Legal

All recipes, headnotes, photographs and stories on this site are the original creations and property of Melanie McDonald & A Virtual Vegan. My images are protected by Pixsy who work to resolve cases of unauthorized image use. PIXSY can and will request royalties for commercial, institutional and certain organizational uses of images and will take legal action on my behalf if a resolution cannot be met.

You are welcome to share a photo with credit to me and a link to this website, however using a photograph without credit and no link or re-publishing the recipe in its entirety is strictly forbidden and violates my copyright. Many, many hours of work go into creating each of my recipes and I ask that you respect that.  By making simple substitutions you do not make it an original recipe, so please refrain from adapting the recipes without properly linking back to my original recipe.

This Privacy Policy governs the manner in which A Virtual Vegan collects, uses, maintains and discloses information collected from users of http://www.avirtualvegan.com website.

Personal identification information
A Virtual Vegan may collect personal identification information from Users in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to, when Users visit the site, register on the site, and in connection with other activities, services, features or resources I make available on my Site. Users may be asked for, as appropriate, their email address. Users may, however, visit my Site anonymously. I will collect personal identification information from Users only if they voluntarily submit such information to me. Users can always refuse to supply personal identification information, except that it may prevent them from engaging in certain Site related activities.

Non-personal identification information
I might collect non-personal identification information about Users whenever they interact with my Site. Non-personal identification information may include the browser name, the type of computer and technical information about Users means of connection to my site, such as the operating system and the Internet service providers utilized and other similar information.

Web browser cookies
My Site may use “cookies” to enhance User experience. User’s web browser places cookies on their hard drive for record-keeping purposes and sometimes to track information about them. User may choose to set their web browser to refuse cookies, or to alert you when cookies are being sent. If they do so, note that some parts of the Site may not function properly.

How I use collected information
A Virtual Vegan may collect and use Users personal information for the following purposes:

To run and operate the Site
I might need your information to help display content on the Site correctly.
To improve my Site
I might use feedback you provide to improve my products and services.
To run a promotion, contest, survey or other Site feature
To send Users information they agreed to receive about topics I think will be of interest to them.
To send periodic emails
I might use the email address provided to respond to inquiries, questions, and/or other requests.

How I protect your information
I adopt appropriate data collection, storage and processing practices and security measures to protect against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure or destruction of your personal information, email address, transaction information and data stored on my Site.

Sharing your personal information
I will not sell, trade, or rent Users personal identification information to others. I might share generic aggregated demographic information not linked to any personal identification information regarding visitors and users with my business partners, trusted affiliates and advertisers for the purposes outlined above. I might use third party service providers to help me operate my business and the Site or administer activities on my behalf, such as sending out newsletters or surveys. I might share your information with these third parties for those limited purposes provided that you have given me your permission.

Electronic newsletters
If User decides to opt-in to my mailing list, they will receive emails that may include blog news, updates, related product or service information, etc. If at any time the User would like to unsubscribe from receiving future emails, I include detailed unsubscribe instructions at the bottom of each email or User may contact me via my Site. I might use third party service providers to help me operate my business and the Site or administer activities on my behalf, such as sending out newsletters or surveys. I may share your information with these third parties for those limited purposes provided that you have given me your permission.

Third party websites
Users may find advertising or other content on my Site that link to the sites and services of my partners, suppliers, advertisers, sponsors, licencors and other third parties. I do not control the content or links that appear on these sites and am not responsible for the practices employed by websites linked to or from my Site. In addition, these sites or services, including their content and links, may be constantly changing. These sites and services may have their own privacy policies and customer service policies. Browsing and interaction on any other website, including websites which have a link to my Site, is subject to that website’s own terms and policies.

Advertising
Ads appearing on my site may be delivered to Users by advertising partners, who may set cookies. These cookies allow the ad server to recognize your computer each time they send you an online advertisement to compile non personal identification information about you or others who use your computer. This information allows ad networks to, among other things, deliver targeted advertisements that they believe will be of most interest to you. This privacy policy does not cover the use of cookies by any advertisers.

A small commission may be earned by me when ads are shown or clicked on. This helps subsidize the cost of running this website. Some of these costs include the web hosting, domain name costs, back up services, software  and necessary items such as photography equipment, props, ingredients etc..

