NorCal’s Largest Vegan Food Fest Celebrates Black Entrepreneurship

By Genoa Barrow | OBSERVER Senior Staff WriterGoing green never tasted better, says the Bay Area Black woman behind Northern California’s largest vegan food festival.& The Bizerkeley Food Festival is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 1, with 100 vendors, among them businesses showcasing plant-based cuisine and drinks, live entertainment, games and a number of giveaways. The festival will be held at Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park, 2151 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Berkeley.The festival was founded in 2021 by Erika Hazel, aka “The Bizerkeley Vegan.” The event focuses on “introducing top-tier, hand-selected vegan businesses to the public to normalize how amazing they can be.”Hazel wears many hats, including recipe creator, social media influencer, food blogger, event planner and philanthropist. The OBSERVER spoke with Hazel this week as she prepares for what she boasts is Northern California’s largest vegan food festival.Erika Hazel’s goal is to help people find the best plant-based foods the world has to offer. She hosts the annual Bizerkeley Food Festival, now in its fourth year. Alex Jordan, OBSERVEROBSERVER: Have you always been vegan?EH: This year is my eight-year anniversary. I went vegetarian as a kid a few times because my family teased me that I was...