BY JAELA N I T UR N ER -W I L L I A M S P HOTOS BY JUL I A N FOG L I ET T I
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t was late 2017 when former automobile service manager Clayton Freeman transitioned into veganism with his wife as a new lifestyle for the couple. A year later, during an anniversary trip, Freeman was nudged into turning his new way of eating into an independent food service that he felt would fill a void within the central Ohio vegan community. So, in December of 2018, Freeman jump-started Can’t Believe it’s Vegan, a mobile food service with enough plant-based options to make hard-core foodies into true believers. And now, he’s using his voice in the food community to drive change in the social conversation about veganism. Freeman is more than opening doors for combining flavorful dishes with a plant-based lifestyle. It’s also important to him to educate followers
I look at it as always looking forward... about climate change, animal agriculture and reducing the average carbon footprint going into the future. “I may not be able to convince many people to adopt my lifestyle completely but if I can influence them enough to question what they're putting in their bodies, and how those things relate to their health, climate change and pollution, then I've succeeded in my mission,” said Freeman, who cooked at Ponderosa Steakhouse and Arthur Treachers Fish & Chips as a teenager. “Baby steps—it's all baby steps in the beginning.” Not only is Freeman looking forward in terms of changing the conversation about a vegan lifestyle and perfecting his alreadyimpressive dishes, but as a north side resident, he also would like to have a permanent brick and mortar for Can’t Believe it’s Vegan. By setting up shop in a currently underserved location, he hopes to focus on breaking subconscious racial barriers in the vegan community. “One of my goals is to help enlighten the African-American community in central Ohio about our vegan roots in Africa—also to let people know about the many Black-owned vegan food businesses and organizations • 614NOW.COM
OCTOBER 2020 (614) MAGAZINE
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