Hello to you all,

 

Firstly thank you all for your support.  Launching a new business has been exciting, but then the pandemic hit and we thought it would spell disaster. Fortunately, it did not.  Our customers have been amazing, and we have found many returning.  You are amazing, and we thank you from the bottom of our heart.  OC is nothing without you. You believe in us but most importantly our cause.  You have taken to OC, believed in what we have, and will help drive real change in the years to come.

We want to say a special thank you to students across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.  We get a lot of love, feedback ideas and suggestions for OC, and it’s truly inspiring.  As a Co-Founder, and being a student in Leeds myself, it’s good to know you share my ideas and passion for putting the environment first.

We will soon be launching a new clothing range for Spring/Summer and as always it will be limited.  We don’t over order to avoid waste.  The new range will bring new colours to OC and offer Organic and vegan certified fabrics.  We are super excited and look forward to revealing the new range soon.

 

This month I wanted to highlight other issues our Oceans face outside of plastic pollution.  If plastic waste is the visible enemy or our Oceans, then Acidification is the invisible enemy.  The Ocean absorbs over 30% Carbon Dioxide produced by cars, factories and air travel, which is great for us, but unfortunately not for the Ocean.  A chemical reaction that takes place within the Ocean while absorbing Carbon Dioxide is causing the Ocean to become acidic. This is eroding sea creatures with shells, and our Ocean’s Coral Reefs.   We can all help reverse this, it will take time.  The small changes we make together will have a lasting impact.  So lets start today.

Did you know OC is a profit for purpose business? We want to drive change so donate to charities that help protect our Ocean, keep them clean, educate people on climate change and the damage it causes to marine life and Coral Reefs.  Supporting OC makes you part of this, together we can make a difference.

At OC HQ, we are starting to make changes in what we eat for the good of the planet.  It’s a journey, so we will share the ‘good’ recipes we find.

This month please welcome the Vegan Mug cake… please give it a try. Quick easy and delicious. Please send us your feedback and a picture of your Mug cake to info@ocgear.co.uk . Best pics and comments get a free OC voucher.

Ingredients

• 3 tbsp dairy-free milk , we used oat milk
• pinch lemon zest
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp sunflower oil
• 4 tbsp self-raising flour
• 2 tbsp caster sugar 
• pinch bicarbonate of soda 
• 4 fresh or frozen raspberries 

To serve

• coconut cream or dairy-free ice cream

Method

• STEP 1

Put the milk in a microwave-safe mug, add the lemon zest and juice and leave to sit for 2-3 mins. It should start to look a bit grainy, as if it has split. Stir in the sunflower oil, flour, sugar and bicarbonate of soda. Mix really well with a fork until smooth.

• STEP 2

Drop in the raspberries then microwave on high for 1 min 30 secs, or until puffed up and cooked through.

• STEP 3

Serve with a drizzle of coconut cream, or a scoop of dairy-free ice cream if you like.

 

Recipe from the BBC food website.

Have a great month, and I look forward to sharing our next newsletter.