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Soy Happy®'s Approach | What Can I Do?
Celebrity Support

Also, click here for references and information on reasons for trying veg alternatives.

Soy Happy's Approach

We encourage interested consumers to make suggestions and offer feedback to the food establishments they patronize. Polite suggestions and submitted request forms are taken very seriously. Most vendors and concession reps keep a tally of requests. Some respond to them immediately! Your voice has immense power. Use it. You'll be amazed. If you don't ask, they may not know that there's an interest in selling alernatives. Always ask. Even in places where you think, "they'll never do it". Every voice adds up to make a difference and it only takes a few minutes of your time.

NOTE: Even your best intentions can become counter-productive if you make suggestions to venues you don't actually patronize. Keep it real and focus on sharing your positive suggestions to those places that call you a customer.

We urge larger venues, like stadiums, to provide good exposure and clear signage of newly introduced items in order for the public to be aware they exist, and to ensure maximum sales that will reflect true interest and demand. We encourage consumers to notify the food director if they have difficulty locating vegetarian options. Many baseball fans have contacted Soy Happy with stories about how difficult it was to find the veggie dogs at their favorite stadiums. Sales won't reflect true interest or demand unless all available customers are aware that these items are offered in the first place.

When we talk to food establishments about adding vegetarian alternatives, we make it about one simple issue: consumer demand. Many vendors and concession reps assume this is an issue limited to vegetarians. It isn't. In fact, the majority of people buying meat alternatives in retail stores are not vegetarians. They are mainstream Americans who are cutting back on their intake of animal products for a variety of reasons. Tell the venue about competitors that are already offering the item you're seeking and share statistics on the rise in consumer demand for healthy/vegetarian items. See our page with some citations on consumer demand for reference. (Also, we will be updating our list of supportive statistics, so when you come upon some, please share those citations with us!)

We celebrate vegetarian options! Our focus is on what is possible. We are excited about the fact that alternatives are tasty and popular, and we show it. We always express ourselves courteously and with a smile..and thank venue representatives for their time and consideration.

Is your attitude positive? Are you being polite, thanking them for their time and consideration? Be a model customer and start from the perspective that attraction is promotion.

What can I do to encourage vegetarian options in my favorite places?

Read "Encouraging Vegetarian Foods at Concession Stands".This is an article written by SH Founder Johanna McCloy in The Vegetarian Journal. In this article she provides an informative outline of the food distribution business and suggests to consumers the most effective ways to approach vendors. Remember, when you are informed, you hold more power!

Contact the food establishment with your suggestions. For large scale venues/sporting arenas, you can go to our Venue Reference Guide for contact information . Write a letter, make a call or send an Email and let them know that you would love to see more plant-based options to meat or dairy products. (Please review our approach above). If you are a regular customer, ask and make suggestions in person. Local consumer feedback is taken very seriously. If they know there's a demand, they want to meet it...and, sometimes, it only takes one suggestion to make the difference! (Remember to be gracious in your request. Be the kind of customer they will want to please. The nicer you are, the more likely they'll go out of their way to consider your suggestion.)

Does your region or ballpark have a Soy Happy Manager? (Check the Venue Reference Guide under your local baseball team to see if one is listed). If so, contact this person to extend your support. If there is no Manager listed and you'd like to be more actively involved in this effort, please look over the list of suggestions below.We encourage Soy Happy Managers to coordinate these efforts. If you are interested in volunteering as a Soy Happy Manager for your region or ballpark, contact us!

If your local mainstream venue recently added veggie options that you enjoy...

Share your positive remarks with the concession staff. If it is a larger venue, ask if you can talk to the concession manager in person. He or she is usually nearby and can easily be paged. They welcome appreciative thanks in person, so let them see your happy faces!

Spread the word locally. Post flyers at supportive stores and restaurants, gyms, and office boards. Let local fans know this option is now available and where they can find it.

Patronize this venue as many times as you can. Show your gratitude and support by giving them your business. New menu items are considered tentative until sales prove them to be worth keeping. Promotions and information about a new menu item will be scarce, so it's key for supportive consumers to keep the business alive until more people find out and sales start to kick into gear.

Organize a group outing to boost sales and to generate a positive association with the item. Bring a digital camera and take photos of your group. Share your photos with us and we'll post them on our site!

Notify local news media to cover this new trend toward healthier eating in mainstream venues. Write a letter t o the Editor of your local newspaper and other publications.

Sign up for Soy Happy's email alerts and check Talks and Media Mentions for the latest media coverage. Follow up by contacting the media referenced there, expressing your thanks for the coverage and your support for Soy Happy's efforts.

If any of the venue reference information listed on this site has changed, please be sure to contact us with the updated information. We are not always informed when a concessionaire or vendor makes a change to the menu, so we appreciate local customer/consumer updates!

 
 
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