Simon Foale, a former investment banker, said he had always wanted to own his own butchery business.
Whilst in the banking sector, he even started attending butchery courses. He told SBS Cantonese that he wanted to do something different from the exhausting occupation.
"I was in investment banking for 15-16 years, it was high-stressed, [involved] a lot of travel, long hours, and sitting in the office," he said.
"I just wanted to have my own business and be my own boss. I guess it's a pretty common story."
"Firstly, I changed from a Western animal-eating diet to becoming a vegan. The reason for that was mainly [due to] my father passing away from prostate cancer," he said.
Mr Foale's father had prostate cancer for more than 15 years, and his death prompted Simon to look for different ways to live his life.
The Cancer Council states that while links between meat consumption and a risk of cancer has been controversial, there is some evidence that red meat may be associated with a modest increased risk of bowel cancer.
Evidence linking red meat to other forms of cancer is more limited.
360-degree turn
Having a conversation with a former colleague in banking, who owned a vegan coffee shop, as well as researching through various means, Mr Foale said he discovered some strong links between animal hormones and cancer.
"I really want to try and minimise my chances of getting cancer the same way my father did," he said.
Since then, he decided to go vegetarian and cut meat from his diet. Within six months, he decided to cut dairy and animal products.
"Within a year, I was fully vegan, which is a pretty big change from eating meat two or three times a day, drinking a lot of milk with my coffee, eggs and bacon, and stuff like that," he said.
The father-of-three said changing his diet not only helped his grief but most likely saved his life.
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"I feel like I was actually doing something to take control of my health. The physical changes, which were very positive, include weight loss, improvement of my cholesterol levels, my heart age, and things like that," he recalled.
The change, however, was not limited to physical health, but also his mental state.
"It really helped me become more mentally resilient as well. I've definitely started to feel a lot healthier, sleep better, on a plant-based diet than I used to."
"Kids do not miss out on crucial nutrients"
When asked whether his children's nutrition intake or well-being would be affected by having a vegan diet, the father of three said he does not think so.
"My kids are three beautiful daughters, and everyone, including my beautiful wife, is very healthy. The kids, in particular, are very healthy," he said.
"They don't miss any meat. And there are so many good alternatives now. I have a pretty good understanding of what nutrients and nutrition the kids need, especially girls, such as calcium that they need to get into their bodies. We make sure we have a well-rounded diet," Mr Foale said.
Another argument in society against a vegan diet is that humans require the consumption of meat to obtain protein. But Mr Foale stressed, "animals don't create protein, they ingest it".
"I'm not concerned with their diet, and they're healthy and happy."
He said when thinking of a plant-based diet, the availability of food options was much better compared to five years ago when he turned vegan.
"We have amazing and really well-established organic markets, and the selection they have makes choices a lot easier these days."
