Miyoko Schinner

Schinner was born Takano Miyoko in a village outside Yokohama, Japan. At age seven, she moved with her mother to the United States. She graduated from St. John's College in Maryland.[4]

Schinner transitioned to eating vegan in the mid-1980s.[5][2] During the 1990s, she taught vegan cooking classes, and in 1991 The Book Publishing Company published her first vegan cookbook The Now and Zen Epicure.[6] In 1994, she opened the vegan restaurant Now and Zen in San Francisco, which eventually expanded into a natural food company of the same name, which was sold in 2003.[7] Schinner has launched a number of vegan brands, such as UnTurkey, which she exhibited at the 1995 Natural Products Expo alongside competitor Tofurky, and Hip Whip.[2]

Book Publishing Company published her Artisan Vegan Cheese cookbook in 2012. That same year she began co-hosting PBS cooking show Vegan Mashup, with Toni Fiore and Terry Hope Romero.[8]

In 2014, Schinner launched vegan cheese company Miyoko's Kitchen, later renaming it Miyoko's Creamery.[9] Tofurky founder Seth Tibbott was the company's first investor.[10] In 2016, the Specialty Food Association reported the company had "grown 300% year over year," and "they recently signed on to a new 28,000+ square-foot headquarters in Petaluma."[10]

In 2015, Ten Speed Press published Schinner's The Homemade Vegan Pantry.[11] In 2019, the cookbook was named one of the Best Vegan Cookbooks by Good Housekeeping magazine.[12]

In 2015, Schinner founded the nonprofit Rancho Compasion farmed animal sanctuary in Nicasio, California.[13]

In 2018, Melaina Juntti of New Hope Network described Schinner as a "vegan rock star".[5] Schinner was among 28 women featured in PopSugar's "28 Women Changing the World Right This Second" list, a project backed by UN Women.[14]

In 2021, Schinner was included in the inaugural Forbes 50 Over 50 list.[1][15]

Schinner has been involved in legal challenges over product laws that regulate vegan food labeling, with Schinner arguing the laws violate free speech.[16][17][18]

Schinner is married to San Francisco attorney Michael Schinner. She has three adult children, Aki Chambers, basketball player; Sera, and Cammy, the latter of whom often assists her mother with her video shoots.

• The Now and Zen Epicure, Book Publishing Company, 1991 (as Miyoko Nishimoto)
• Japanese Cooking: Contemporary & Traditional [Simple, Delicious, and Vegan], Book Publishing Company, Aug 19, 1999
• Artisan Vegan Cheese, Book Publishing Company, Aug. 8, 2012
• The Homemade Vegan Pantry: The Art of Making Your Own Staples, Ten Speed Press, June 16, 2015