I was born in 1979 in North London to a Greek Cypriot family, I had a typically Greek upbringing where food was the basis of every social event. Due to my background I had a good foundation for a healthy diet. Fresh fruit and vegetables, pulses, nuts and seeds were all incorporated into my daily food intake and all meals were prepared with fresh ingredients from scratch.

In 2003 after graduating from the University of Surrey Roehampton with honours in Psychology and Art for the Community and then working for some time, I embarked on a journey of life, which included travelling around South East Asia. During which I met some of the most influential people in my life and my eyes were opened to a world away from fast-, fried- and other unhealthy foods.

For the first time in January 2004 I adopted a vegan diet and was even convinced to try the raw food diet for 3 days. Being in Thailand I was able to feast on huge salads which included water chestnuts, bamboo shoots sesame seeds, plus ate fresh mangos, pineapple and watermelon for breakfast and drank fresh coconut water. The list of wonderful, juicy and tasty exotic fruits and vegetables was endless. After 3 days of thinking about cooked food I found that I had no urgency to eat any and I felt great. From that moment on I was even more inspired and curious, therefore when I got home in March 2004 I started to research raw food diets, looking on the internet and reading anything I could rest my eyes on. Eventually I decided to try it for a week as a detox, however after that week I felt great and looked so good again I had no desire to eat anything cooked, cooked food had no appeal whatsoever, even less so then after the 3 days in Thailand. And so my journey into raw food began.

Since taking the first steps into raw food I have been fortunate enough to assist raw-vegan Gourmet chef Chad Sarno at the Fresh Festival 2004 and 2005 and was lucky enough to meet fellow rawfoodist Woody Harrelson.

I worked my way into the raw food community by volunteering at many festivals and events from 2004 to today, eventually running my own stalls and being the head chef at raw food events.

Another life changing event, which has played an important factor in my personal development, is spending six months in 2005 volunteering in Arta, Greece, where I lived and worked on an organic farm learning the fundamentals in planting, growing and harvesting fruits, vegetables, grains and pulses and living a completely Vegan Organic lifestyle. And consequently meeting my future husband and eventually moving to Arta permanently.

Today I still live in Arta, Greece where I spend my days chasing my baby daughter around and experimenting in my kitchen with the local in season produce.  I do my best to follow environmentally friendly practices in and around my home and offer advice to those near and far about the raw food diet and good nutrition.

My experiences and passion for food have given me the creativity needed to adapt many common recipes to the raw vegan lifestyle.

I love presenting family and friends with raw food delights and regardless of their initial scepticism they always enjoy what I offer. I have even catered and hosted a 100% raw food Christmas party impressing everybody, young and old, who traditionally believed that meat and bread was the foundation for every meal!

I believe that food should not be a chore, it should be fun, and that if we take care of what we put into our bodies, the benefits will be evident from the outside and our bodies will better take care of us later in life.

Gina Panayi