Miyoko Schinner facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Miyoko Schinner
Schinner delivering keynote address at Animal Equality Gala 2017
Born	Miyoko Nishimoto 1957 Japan
Occupation	Vegan chef activist cookbook author cooking show host entrepreneur
Alma mater	St. John's College (BA)
Subject	Veganism cookbooks
Notable works	The New Now and Zen Epicure: Gourmet Cuisine for the Enlightened Palate (2001) Artisan Vegan Cheese (2012) The Homemade Vegan Pantry: The Art of Making Your Own Staples (2015) The Vegan Meat Cookbook: Meatless Favorites. Made with Plants (2021)

Miyoko Schinner (born in 1957) is a famous American-Japanese chef, author, and activist. She is known for her vegan cooking and for starting businesses that help people and the planet. Since 2024, she has also taught at the University of California, Berkeley.

Early Life and Education

Miyoko Schinner was born Takano Miyoko in a village near Yokohama, Japan. When she was seven years old, she moved to the United States with her mother. She later graduated from St. John's College in Maryland.

Starting Her Career

Madam Miyoko (1980s)

In the 1980s, Miyoko Schinner went back to Japan and lived in Tokyo. During this time, she started eating a vegan diet for health reasons. She found out she was lactose intolerant, meaning dairy products upset her stomach.

As she learned to make vegan food for herself, she decided to sell her creations. She started a small business called "Madam Miyoko." She sold vegan pound cakes from her backpack.

Miyoko missed eating cheese. She felt that vegan cheese options in the 1980s were not very good. She dreamed of making better vegan cheese.

Now and Zen (1988-2003)

Restaurant

Miyoko Schinner later returned to the United States and settled in San Francisco. In 1988, she opened a vegan bakery. This bakery grew and became the vegan Now and Zen Restaurant.

Around the holidays, she made a special vegan "Unturkey." This was a plant-based roast that became very popular. In 1995, she received many orders for it.

Natural Food Company

In 1997, Miyoko sold her restaurant. She then started a vegan food company, also called Now and Zen. This company focused on making the Unturkey.

As her company grew, Miyoko found it hard to keep up with all the orders. She also found that investors were more interested in tech companies at that time.

Cookbooks

During this period, Miyoko Schinner wrote three vegan cookbooks. One of her books, The New Now and Zen Epicure, was named one of the "Top 100 Vegan Cookbooks of All Time" in 2024 by VegNews magazine.

Artisan Vegan Cheese (2012)

In 2012, Miyoko Schinner published a cookbook called Artisan Vegan Cheese. This book was all about how to make vegan cheese.

Many people loved this book. In 2021, Food & Wine magazine called it "the important cookbook that made vegan cheesemaking famous." VegNews also listed it as one of the "Top 100 Vegan Cookbooks of All Time" in 2024.

Miyoko's Creamery (2014-2023)

Miyoko Schinner started Miyoko's Kitchen in 2014. Her goal was to make dairy-free products like butter and many kinds of vegan cheese. She used special plant-based ingredients like cashews, oats, and chickpea flour.

Her company quickly received a lot of money from investors. One of the first investors was Seth Tibbott, who founded the company Tofurky.

Miyoko launched her company with just four employees. They received 50,000 orders in just a few days! Soon, the company moved to a much larger building in Petaluma.

More money came in to help the company grow. In 2019, famous people like Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi invested in Miyoko's Creamery. The company also started selling its products in Canada and Australia.

In 2020, Miyoko's Food Truck traveled across the United States. It gave away 15,000 free grilled cheese sandwiches. This helped promote cruelty-free vegan cheese.

In 2021, Miyoko's Creamery won a court case. The California Department of Food and Agriculture wanted them to stop using words like "Cheese" and "Butter" for their plant-based products. But the company won the right to use these words.

In February 2023, Miyoko's Creamery announced that Miyoko Schinner was no longer the CEO. The company and Miyoko decided to go their separate ways. Later, they both shared that they had settled any disagreements and wished each other well.

Cookbooks

During this time, Miyoko Schinner also wrote two more vegan cookbooks. Her 2015 book, The Homemade Vegan Pantry, was named one of the best vegan cookbooks by Food & Wine and Good Housekeeping. Her 2021 book, The Vegan Meat Cookbook, was also named one of the "best new cookbooks" by The San Francisco Chronicle.

Recent Activities (2023-Present)

In 2023, Miyoko Schinner started a cooking show on YouTube called The Vegan Good Life with Miyoko.

In 2024, she began teaching at the University of California, Berkeley. She teaches a course about sustainable and impact finance.

Miyoko also works with Rancho Compasion, an animal sanctuary she started in 2015.

Awards and Honors

Miyoko Schinner is seen as a leader in making vegan cheese. In 2018, she was called a "vegan rock star." She was also featured in PopSugar's list of "28 Women Changing the World Right This Second."

In 2023, Tasting Table named Miyoko Schinner as one of the “21 Plant-Based Chefs You Need To Know.” VegNews also listed her as one of the "37 Creative Chefs Crafting the Future of Vegan Food."

Personal Life

Miyoko and Michael Schinner have three children: a son who plays basketball in Japan, and two daughters. They divorced in 2023.

See also

• List of social entrepreneurs
• List of vegan and plant-based media