Helena Cerqueda is responsible for creating the vegan business The Vegan Cake. If you want to try 100% vegan cake and taste alternative solutions, you have to talk to her. The Vegan Cake intends to satisfy everyine with vegan, alternative and environmentally friendly products.

Curious? Come with us on this vegan pastry and get to know better the project The Vegan Cake.

The Vegan Cake was born…

… as a way of responding to the “sweet moments” of a vegan Helena and to overcome some difficulties in finding sweet options 100% vegetable. To overcome this barrier, Helena started preparing sweets and cakes in her own home for herself and her friends. She felt in love with the kitchen and pastry, which today are two very important things in her life. As Helena became more involved with pastry and vegan cuisine, her interests began to diverge from the corporate culture of the multinational where she worked, despite her love for the company. She realized that in addition, she was also in need to embrace a new challenge and be responsible and autonomous in a new project.

In March 2019, she signed up on impulse for a vegan festival in the city of Braga and managed to sell out all her products in just one day. J The motivation to continue came from the great feedbacks she obtained during the fair.

Thus, “the dream of creating a business of her own aligned with her values ​​and business vision” was born.

The Vegan Cake’s mission…

… is to ensure that vegan or non-vegan consumers can enjoy traditional 100% vegetable pastry options at competitive prices. It promotes Vegan food, demonstrating how tasty it can be and that it can be an alternative to the pastry products we are used to consuming.

The Vegan Cake produces and makes available…

… a wide range of 100% vegetable cakes and snacks products. The most popular products are the Alheira and Cheese patties and the delicious Brigadeiro Cake. Recently, products like Donuts, Rufadinhas and mini Pies have also become part of the menu. The Vegan Cake also offers gluten-free and/or refined sugar products and is able to present Cake design solutions.

The confection of the products is personalized according to the customers’ request. The products’ delivery is made at the customer’s home, being a premium service. For that same reason, they do not have a space open to the public.

The Vegan Cake is a business that works to be as sustainable as possible, because…

… vegetable and fruit based diets have a lower environmental impact compared to other forms of diets. For example, plant production requires less potable water and space than animal production. In addition, its production emits less gases (carbon dioxide and methane).

Helena points out that 2400 liters of water are used to produce a hamburger, that 91% of deforestation in the Amazon is caused by livestock and intensive cereal plantations for the production of animal feed and that fishing is responsible for 40% pollution of the oceans with fishing nets.

The Vegan Cake minimizes the use of plastic and all of its packaging is made of paper.

The Vegan Cake faces some uncomfortable situations…

… that occur due to prejudice and lack of knowledge about plant nutrition. There is a myth that being vegan is eating salad. Fortunately, these preconceived ideas are fading more and more, so people are increasingly open to experimenting new things regarding vegan diet. The vegan market has experienced exponential growth in recent years, but it remains a niche market. In order to be able to attract more customers to the consumption of their products, Helena then opted for personal delivery and not the physical space for selling products.

The two delivery routes are:

– Maia, Porto, Gaia, Santo Tirso, Famalicão, Guimarães and Braga

– Maia, Porto, Gaia, Santa Maria da Feira, Aveiro and Viseu

The vegan food market is growing exponentially…

… so the offer of products for this type of diet has grown and there are more and more options for 100% vegetable pastries.

Helena suggests that, to bring awareness of the importance of sustainable food systems, it is necessary…

… educate and raise awareness of people to start realizing that their consumption choices have consequences and to understand them. Information can come from schools, but adult people should become more curious and research the food supply chains and the consequences of their consumption, not only in terms of food, but social, environmental and economic.

Country governments also need to be informed and make decisions based on that acquired information.

Get to know better The Vegan Cake on:

Facebook: @The Vegan Cake

Instagram: @the.vegan.cake