Amazon Affiliates Program
Some of the links on my site may be served by Amazon. These links are intended to be helpful to you the readers and show you the products I use and like. If you click on these links and purchase the products a small commission may be earned by me. You will not pay any more than you would normally. Items I recommend are those that I truly like and believe in or have in my own kitchen. This very small income helps subsidize the cost of running this website. These costs involve web hosting, domain name costs, back up services, security, software  and necessary items such as photography equipment, props, ingredients etc.

Nutritional Information

Nutritional information is calculated for each recipe using online calculators. I cannot guarantee the breakdown is completely accurate and the figures given are designed to be a guide only.

Changes to this privacy policy
I have the discretion to update this privacy policy at any time. I encourage Users to frequently check this page for any changes to stay informed about how I  am helping to protect the personal information I collect. You acknowledge and agree that it is your responsibility to review this privacy policy periodically and become aware of modifications.

Your acceptance of these terms
By using this Site, you signify your acceptance of this policy. If you do not agree to this policy, please do not use my Site. Your continued use of the Site following the posting of changes to this policy will be deemed your acceptance of those changes.

Contacting me
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, the practices of this site, or your dealings with this site, please contact me.

Terms & Conditions & User Agreement

1. These Terms & Conditions & User Agreement (also herein “terms and conditions”, “Agreement” or “agreement”) set forth how A Virtual Vegan (also herein, the “Company”, “we”, “us” or “our”) and you the user (also herein, “you”, “your”, “user” or “User”, also in many circumstances may be referred to as “subscriber”, “member”, “VIP”, or “affiliate”, agree to respect and treat each other while and after you are using our website, pages and other information published through www.avirtualvegan.com
2. Copyright & Trademark Notice: Unless otherwise specified, all materials appearing on this site, including the text, site design, logos, graphics, icons, and images, as well as the selection, assembly and arrangement thereof, are the sole property of the Company, Copyright © 2015, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. You may use the content of this site only for the purpose of reading the information on this site, for your own education, for shopping on this site or for placing an order through this site and for no other purpose. No materials from this site may be copied, reproduced, modified, republished, uploaded, posted, transmitted, or distributed in any form or by any means without our prior written permission. All rights not expressly granted herein are reserved. Any unauthorized use of the materials appearing on this site may violate copyright, trademark and other applicable laws and could result in criminal or civil penalties.
3. No Professional Advice: The beneficial low and no-cost advice shared on our site has been provided for general educational purposes only and for no other purpose. Nothing we provide for you here is intended to replace any form of competent professional advice. If you are in need of professional advice, including medical, mental health, legal, accounting or tax advice, or any other form of professional advice, then you should seek out a competent professional in that area who can ensure you are provided help that is specific to your particular situation and circumstances.
4. No FDA Evaluation: The advice shared in this site has not been evaluated by the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA). The products and methods recommended are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any illness or disease, nor are the products and methods intended to replace proper medical help.
5. Federal Trade Commission Disclosure: This website and its information are written, edited and published by the Company, which claims sole and exclusive ownership of its content. For questions about this website or its content, please contact us using the following email address: mel@avirtualvegan.com. The Company sometimes accepts forms of cash advertising, direct sponsorship, affiliate sponsorship, paid insertions, or other forms of compensation. We abide by word of mouth marketing standards. We believe in honesty of relationship, opinion and identity. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in our website and its content. Other than what is obviously advertising, if certain content is paid or directly sponsored, then we here pledge our best efforts to clearly identify or label it as such. The Company is sometimes compensated to provide opinions on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though we may receive compensation for our posts, advertisements or other content, we always give our honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on any blog, guest post or in any form of comments on our website are purely that blogger’s own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.
6. Policy for Our Giveaways:

