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Veganuary

8th January 2020

Veganuary takes place each January and challenges people to ‘go vegan’ for a whole month.

Research released this week suggests most participants will not resume their previous food consumption habits when the month-long vegan pledge is over.

Foregoing Animal Products

Findings from a new Kantar study commissioned by Veganuary show that people who cut out animal products for January 2019 maintained reduced consumption levels until at least July 2019.

The Kantar study was based on data from their shopper panel that continuously tracks purchases from 30,000 British households. It was commissioned by Veganuary to get a better understanding of the campaign’s impact. The results show that the impact is much greater than the number of people who officially sign-up online and lasts much longer than just 31 days.

Key findings include:

  • 3 million people in Britain chose to forego animal products during January 2019, 10 times more than officially signed-up to Veganuary in 2019 from the UK
  • 832,000 of these people gave up animal products for the first time in January 2019 and 366,000 said they did it as part of Veganuary (over three times more than officially signed-up from the UK)
  • Those who gave up animal products for the first time but did not stay vegan after January, consumed a reduced volume of animal products until at least July 2019 when compared to the same period in 2018 (based on scanned shopping receipts from the same households
  • Kantar calculated that the total volume of this reduction was at least 4,452,603kg, however the real figure is likely to be much higher as their data excluded items where animal products were one of several ingredients eg, ready meals and any food consumed outside of the home
  • Veganuary has calculated that this reduction equates to approximately 3.6 million animals

Toni Vernelli, Veganuary’s Head of Communications, says: “We knew that the ‘Veganuary Effect’ was real and many more people tried vegan in January than officially signed-up with us, but seeing the long-term impact that a one-month vegan pledge has on consumption habits – and ultimately animals’ lives – is very exciting.”

She adds: “Veganuary’s aim is to get people to try vegan for one month and see how they feel. Our own surveys show about 50% choose to stay vegan as it was much easier and enjoyable than they expected, but we always hoped the other half discovered some products and recipes they loved so much they permanently swapped these for the non-vegan equivalent. Now we know that’s exactly what’s happening, and it’s great news for animals and the planet.”

Celebrity Backing

Paul McCartney, global music icon and founder of Meat Free Monday, joins Joaquin Phoenix, Chris Packham, Evanna Lynch and other climate-conscious celebrities urging people to sign up to Veganuary and try vegan this January.

In a statement released this week, Paul McCartney says: “I’ve been vegetarian for over 40 years and have stayed with it because I believe that every meat-free meal is a win for animals and the planet. This is why I started Meat Free Monday with my daughters Mary and Stella, and it’s also why I support Veganuary. We’re all trying to make the world a bit better, so why not sign up, take part, give it a go, and see how you feel? It could be the best thing you ever did.”

Garden Square

There are plenty of mouth-watering vegan meal options available at Garden Square! Why not try the delicious Beyond Meat Vegan Burger at Wildwood? A Beyond Meat patty, vegan cheese, gherkins, vegan mayo, baby gem lettuce, beef tomato and vegan brioche bun all combine to create a delicious plant-based dinner.

You can also head to Costa Coffee and enjoy their vegan menu, which includes Vegan Fruity Flapjack, Vegan Smoky Ham-free Slice & Vegan CheeZe Toastie and their Chocolate Caramel & Hazelnut Cookie.

If you’d like to prepare a vegan feast at home, pay a visit to Iceland where you can pick up their No Bull Steak Burgers, which are made from wheat protein instead of soya which gives a juicy, steak-like bite.

More details about Veganuary.