AN INFLUENCER has made his passion his full-time job as he prepares for his first big event.

Jacob King, 28, who lives in Braiswick, grew up in Colchester and went to school at Colne Community School in Brightlingsea.

Also known as pengveganmunch online, Jacob is a vegan content creator with 191,000 followers on Instagram and more that 6,000 on TikTok.

He started making content in 2019 by taking pictures of vegan dinners he had made or new products he found.

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After being made redundant from his job as a cashier for Ladbrokes, he put more of his time into his passion.

He said: “I took a chance, I had a little bit of money from being made redundant but it was stressful when that money started running out.”

Jacob gained 50,000 followers in just a few months around January, 2021 and it was then that he felt it taking off.

His full-time job is now a content creator and he is also an ambassador for plant powered company Alpro and will be a demonstrator at the Vegan Life Live event at Alexandra Palace on Saturday, June 11.

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He has also formed a group called the Plantboiis, which is a group of nine vegans who want to show that veganism can be fun.

He said: “I want to continue inspiring people to eat more vegan food and I will do that through my page and through the Plantboiis.

“We’re trying to break down stereotypes by showing that we can be vegan and still be masculine and build muscles.

“I have been vegan for six years and finding veganism at that point there wasn’t many options in the shops, I could just about get tofu.

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“In the first few years it was difficult and the options are crazy now compared to what they were.

“It’s all a learning curve and you can’t be too hard on yourself.

“Vegan food is not just salads and tofu with a bit of soy sauce, I like to show people that it can be vibrant and exciting.”