Treats for vegans - Columbus

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Clintonville bakery finds following for cookies, cakes that are made without animal products Wednesday, April 12, 2006 Tracy Turner THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH DORAL CHENOWETH III DISPATCH PHOTOS Ella Maloney, 16, makes a vegan version of tollhouse cookies at the Pattycake Vegan Bakery in Clintonville. She is an intern from the Graham School, an area charter school, who works at the bakery several hours every week.

Michelle Dandylion makes a Pattycake Vegan Bakery delivery to the Yeah, Me Too coffee shop in Clintonville. Chocolate-chip cookies without butter, eggs or bleached flour and less refined sugar? Yup, and they taste good, too. At least that’s what more consumers say as they flock to buy locally baked vegan cookies and cakes now sold at several coffeehouses and grocers throughout Columbus. Pattycake Vegan Bakery, 3009 N. High St. in Clintonville, has developed a healthy following. The bakery counts eight coffee shops and grocers as clients, including Clintonville Community Market, Cup O’ Joe and the Wexner Center for the Arts. That’s in addition to an increasing number of walk-ins who want pastries minus the animal products. The bakery has even spoken with Whole Foods about placing its vegan baked goods on

the grocer’s shelves, said Jennie Scheinbach, who owns Pattycake and is the master behind the vegan recipes. "There’s really a growing movement for veganism now," said Scheinbach, who bakes an average of 3,000 items a week. "Even nonvegans are coming in to buy because of health concerns." Vegans are strict vegetarians who avoid all animal-related items, including cheese, eggs, honey and milk. Fueled by an increase in consumers seeking more-healthful fare, the market for vegetarian and vegan foods has nearly doubled this year to $2.8 billion, up from $1.5 billion just three years ago, according to Mintel Consumer Intelligence in Chicago. Vegetarians have a lower risk of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension, according to the American Dietetic Association. While there’s an estimated 1.7 million vegans nationwide, 97 million people consider themselves "health-conscious" and strive to eat at least three meatless meals per week,

according to the Vegetarian Resource Group, publisher of the Vegetarian Journal in Baltimore. That’s led many of the biggest food companies and restaurant chains to compete for their business, said Tal Ronnen, of VegAdvantage, a Virginia organization that helps food-service companies find vegan products. "The animal-rights movement, growing environmental concerns and a desire by consumers to eat healthier and reduce cholesterol from their diets have helped the industry grow tremendously in the past two years," Ronnen said. "Vegan bakeries, restaurants and stores are in most large cities now, which is amazing," he said. "Just a few years ago, the only vegan offerings typically consisted of a few veggie burgers in the grocer’s frozenfood aisle." A poll by the National Restaurant Association found that 20 percent of diners look for vegetarian meals when eating out. In Columbus, at least 40 restaurants, bakeries and retailers offer vegan

fare. Part of the growth comes from word of mouth that "the foods are tasty," said Luann Riley, who co-owns Benevolence Cafe, on Swan Street near the North Market. The vegan-vegetarian restaurant, which had been mostly a lunch spot, has found enough customer demand to support dinner service and breakfast on Saturdays, Riley said. "People are seeking more options," she said. So are retailers and foodservice companies. That’s resulted in the growth of the specialty-foods sector, specifically ethnic and vegan foods, said John Roberts, president of the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade in New York. Most consumers who seek vegan foods are educated and have high incomes, he said. "The customers that want these products are very profitable consumers," Roberts said. "Chain stores are responding to the small niches of consumer needs by analyzing who their customers are and that focusing on their needs translates into

increased sales." That’s been the case at Cup O’ Joe, where the vegan cookies are "selling very well," said John Justice, a district manager. "Once I tried one (cookie), I said, ‘That’s it, I’ve got to have them in the stores,’ " he said. "I hope to carry more (of Pattycake’s) vegan products in the future, because it’s great stuff." Peter H

 

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