Food has always been the lens through which Peggy Chan has sought to change the world. Years on from the days when she ran Grassroots Pantry, a humble vegetarian restaurant in Sai Ying Pun and then Sheung Wan, Chan has hit the accelerator on her mission.

Following the closure of her second restaurant, Nectar, in the midst of the pandemic in 2020, Chan went on to crowdfund and publish her first cookbook, Provenance, to raise awareness of the plant-based movement as well as of Zero Foodprint Asia, the regional arm of an initiative that addresses the climate crisis through regenerative farming and renewable food systems. “We strategise on how we can help the restaurant industry transition into more sustainable and accountable best practices, as well as how the food industry can participate in climate solutions with very little effort required,” explains Chan.