[PRESS RELEASE]
VEGANS DO IT BETTER: THIS YEAR THE VEG FESTIVAL IN TORINO IS A LITTLE BIT PROVOCATIVE. OR PROVOKING PERHAPS?

The Veg festival in Torino, a big open party held at the beginning of summer, has come to its fourth edition.

Like every year the festival aims at explaining through conferences, shows, concerts, informative and commercial stands but above all through tasteful and 100% vegetarian snacks and meals, what living vegan means.

This year, however, at the book and gadgets stands, one may also found particularly useful and interesting gadgets like vegan condoms, because, if vegan "do it better" it's nice to be able to choose condoms made without cruelty.

In fact, the organizers explain, condoms are usually made by using a milk protein called casein. They explain that milk is not a vegan food, because to produce it a cow must give birth a calf, whose destiny is to be slaughtered, every year. So, besides the new T Shirt with the slogan "Vegans do it better" that will certainly sell well, one may find at the festival three different kinds of condoms approved from The English Vegan Society and made without casein.

Is it true, however, that "Vegan do it better"? So seem to think Pamela Anderson, testimonial of vegan food in the USA, that on the occasion of the national day of orgasm celebrated in the USA on Sunday 14th of may, has said over and over that vegetables aind fruit are a valid help to sexual life. In fact, meat and other animal products like milk and eggs which contain a high percentage of fat, obstruct non only the heart artery but also the arteries of other organs.

Provocation apart, the Veg Festival this year offers an intense and interesting programme. Besides many Italian participants there are also several coming from the USA, UK, Africa, Germany who would like to give the public a "slice of vegan life" explaining HOW, WHY, WHERE and WHEN so many people from all over the world prefer a life "without cruelty" towards animals and choose to respect Environment and People.

This year as well, the Festival is kept in Torino at "Spazio 211" in Via Cigna, 211, from the 16th to the 18th of June and from 10 a.m. until 2 a.m. and it will be officially inaugurated on Friday the 16th of June at 7 p.m.

On the web site entirely managed by volunteers, one may find the entire products and informative stand list and the complete three days vegan programme. The festival is a non-profit event and is meant to spread information on the vegan life style. Tens of volunteers coming from every part of Italy participate to its organisation and realisation.

Our festival, they say, is first of all a way to make us know by those who are not vegan, hence we wish to invite people who know little about vegans and wish to know more, or simply those who are curious about vegan food and those who just want to take a look around.

However, this festival is also for Vegetarians, Vegans and activists who want to peacefully eat and relax in a party free from cruelty, meet other people and exchange ideas with activists from foreign countries.

http://www.vegfestival.org - [email protected] - cell. 3336705842

[PRESS RELEASE]
16 - 18 JUNE 2006
FOURTH TURIN VEGFESTIVAL
OPEN-AIR VEGAN FESTIVAL WITH LOTS OF EVENTS, DISCUSSIONS, STALLS,
ENTERTAINMENT AND PLENTY FOR LOVERS OF FINE VEGAN FOOD!
OPENING CEREMONY 7 PM 16 JUNE WITH THE FAMOUS AMERICAN ACTIVIST
JULIA BUTTERFLY HILL, AUTHOR OF THE GIRL IN THE TREE

The Turin VegFestival, now in its fourth year, has become international: guests from the United States, the UK, Africa and Germany will join Italian guests to give the public a taste of what it's like to be vegan - how, why, where, when - so that people worldwide can choose a cruelty-free way of life full of compassion towards animals and respect for the environment and people.

Once again, from 10 am to 2 am from 16 to 18 June, Space 211 at Via Cigna 211, Turin, will be the venue for this huge open-air festival, attended by increasing numbers of people. There will be stalls selling 100% plant-based products (a wide variety of food and drink, cosmetics, toiletries, footwear, clothing, accessories, pet-food, herbal products & books) and offering information (on various aspects of the vegan lifestyle), lots of talks and discussions, cookery demonstrations, fun and games for children, entertainment, and last but not least a bar with delicious vegan organic snacks and a vegan organic restaurant which will serve hundreds of meals each day with a different menu for each one.

The official opening ceremony, at 7 pm on Friday 16 June, will be attended by a very special guest: - Julia Butterfly Hill, famous throughout the world for having lived more than 200 feet up an ancient sequoia tree called Luna between December 1997 and December 1999 in order to prevent it from being felled along with other trees in the area. Julia won and wrote a book about her experience, The Girl in the Tree, and set up The Circle of Life Foundation, which brings together a lot of environmental associations. Julia is not only an environmentalist but also vegan, because anyone who respects and loves Nature cannot be complicit in its destruction by the enormous impact on the environment of both intensive and extensive animal-farming, and anyone who is so sensitive as to want to protect a tree certainly cannot remain indifferent in the face of the torture and death of farm animals, which are no less sentient beings than we are. Therefore Julia wanted to be at the VegFestival in order to demonstrate her commitment to our cause.

The talks on offer will cover many different topics: the ethical choice of a cruelty-free lifestyle, the choice of making less impact on the environment and not encouraging the North-South divide, our health and that of our children, vegan cooking and catering, introductions to books, the vegetarian and vegan choices made by sportsmen and -women and the experiences of vegan activists from other countries. But the VegFestival also provides entertainment because starting at 11 o'clock each evening you will be able to relax by dancing and listening to music to suit all tastes.

The organizers sum up by saying: "The main aim of our festival is to enable non-vegans to get to know us and therefore the main people we wish to invite are those who know only a little about veganism and would like to know more, and anyone who is keen to try eating vegan or just wants to wander round the stalls. But the festival is also for vegetarians, vegans and activists who want to relax and eat in the peaceful atmosphere of this totally cruelty-free event, meet other people with whom to swap ideas and get to know activists from other countries".

http://www.vegfestival.org - [email protected] - cell. 3336705842