
an accredited investor, the best way to do
1008
00:44:23,080 --> 00:44:23,300
it.
1009
00:44:23,960 --> 00:44:26,880
If you are an accredited investor, typically putting
1010
00:44:26,880 --> 00:44:30,420
your money in a fund like Beyond Impact
1011
00:44:30,420 --> 00:44:32,480
would be the way to go because you
1012
00:44:32,480 --> 00:44:33,520
get diversification.
1013
00:44:34,080 --> 00:44:36,140
But just remember, when you're investing in venture
1014
00:44:36,140 --> 00:44:38,640
capital, you only invest as much as you
1015
00:44:38,640 --> 00:44:39,640
can afford to lose.
1016
00:44:40,020 --> 00:44:41,540
So this is not something you put your
1017
00:44:41,540 --> 00:44:44,920
401k in or other money that you need
1018
00:44:44,920 --> 00:44:45,580
for retirement.
1019
00:44:45,940 --> 00:44:48,400
This is money that if all the companies
1020
00:44:48,400 --> 00:44:50,520
crash and you totally lose it, it's like,
1021
00:44:51,100 --> 00:44:53,360
you're not happy about it, but it's not
1022
00:44:53,360 --> 00:44:54,660
going to impact your lifestyle.
1023
00:44:55,740 --> 00:44:57,360
Yeah, and I guess full disclosure, I didn't
1024
00:44:57,360 --> 00:44:58,840
know we were gonna talk about VEGN, but
1025
00:44:58,840 --> 00:45:01,200
I have a little of VEGN just as
1026
00:45:01,200 --> 00:45:01,840
a disclosure.
1027
00:45:02,300 --> 00:45:04,760
Okay, here you go, your art.
1028
00:45:05,340 --> 00:45:05,800
Yes.
1029
00:45:05,900 --> 00:45:09,100
It's absolutely extraordinary, and it's based on what?
1030
00:45:10,680 --> 00:45:13,160
The underlying imagery for all of my art
1031
00:45:13,160 --> 00:45:15,240
is based on scientific themes.
1032
00:45:15,660 --> 00:45:17,260
So the ones you have here, the one
1033
00:45:17,260 --> 00:45:19,960
on the left is based on a galaxy,
1034
00:45:20,140 --> 00:45:22,000
and the one on the right, I believe,
1035
00:45:22,200 --> 00:45:23,440
is a white blood cell.
1036
00:45:23,580 --> 00:45:26,520
So the main themes that I use are
1037
00:45:26,520 --> 00:45:32,660
physics, radio astronomy, and electron microscopy.
1038
00:45:33,280 --> 00:45:36,400
I branch out somewhat from those areas as
1039
00:45:36,400 --> 00:45:40,700
well, but I've actually, after many, many years,
1040
00:45:40,760 --> 00:45:42,380
I've gone back, I'm actually talking to you
1041
00:45:42,380 --> 00:45:43,500
from my studio.
1042
00:45:43,500 --> 00:45:45,860
I've gone back to school to get my
1043
00:45:45,860 --> 00:45:47,320
third degree.
1044
00:45:47,540 --> 00:45:49,160
I have a BA in economics, I have
1045
00:45:49,160 --> 00:45:51,960
an MBA in finance, and now I'm going
1046
00:45:51,960 --> 00:45:53,580
for my MFA in painting.
1047
00:45:54,240 --> 00:45:55,840
All right, well, you're making me feel bad.
1048
00:45:55,840 --> 00:45:57,340
By the way, I'm the oldest student in
1049
00:45:57,340 --> 00:45:57,880
the class.
1050
00:45:59,240 --> 00:46:00,840
You're making me feel bad.
1051
00:46:01,260 --> 00:46:03,100
I'm gonna get cracking on that piano and
1052
00:46:03,100 --> 00:46:04,620
that French that I always say I'm gonna
1053
00:46:04,620 --> 00:46:05,660
learn, and I never do.
1054
00:46:06,480 --> 00:46:06,800
Caribbean.
1055
00:46:07,560 --> 00:46:09,660
Yeah, and I just wanted to throw up
1056
00:46:09,660 --> 00:46:11,140
some of the other companies.
1057
00:46:11,140 --> 00:46:14,240
There are many that Beyond Impact has helped.
1058
00:46:15,620 --> 00:46:17,240
Now, some of them we've heard of, like
1059
00:46:17,240 --> 00:46:19,920
Wicked Kitchen's quite well-known, but some of
1060
00:46:19,920 --> 00:46:23,460
them are a little less well-known.
1061
00:46:24,040 --> 00:46:26,940
What is the statistical chance of any company
1062
00:46:26,940 --> 00:46:27,480
succeeding?
1063
00:46:27,820 --> 00:46:29,400
Like, sometimes people are saying, well, a lot
1064
00:46:29,400 --> 00:46:30,880
of these vegan companies aren't succeeding.
1065
00:46:31,180 --> 00:46:32,960
First of all, the ones that have succeeded,
1066
00:46:33,460 --> 00:46:37,660
like Tofurky, like Daiya, like Violife, like Silk
1067
00:46:37,660 --> 00:46:39,720
Soymilk, I could go on and on.
