I sat down with The Green Moustache a while back to learn about how this local plant based eatery is looking towards the future by initiating a campaign geared to making healthy food accessible to all. They are about to launch a front fundr campaign to support them in their dreams of bringing this food into hospitals, schools, and community centres… to name a few! I. got really lit up hearing about this as I believe we are not paying close enough attention to those most vulnerable in their choices around food and wellness.
I will be joining CEO and founder, Nicolette Richer, as well as Jordan Bruce, another Holistic Nutritionist, on a panel about overcoming barriers to healthy eating at our Invest in The Green Mo’! event in Vancouver on Thursday, November 29th. This event is the perfect chance for you to have a face-to-face conversation with The Green Moustache team about their plans and how you can become a part!
Now to the interview….
What inspired you to pursue a plant-based diet?
I feel like there are so many layers to the journey, and I actually love it so much because of it, even more so.
Initially it was something that innately was, what I guess some would say a “call”, as an adolescent. Moving instinctually through vegetarianism without a real knowledge cognitively of what I was doing. I was very much aware of animals however and this altered what I ate.
The shift then turned towards my failing health and my draw towards using plants and the Earth as a way to offer compassion to my body. My body was quite simply, losing a battle. Tapping back into that innate nature that I once had as a child, and then building atop of it, seemed like where I needed to land in order to recover the self and the body… sounds quite esoteric, however in some ways quite practical.
“I have a great passion for seeing the benefits of how a plant-forward diet can enhance the recovery and health of those struggling with mental health challenges.”
Recently again it has shifted towards a respect for nature more so and also my own wisdom and knowledge of what my body needs. So now having taken better care of my home, it is much easier for me to navigate the nuances that let me play with a plant-based diet, not with structure or rigidity but with ease and flexibility.
Why is a ‘plant-based nutrition revolution’ important to you?
It is so important to me because the Earth innately has the offerings to try and work to keep us alive… all… the… time. Every second of every day, our planet and our bodies are trying to sort out how to keep us ticking, how to find that balance. The answers may seem hidden right now, but perhaps they are not as complex as we thought. There are so many applications to a plant-based revolution and I cannot wait to see where it goes. For me, I have a great passion for seeing the benefits of how a plant-forward diet can enhance the recovery and health of those struggling with mental health challenges. An area that few are focusing on however there just is so much there and we are now seeing the research to back this up.
Why do you support The Green Mo’?
Ok, so you had me at collard wraps. 
Absolutely a fave. But really, and this sums that up, it is about easy, real and still delicious food. This is about accessible food to all that is the foundation of what a whole foods plant-based diet is about. The other aspect is that The Green Moustache is trying to initiate healthier eating with intention. So it is wonderful to be able to walk into a café, but who else can be reached? Who needs it most? These are important questions that you are looking at.
“The Green Moustache is trying to initiate healthier eating with intention.”
What is your favourite Green Mo’ meal?
Well I guess I kind of gave it away, but other than collard wraps I would say the Bircher muesli, and the waffles…. I love a good breakfast. Oh and I also eat the collard wraps for breakfast.
What does an ideal future for our society look like to you?
An ideal future for our society. Well I would hope that it revolves around a few core values that I really think are integral to healing, those being: connection, compassion, gratitude, grace, and creativity. These values are at the heart of my practice that revolves around the deep healing it takes to work through our relationships with food, mind/self and body, because mostly these are the qualities that we are falling further away from. Easy in theory hard in practice. It begins by peeling back layers that we have been building upon, like those layers at the beginning, for quite some time.
I guess I’ve solved it now, haven’t I. 
What do you think needs to happen for us to achieve that future?
Well I think in order to get there we have to embrace change, and that often means discomfort. But oftentimes we see discomfort as just bad, and not as growth. I think it also means being vulnerable. To experience the world so that we can live authentically and strip away those layers, and I think it means simplifying, even down to how we eat. To lower the stress, the impact, the confusion and the trauma associated oftentimes with food and health that is perpetuated in our culture.
Thank you Kate!
Help The Green Mo’ get, organic, plant-based food into hospitals, schools, community centres and beyond. Check out our equity crowdfunding campaign here and make your investment today! Plus, make sure to share our campaign with your family, friends, colleagues, and anyone else who might be interested in making an impact with their investment dollars.
