Colleges across Georgia are doing classes online and Atlanta is trying to keep it’s people indoors. Now, Georgia State senior Ben Abrams and his two roommates are adjusting to a life of social distancing. The journalism student shares how their lives are changing during the caronavirus pandemic.

Abrams still plans to work an internship remotely with Georgia Public Broadcasting while taking classes online this summer. To learn more about Ben Abrams and see more of his stories, you can follow on Twitter, Facebook, & Instagram.

After his playing days in the N.F.L. were behind him. Sports was the last place Reggie Ball wanted to turn to write the next chapter of his life. But once he decided to embrace his athletic background, Ball became a fitness trainer. Now, as one of the founders of E.F.F.E.C.T. Fitness, he’s teaching his clients to live healthier & happier lives.

Ball is currently doing personal and group sessions of his “Ball Effect” training program. To learn more about Reggie Ball and his fitness program, you can visit the E.F.F.E.C.T. fitness website and the “Ball Effect’s” Instagram page. 

After more than three years of hard work, Candice Hawk’s effort is paying off. The health activist opened Spreading the Health last year to provide South Atlanta with a healthy alternative to the abundance of fast food restaurants that flood the area.

Hawk and her team have opened two locations of Spreading the Health within their first year of business. To find out more about them you can visit their website or find them on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.

Plant-based cuisines have become a staple in Atlanta’s restaurant scene. A survey by WalletHub in September 2019 placed Atlanta as the 6th best city for vegans and vegetarians, even beating out cities like New York and San Francisco. Here are five ways that Atlanta is embracing the vegan and vegetarian dishes into its menus.

1. College like Georgia Tech, Georgia State, and Emory University are now offering vegetarian and vegan options in their restaurants and dining halls. This shift comes from a growing number of students who want to see more plant-based foods on their school’s menu.  

2. The Slutty Vegan, the vegan burger joint that has become a massive sensation since opening in 2018, has partnered with Rap Snack to release an all-vegan potato chip line. The snacks will be available in over 100,000 stores in Atlanta and across the U.S. this December. 

3. Atlantans became the judges for KFC’s attempt to go vegan back in August. One KFC location in Smyrna, Georgia, was the test site for the national chain’s newest menu item, “Beyond Fried Chicken.” A plant-based chicken product created by KFC and Beyond Meat could be released nationwide soon. 

4. New restaurants like Grass VBQ Joint, a plant-based barbecue joint, and the aptly named, Plant Based Pizzeria have been opening since the beginning of 2019. Restaurants like these are helping vegans and vegetarians fill the voids for undeserved cuisines in their communities. 

5. Ammazza’s pizza restaurants in Decatur and on Edgewood Avenue added an all-vegan menu to both of their locations in June. The rise of plant-based lifestyles and diets have encourage established restaurant to start offering more vegan and vegetarians items on their menu’s.  

The demand for plant-based food has been on the rise not only in Atlanta but also in America. According to a report by Food Business News, sales for plant-based meat have gone up by 10 % in the past year, and the trends for plant-based cheese and eggs have similar results. Atlanta is sending a clear message to its communities and the rest of the U.S. that these new food trends are here to stay.