1068
00:46:39,720 --> 00:46:42,040
They've been acquired by big conglomerates.
1069
00:46:42,180 --> 00:46:43,220
Is that not the case?
1070
00:46:44,640 --> 00:46:45,140
Yeah, yeah.
1071
00:46:45,280 --> 00:46:47,740
So the basic rule with venture capital is
1072
00:46:47,740 --> 00:46:50,040
that half the companies you invest in will
1073
00:46:50,040 --> 00:46:50,520
go bankrupt.
1074
00:46:51,120 --> 00:46:53,000
So you'll lose everything on them.
1075
00:46:53,320 --> 00:46:57,400
And then another 10 to 20%, you'll either
1076
00:46:57,400 --> 00:47:01,460
break even or you'll make a little bit
1077
00:47:01,460 --> 00:47:02,680
of money or lose a little bit of
1078
00:47:02,680 --> 00:47:03,360
money on them.
1079
00:47:03,800 --> 00:47:06,240
So what you're looking at really is maybe
1080
00:47:06,240 --> 00:47:08,140
10% of your company.
1081
00:47:08,140 --> 00:47:12,200
So one company in 10, that's gonna be
1082
00:47:12,200 --> 00:47:13,260
a big winner.
1083
00:47:14,520 --> 00:47:18,280
And what they say is half your advertising
1084
00:47:18,280 --> 00:47:20,180
is worthless.
1085
00:47:20,460 --> 00:47:21,620
You just don't know which half.
1086
00:47:22,260 --> 00:47:23,960
It's kind of like the same thing in
1087
00:47:23,960 --> 00:47:27,120
venture capital is that you know that 80
1088
00:47:27,120 --> 00:47:28,840
% of your companies are not gonna give
1089
00:47:28,840 --> 00:47:31,660
you a return, but you just don't know
1090
00:47:31,660 --> 00:47:32,560
what 80%.
1091
00:47:32,560 --> 00:47:35,780
So you go into these companies, you hope
1092
00:47:35,780 --> 00:47:39,940
for a Beyond Burger or one of those
1093
00:47:39,940 --> 00:47:41,200
is in your portfolio.
1094
00:47:41,840 --> 00:47:43,420
So you just gotta look at the different
1095
00:47:43,420 --> 00:47:46,160
industries, where the potential is and take your
1096
00:47:46,160 --> 00:47:49,440
chances, which is why I said, this is
1097
00:47:49,440 --> 00:47:52,820
not a field for the faint of heart.
1098
00:47:53,360 --> 00:47:56,080
You need to, people go into this, they
1099
00:47:56,080 --> 00:47:57,120
understand the risks.
1100
00:47:57,360 --> 00:48:00,700
If they end up losing it all, that's
1101
00:48:00,700 --> 00:48:02,260
life, they go on.
1102
00:48:03,620 --> 00:48:06,480
If they get one hit out of that,
1103
00:48:06,740 --> 00:48:09,840
that could give them 20, 30% return
1104
00:48:09,840 --> 00:48:10,940
on their total investment.
1105
00:48:11,140 --> 00:48:12,340
So that's what they're looking for.
1106
00:48:13,220 --> 00:48:15,960
Yeah, it's funny because people always say, well,
1107
00:48:16,020 --> 00:48:18,000
if you had invested in and then they
1108
00:48:18,000 --> 00:48:20,640
named these companies, whether it's Amazon or Apple,
1109
00:48:20,980 --> 00:48:23,960
way back when, way back when we didn't
1110
00:48:23,960 --> 00:48:26,160
know which ones were gonna be the big
1111
00:48:26,160 --> 00:48:26,540
ones.
1112
00:48:27,220 --> 00:48:29,360
So- Well, look, given that I have
1113
00:48:29,360 --> 00:48:31,040
the book out, I'm glad Amazon did well.
1114
00:48:31,700 --> 00:48:33,680
Yes, well, let's get back to that.
1115
00:48:33,880 --> 00:48:36,960
The Silver Forest, I have an advanced copy.
1116
00:48:37,420 --> 00:48:39,320
You can order it now on Amazon.
1117
00:48:39,780 --> 00:48:41,260
I've been diving into it.
1118
00:48:41,620 --> 00:48:43,100
It's really fascinating.
1119
00:48:43,440 --> 00:48:44,920
And this is the first of a trilogy.
1120
00:48:45,520 --> 00:48:47,900
And I expect you wanna turn this into
1121
00:48:47,900 --> 00:48:49,200
a movie at some point, right?
1122
00:48:50,260 --> 00:48:51,560
I would love to.
1123
00:48:51,780 --> 00:48:52,460
I would love to.
1124
00:48:52,560 --> 00:48:54,000
So if you've got any contacts in that
1125
00:48:54,000 --> 00:48:55,200
business, Jane, let me know.
1126
00:48:57,060 --> 00:49:01,020
Again, I'm just flabbergasted at the incredible amount
1127
00:49:01,020 --> 00:49:03,620
of accomplishments you have across the board.
