Martin Kotze
How did you become vegan or move towards this way of life?
So… I grew up in Kimberley, Northern Cape. A real “rys, vleis en aartappel” kind of town. People here are very set in their ways and most likely will never deviate from that their whole lives. I just happened to meet a vegan from JHB one day and became friends through common interests. I made tonnes of vegan jokes and thought he had a few marbles missing. A few years later I found myself doing a lot of introspection and thought about the concept of life. During that time I helped to save a person from drowning. After that, life overall had new meaning to me. It was more precious. I was floating around in the same pool of water where the guy almost drowned and saw a bug trying to stay afloat. I realised that it valued it’s life the same way we value ours.
I decided in that pool to do some research and try vegetarianism for 30 days. After the first few days I realised that I haven’t had any animal products and decided to become vegan. It was so easy.
Kimberley was not very accomodating for vegans. A lot of people still don’t know what being vegan even means. But lately a lot has changed. More and more places have vegan options. More stores stock vegan products
What year did you become vegan?
2015
Are there any foods you enjoy now that you wouldn’t eat or hadn’t tried before?
Yes!!! So many!! I love tempeh
What is your favourite meal or snack?
PASTA!!!
More specifically, ramen!