Veganuary Saved Over 2 Million Animals

Veganuary - global campaign encouraging people to try vegan in January published its 2022 report.

This year, more than 629,000 people signed-up for Veganuary. The participants list included every country in the world (228 countries) except Tajikistan and North Korea.

For the first time – more people signed up in the US than any other country, with the UK being the second country. The top ten countries for 2022 were India, Germany, Italy, Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia which makes South America the continent with the most Veganuary participants just a few years after the organisation began working there.

The charity estimated that more than 2.16 million animals we speared from suffering in just one month.

During Veganuary, 561 new vegan products and restaurant menu options were launched around the world.

Founded in the UK in 2014, Veganuary has now offices in the US, Germany, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and India. The charity works with businesses to promote vegan food in supermarkets and restaurants, and makes veganism more visible on the mainstream media.

More than 100 global organisations worldwide – including Unilever, Harrods, Volkswagen Group UK, Superdrug, Sky, Adept Care Homes, Papa John’s, PWC, EY, M&S, Higgidy and Quorn joined the Veganuary Workplace Challenge during the 2022 campaign, providing more vegan options in the companies' canteens and encouraging their employees to try vegan food during one month.

Commenting on the Veganuary’s 2022 campaign, Ria Rehberg, Veganuary’s CEO, said: “At Veganuary we share one common dream: We want to live in a vegan world. A world without animal farms and slaughterhouses. A world where food production does not decimate forests, pollute rivers and oceans, exacerbate climate change, and drive wild animal populations to extinction. A world where everyone is able to enjoy an endless variety of delicious and nutritious foods while protecting the planet and animals.

And while it will take the effort of countless people, organisations and initiatives to make this dream a reality one day, each January, I can feel us get a step closer to that vision. Veganism isn’t standing in the corner anymore; it’s become a popular choice that many of the world’s largest food businesses are embracing as the big new thing.

We do have a long road ahead, but each year we are getting a few steps closer. Today we celebrate the millions of people who have chosen plant-based, the thousands of media outlets showcasing the benefits of a vegan diet and the hundreds of businesses who are embracing the future.”

Matthew Glover, co-founder of Veganuary said: “When my wife Jane and I decided to launch a new year’s vegan pledge in 2014, we expected only 1,000 people to take part. More than 3,000 signed up and we were blown away. Now, Veganuary is a bigger feature in the retail calendar than Christmas, reflecting the ever-increasing number of people choosing plant-based food. Two million official Veganuary participants in just eight years is a huge achievement, but the explosion in plant-based products that has accompanied it is truly revolutionising the future of food.”