• No purchase(s) necessary to win.
• Giveaways are for U.S. & Canada residents only (unless stated otherwise).
• Entrants must be natural persons 18 years of age or older to enter.
• Winners are chosen at random, which typically means by a method employing the free tools available at www.random.org, or other similar tools; we also may choose a winner by awarding the prize to the first eligible person to respond to our free call to action.
• Winners will be notified by email shortly after the giveaway ends. We are not responsible if a winner’s email inbox settings mark or categorize our notification email as junk, spam or the like.
• Winners will have 48 hours to claim the prize or another winner may be chosen at our discretion.
• We are not responsible for lost or damaged items. Replacement items will not be provided.
• We may, at our discretion, make public the first name and last initial of our giveaway winners, also making public their state and/or country of residence. All other contact information will remain private and will be destroyed after a winner is confirmed and their prize is confirmed as mailed.
• Since all of our giveaways are for cash, goods and/or services valued at less than US$600, we don’t and won’t be sending any winner a form 1099-misc for US income tax purposes, and a winner’s tax considerations and any tax or tax-related obligations are entirely their own.
• We reserve the right to end, extend, or change a giveaway for any reason and without prior notice.
• We reserve the right to consider any entrant ineligible who has been a winner in one of our giveaways in the last 12 months.
• In any of our giveaways of products from certain companies, we reserve the right to limit the pool of eligible entrants to those persons who are not wholesale members, affiliates, contractors or employees of those companies.
• Odds of winning in one of our giveaways depend on number of entrants.
• Void where prohibited by law.

7. Other Terms & Conditions: We make no guarantees or warranties about any information on our site, including without limitation any warranty of fitness for a particular purpose. Anyone subscribing to our website or using any of our programs, posts or pages is also agreeing to these Terms and Conditions, and any user providing us their email address in exchange for our delivering any content to them personally or who is registering for one or more of our webinars or videos also is assenting and agreeing to receive emails from us on a regular basis. Any of our subscribers may opt out at any time by reply email, if the email was sent directly by us or one of our staff, or otherwise by unsubscribing as provided in the footer of our emails. We love our subscribers and will not sell or rent your email address or any other information to any third parties. These terms and conditions will supersede any terms and/or conditions you may have copies of in any form, regardless of whether we have signed them or not. We reserve the right to make changes to this site and these terms and conditions at any time.
8. Governing Law: This agreement shall be construed under the laws of British Columbia, Canada
9. Severability and Interpretation: Whenever possible each provision of these terms and conditions shall be interpreted in such a manner as to be effective and valid under applicable law, but if any provision of these terms and conditions shall be prohibited, void, invalid, or unenforceable under applicable law, such provision shall be ineffective to the extent of such prohibition, invalidity, voidability, or enforceability without invalidating the remainder of such provision or the remaining provisions of this agreement. We and you agree that any ambiguity or vagueness of any provision of this agreement shall not be construed against the drafting party because of its being the drafter of this agreement.
10. Survival: All obligations of the parties hereto contained in this agreement shall survive the expiration or termination of this agreement.
11. Arbitration: All claims and disputes arising under or relating to these terms and conditions are to be settled by binding arbitration in British Columbia, Canada or another location mutually agreeable to the parties. An award of arbitration may be confirmed in a court of competent jurisdiction. Should any arbitration be commenced between the parties to this agreement concerning this agreement, or the rights and duties of either in relation thereto, the party prevailing in such arbitration shall be entitled, in addition to such relief as may be granted, to its attorneys’ fees and costs in the arbitration.
12. Limitation of Liability: Company shall not be liable for any loss of profits or costs, or for any direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages, including costs associated with the procurement of substitute goods or services (whether Company was or should have been aware or advised of the possibility of such damage), arising out of or associated with any loss, suspension or interruption of service, termination of this Agreement, use or misuse of our content, or other performance of services under this Agreement.
13. Indemnification: User agrees to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its officers, affiliates, directors, agents, and employees from and against any and all property damage, personal injuries or death and other liability, loss, cost, expense, or damage, including, without limitation, court costs and reasonable attorney’s fees arising out of user’s use or misuse, whether intentional or negligent, of the Company’s content and information and from user’s breach of any of the terms contained in this agreement.
14. Counterparts: This agreement may be executed in several counterparts or by separate actions between or among its parties, each of which shall constitute an original and all of which, when taken together, shall constitute one agreement; it’s understood that your accessing and using the information on this website constitutes your complete assent (and, as applicable, the assent of the company, group or organization you represent) to all of these terms and conditions.
15. Headings: The headings for sections herein are for convenience only and shall not affect the meaning of the provisions of this agreement.

END OF TERMS & CONDITIONS & USER AGREEMENT