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Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice, & Accessibility

Acknowledgement


We believe that every person has a right to food. As such, it is imperative that we recognize our food system’s infringements upon that right through mass exploitation of living beings and environments for capitalist gain—characterized by the disregard of the humanity of people and the sentience of animals, wide-scale environmental degradation, and negative effects on eating patterns and the availability of nutrients. All of these outcomes and inequities have outsized impacts on rural and marginalized communities—including Indigenous peoples, many of whom are the original owners, farmers, and stewards of the lands now used for industrial agriculture.

Though plant-based foods can offer crucial solutions to those systemic issues, people from marginalized groups are often denied the influence and capital needed to enter, lead, and shape the trajectory of the plant-based foods industry. It’s critical that we acknowledge the presence of racism, classism, and privilege both within and surrounding the plant-based foods sector—inequalities that result in a distinct lack of cultural inclusion in the media and brand stories related to plant-based foods and significant disparities in community access to plant-based products.

PBFA's Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice, and Accessibility

OUR WHY

Society has reached a turning point: Maintaining the status quo means that inequities within our food system will only become more severe as climate change worsens and its impacts are felt disproportionately by marginalized communities. Our food system has sprawling impacts across the realms of social justice, the environment, animal welfare, human health, and nutrition—and that means it can also serve as a critical vehicle for holistic progress that promotes resilience and longevity, celebrates all individuals living their values and claiming autonomy over their diets, removes barriers to plant-based food access faced by Black and Brown communities affected by food apartheid, and encourages allied communities to acknowledge and address their roles in propagating inequity. We believe that plant-based food brands are important agents of this much-needed change.

As organizations that bring together and empower plant-based foods brands—in addition to the food system stakeholders that power our industry—PBFA/I are well-positioned to harness our expertise, connections, and community to drive multifaceted progress built on the pillars of DEIJA. To catalyze this change in the broader world, it is imperative that DEIJA are guidestones for our industry’s communal ethos and culture. In this effort, PBFA/I must lead by example and ensure that these principles are baked into every element of our workplace—allowing us the freedom to pursue more robust and sustainable business practices that reflect our values, create more productive work environments, and cultivate healthier, happier staff who feel safe, seen, and supported.

OUR ROLE

We forge the path towards a more inclusive, just, and equitable food future by championing a holistic approach to bettering the food systems—and the world—that acknowledges the interconnected nature of the challenges we face and builds capacity within communities and companies to positively impact people, planet, and animals. The plant-based foods industry is powered by innovative, mission-driven businesses, and we leverage their partnership and passion to drive collective change—bringing like-minded industry leaders together, elevating change agents of all backgrounds within our community, and empowering plant-based companies to drive transformational progress.  

Achieving our vision is a movement-wide effort. To ensure every voice is heard, we facilitate safe, inclusive spaces where changemakers of diverse perspectives, backgrounds, and cultures can connect, share ideas, and create greater impact together. Food plays a key role in defining life experiences, enriching cultures, and fostering connections—as such, we provide partnership with and promote inclusion of groups historically excluded from these important conversations to ensure cultures with rich food traditions have space to lead discussion, education, and normalization of plant-based foods within their communities.

OUR COMMITMENTS


Within PBFA/I, we commit to fostering equity and inclusion by:

  • Cultivating a psychologically safe workplace that supports, values, and appreciates the contributions of a diverse and talented workforce.
  • Recognizing the need to move away from the harmful demands of hustle culture, the importance of learning and honoring growth limits, and the understanding that work must ebb and flow. 
  • Advancing inclusion through collaboration and adaptability, employing a mindset of continuous learning to better support our PBFA/I communities, and approaching feedback with curiosity and gratitude.

Outside of PBFA/I, we commit to fostering equity and inclusion by:

  • Advocating for systems change across the food industry and promoting its potential to address many complex, interconnected challenges our world faces. 
  • Developing supportive partnerships with BIMPOC supply network partners, suppliers, and industry leaders to advance plant-based foods across diverse communities. 
  • Reducing industry barriers to entry for individuals from marginalized communities; and providing opportunities to contribute to the movement, lead critical conversations, and connect with funding opportunities to grow their businesses.
  • Acknowledging where our expertise begins and ends, and connecting with aligned organizations to facilitate broadscale change and educate policymakers and consumers about the harmful impacts of our current food system and the need for regenerative, plant-based agriculture.