By Nicole Phillipson* for Frank Film
Flip Grater's musical talent has taken her around the world, but back home she also creates gourmet vegan delicacies through her Christchurch company.
The talented singer-songwriter has released five critically acclaimed albums and toured her music internationally. But music is not her only hobby: Snce her teenage years, she has been a passionate environmental activist and vegan foodie.
In 2018 Grater returned to her roots by opening a vegan restaurant and food production company, along with her husband Yousef Iskrane. They called it Grater Goods.
"The business world is a bit of a strange beast that I don't quite feel like I belong to," Grater said.
And yet, Grater Goods is thriving, with plans to expand and distribute their plant-based products to Australian markets.
Grater invited Frank Film into the company's factory to see how their entirely plant-based food range - including carrot lox, vegan chorizo, and furkey, or soy "turkey" - is made.
Grater Goods' furkey. Photo: Supplied / Greater Good
"It's really easy to get overwhelmed by the problems of the world and to feel negative, and to get angry," she said, "but it's so much more sustainable and positive to put something good into the world."
Grater admitted she had had an "angry stage": She was a fierce activist for animal rights in her teenage years, when she began working with various animal charities and environmental groups.
Her dad John Grater said when his daughter (originally named Clare) became vegan at 15, she put together a petition to save the Hector's dolphin. Friends nicknamed her Flipper, which was shortened to her current moniker.
These days, she is all about putting good things into the world, whether that is plant-based platters or soulful songs.
Her music was "on pause," she said, but it was not done yet - which was clear when she played her daughter a delicate lullaby from her recent EP, Lullabies for Anaïs.
* Nicole Phillipson is an Ōtautahi-based writer, currently working as a documentary researcher for Frank Film.
Flip Grater and her husband Yousef Iskrane. Photo: Flip Grater
