A Kelowna mom has started her own vegan shirt line to promote the plant-based lifestyle.
With slogans like “fueled by coffee and plants,” Demi Morris launched The Vegan Epiphany for women in early April after she noticed there were a number of vegan mothers in Kelowna.
“A lot of vegan shirts seem to be confrontational, (but) a lot of people (lead plant-based lives) and want to promote plant-based (lifestyles),” she said. “People have eaten this way for so long, you don’t want to shame anyone.”
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Morris sources her shirts from Ontario, from a sweatshop-free company called JERICO and the shirts are made in Canada. They’re shipped to Kelowna and the designs are added by a local company, she said.
The material is made from 70 per cent rayon from bamboo and 30 per cent organic cotton.
An investigation in 2010 conducted by the U.S. and Canada found that rayon from bamboo is no more eco-friendly than rayon taken from other wood, like oak and beech. Tough chemicals are also used to process the bamboo plant.
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While she said you can’t be perfect, the aim of offering bamboo clothing options is that it’s less wasteful than cotton, as it’s a quickly growing plant that is reusable.
“The company I source it from, it’s very socially conscious, they handle it from their end, garments made in Canada,” she said.
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“I’ve been vegan for a while and I kind of just wanted to do something for Canadians.”
She said she wanted to make the clothing so people can wear it and be proud and not focus on the activism side of veganism.
Visit the wares at theveganepiphany.ca/. Local residents can pick up the clothing in Kelowna, or pay a shipping fee for orders.
Prices for women’s shirts start at $32 and toddlers at $26.
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