1128
00:49:04,180 --> 00:49:07,040
So many different things, but everybody get this.
1129
00:49:07,180 --> 00:49:09,000
It's available on Amazon for pre-order.
1130
00:49:09,240 --> 00:49:11,220
It's coming out very soon.
1131
00:49:11,400 --> 00:49:14,920
And I really hope that everybody supports this.
1132
00:49:15,060 --> 00:49:17,180
Again, this is somebody who has done so
1133
00:49:17,180 --> 00:49:19,940
much for our movement, is always giving to
1134
00:49:19,940 --> 00:49:22,720
others, always helping other organisations.
1135
00:49:23,140 --> 00:49:25,360
So let's give him a little boost and
1136
00:49:25,360 --> 00:49:27,220
order and read his book.
1137
00:49:27,600 --> 00:49:29,120
And I gotta tell you, I think it's
1138
00:49:29,120 --> 00:49:30,140
absolutely fantastic.
1139
00:49:31,060 --> 00:49:32,160
We've got one minute.
1140
00:49:32,280 --> 00:49:33,380
What are your final thoughts?
1141
00:49:33,440 --> 00:49:35,980
What would you like to tell people in
1142
00:49:35,980 --> 00:49:40,280
general about bringing this all together?
1143
00:49:41,640 --> 00:49:43,760
Yeah, I think, you know, in order to
1144
00:49:43,760 --> 00:49:47,880
really make veganism more mainstream, you have to
1145
00:49:47,880 --> 00:49:50,920
attack it from a lot of different areas,
1146
00:49:51,080 --> 00:49:52,820
which is, I guess, one of the reasons
1147
00:49:52,820 --> 00:49:55,400
why I ended up doing so many different
1148
00:49:55,400 --> 00:49:55,920
things.
1149
00:49:56,780 --> 00:49:59,360
And, you know, just like the book, I
1150
00:49:59,360 --> 00:50:02,560
think what was important for me is that
1151
00:50:02,560 --> 00:50:05,800
the main character is vegan, but I don't
1152
00:50:05,800 --> 00:50:07,000
make a big deal about that.
1153
00:50:07,220 --> 00:50:09,100
It just happens to be the way he
1154
00:50:09,100 --> 00:50:09,340
is.
1155
00:50:09,360 --> 00:50:10,180
It's just natural.
1156
00:50:10,680 --> 00:50:13,120
And so there's not big discussions about veganism
1157
00:50:13,120 --> 00:50:14,780
and all this stuff in the book.
1158
00:50:14,960 --> 00:50:17,080
It's just part of a normal life.
1159
00:50:17,180 --> 00:50:19,420
And that's what I think we need to
1160
00:50:19,420 --> 00:50:19,660
do.
1161
00:50:19,760 --> 00:50:21,560
So we need to take a lot of
1162
00:50:21,560 --> 00:50:27,240
different and disparate areas, investing, art, writing, and
1163
00:50:27,240 --> 00:50:29,580
just make it part of the community.
1164
00:50:30,820 --> 00:50:32,400
I love what you just said.
1165
00:50:32,580 --> 00:50:33,880
It's not a big deal.
1166
00:50:34,200 --> 00:50:35,600
It's just what he is.
1167
00:50:35,880 --> 00:50:39,640
And hopefully everybody will get that message that
1168
00:50:39,640 --> 00:50:44,680
it's not like a conversion to some extreme
1169
00:50:44,680 --> 00:50:45,280
group.
1170
00:50:45,400 --> 00:50:48,840
It's just, you know, a healthy, compassionate way
1171
00:50:48,840 --> 00:50:50,700
of living that we can all embrace.
1172
00:50:50,700 --> 00:50:54,580
It's a joyous adventure, not a sacrifice.
1173
00:50:54,960 --> 00:50:57,160
And thank you so much, Jodi Rash.
1174
00:50:57,240 --> 00:50:59,660
I also wanna urge everybody, please download the
1175
00:50:59,660 --> 00:51:00,780
Unshamed TV app.
1176
00:51:01,140 --> 00:51:02,640
It is 100% free.
1177
00:51:02,980 --> 00:51:05,940
It is the world's only vegan streaming television
1178
00:51:05,940 --> 00:51:07,580
network available on your phone.
1179
00:51:07,680 --> 00:51:10,420
You just put Unshamed TV right into your
1180
00:51:10,420 --> 00:51:13,380
app store and download it for free.
1181
00:51:13,520 --> 00:51:16,860
It's also free to watch on any TV.
1182
00:51:17,240 --> 00:51:19,620
It's on all Samsung TVs and on any
1183
00:51:19,620 --> 00:51:22,240
TV with Amazon Fire Stick, Roku device or
1184
00:51:22,240 --> 00:51:23,020
Apple TV device.
1185
00:51:23,140 --> 00:51:26,900
So please download Unshamed TV and join our
1186
00:51:26,900 --> 00:51:31,740
happy, joyous community fighting for animals, speaking for
1187
00:51:31,740 --> 00:51:33,260
them because they can't speak for themselves.
1188
00:51:33,420 --> 00:51:33,860
See you next.