What would you say if I told you that dodging romantic connections with carnivores was about to get that little bit easier? GRAZER is a new vegan-first dating app set to dominate the love lives of leaf-lovers everywhere. These “meatless matchmakers” have a serious mission: to push forward the plant-based movement, encourage a “vegan revolution” and, ultimately, help young Beyond Meat enthusiasts find a meaningful love connection.

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Now, niche dating apps aren’t an entirely new concept. In 2022 alone, we saw the rise of ultra-conservative platforms selling what they considered to be the ‘right’ romantic dream, as well as canine enthusiastic apps which focused on pairing up dog lovers. There was even an app designed for NFT fanatics. Nevertheless, a platform geared solely towards matching gen Zers with similar diets is something we haven’t really seen before.

It’s true that when it comes to the younger generations’ dating lives, veganism—and the political attitudes and global perspectives that come with it—can have a majorly influential impact.

In order to understand more about this exciting new app (and to commemorate the end of Veganuary) SCREENSHOT spoke with Lewis Foster, GRAZER’s founder and CEO. You never know, perhaps his story might encourage one or two readers to commit to the lifestyle all year round?

With every new 21st century dating app comes an origin story. And for Foster, it was all about disrupting the matchmaking market and creating a sexier and cooler app geared towards the hottest herbivores out there. And no, we’re not talking about Netflix’s Bad Vegan.

“I’ve been vegan for a long time. Finding a like-minded partner was always one of the sticking points in the community. At the time, there were a couple of outdated vegan dating apps and websites. I felt like vegan dating needed a glow up. That’s where GRAZER started,” he told me.

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Of course, jump-starting a business is no easy feat. Soon, Foster had moved home and put all of his savings into building the beta version of the app. Thankfully, after finding a way to raise investment at the end of 2022, GRAZER’s now become a fully fledged functioning business—and its highly niche audience might be the clincher in helping the app become a stupendous success.

In Foster’s eyes, mainstream dating apps simply don’t do it for the vegan community. He explained how “41 per cent of online daters are put off if someone says they are vegan on their profile. This has led to more than half of vegans not mentioning their diet on dating apps for fear of rejection.”

“We want to create a space where vegans can express their plant based selves,” Foster added.

Vegan stigma is a genuine thing. According to BBC studies, the “meat paradox”—wherein Westerners are confronted with mounting evidence that eating meat is a bad thing—often results in a psychological rebellion. Being faced with literature, academic debate and media confirming truths surrounding the negative aspects of a solely meat-based diet can bring out the worst in people.

Some individuals try to rationalise these unhappy realisations, or they simply justify their actions by focusing on other issues. Unfortunately, these methods of denial are completely derailed by vegans. By simply existing, vegans inherently disrupt the status quo, and this often leads to heightened tensions.

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It’s understandable that when it comes to dating, some vegans want to feel reassured that they’ll be able to navigate romance without fear of retaliation or rejection. There’s also the problem of not wanting to date a meat-eater altogether.

As Foster sees it, “more than half of vegans say they wouldn’t date a meat-eater. If that’s you, your dating pool is dramatically smaller. If you’re open to a meat-eater, you might not be down for a meaty kiss. 63 per cent of our community said they wouldn’t kiss someone who’s just eaten meat. If you like your date, do you put your ethics aside for a ride?”

So, how has GRAZER gone out of its way to get vegans excited for this new exclusive dating experience? It has recruited one of the community’s favourite spokespeople: drag queen and plant-based icon Bimini Bon Boulash.

Flaunting GRAZER’s signature mantra “Fuck Vegans,” Bimini has been taking part in an extensive promotional campaign—all geared towards creating hype around the app and encouraging fellow vegans to get involved.

As a personal fan of all things drag, I had to ask Foster more about this iconic collaboration. The CEO explained: “Bimini is an icon. They invested in GRAZER last year and they’ve been so supportive. We pitched the idea to them of collabing on our ‘F*CK VEGANS’ campaign and they were so up for getting down and dirty. The lighthearted yet punky message works so well with Bimini. It was a perfect marriage of minds.”

Now, while Bimini is a supreme pick, I was also interested in any future partnerships at the top of GRAZER’s wish list, and Foster did not disappoint: “We have a long list of people we’d love to work with. Billie Eilish would be a dream. So many, we love Serena Williams, Pamela Anderson, Earthling Ed, Lizzo, Joaquin Phoenix, Stefania Ferrario…”

When it comes to GRAZER’s mission and vision for the future, one thing’s for sure, it’s going to be “sexy af.” Foster envisions the app’s purpose as helping to represent “the new wave of plant-based living,” where veganism is aspirational and fun, and, as the year continues, the plan is to “paint the world green one meatless match at a time.” So, listen up vegans, 2023 might just turn out to be the most romantic one yet.