The event was hosted by ProVeg South Africa, a local food awareness non-profit organisation. In a release issued over the weekend, ProVeg says it recently found itself "right in the centre of the so-called veggie burger ban-debate." This, after the Johannesburg High Court granted an interim interdict in August 2022, which protects meat analogue and other plant-based products from being seized from any point of sale in Mzansi.

The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development has, however, reiterated that companies should not use product names prescribed for processed meat products in the marketing of plant-based foods.

While health, the environment, and animal welfare are the benefits most commonly associated with the meat-free movement, ProVeg believes taste is also a big benefit. To demonstrate this, it hosted a plant-based braai on Saturday 24 September 2022.

According to ProVeg, the previous record was set in 2018 by The Fry Family Food Co., when they aimed to hand out 1000 plant-based burgers in Birmingham, England.

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"What makes breaking this informal record very special, is that this was a record achieved by a community of brands, like Infinite Foods, Fry’s, Woolworths, Urban Vegan, Outcast Foods, Veggiewors, B-well, Pesto Princess, and many more, who all believe in a common cause and not just a PR opportunity," Donovan Will, ProVeg SA’s country director, says.

"Next year we’re excited to have more partners on board and break the record again."

The plant-based Heritage Day Braai has been an annual instalment for the local branch of the international food awareness organisation ProVeg International since 2018.

"This event allows us to prove to non-vegans that a braai can be just as delicious if it’s plant-based. This way, it is also better for the environment and animals," Will adds.

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Rebecca Espin, ProVeg South Africa events assistant, described it as "an amazing event that showcased the wide range of remarkable plant-based products available as well as a diverse and multicultural range of people who are interested in attending and supporting plant-based events."

"How incredible it was to see the plant-based community come together so beautifully for this important event," says Genevieve Cutts, head of global PR and communications for The Live Kindly Co., which includes The Fry Family Food Co.

"Now more than ever we need to show South Africa how delicious, versatile and mainstream plant-based foods are – and a mammoth braai like this was the perfect way to do that. We were honoured to be a part of it."

Food For Mzansi