Veganuary supports 1.8m people to try vegan around the world
10th anniversary of the campaign sees it reach astronomical heights
Veganuary, the global organisation encouraging people to try vegan in January and beyond, expanded its global presence this year – its 10th anniversary – with a new official chapter opening in Spain – but it didn’t stop there! The Veganuary flag was sent up to the International Space Station, where it orbited the Earth 4,400 times – a historical first for a vegan campaign.
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Back on Earth, Veganuary directly supported more than 1.8m people to try vegan for a month with its free resources. To enable people to participate in the campaign in ways that suit their lifestyle in an ever-changing world, Veganuary now offers its support and guidance in multiple formats, including 31 daily coaching emails, which people sign up for on the website; a weekly podcast; a series of 31 daily coaching videos on YouTube; social media channels in English, German, Spanish and Portuguese; as well as retail products including the brand new Official Veganuary Cookbook and the Vegan Kit – a card deck with everything you need to start exploring a vegan diet. Globally, more than 1.8m people chose to actively receive Veganuary’s resources and support via one or more of these channels.
But even this huge number is likely to be just a fraction of the people actually taking part in Veganuary. The organisation has commissioned several YouGov surveys in their core campaign countries to establish the percentage of people who report having taken part in Veganuary during January 2024. Based on these results and the current population estimates for each country, Veganuary has calculated that roughly 25 million people worldwide chose to try vegan this January.
Confirming that Veganuary is now a well-established part of British culture, 75% of UK respondents in YouGov’s survey reported having heard of Veganuary even if they have never taken part. The campaign’s social media presence continues to grow worldwide, with #Veganuary now having been viewed on TikTok more than 1.1 billion times.
Celebrities continue to be drawn to the campaign’s upbeat, friendly approach to diet change, with Bimini Bon Boulash becoming the newest official Veganuary Ambassador, joining other high-profile supporters, including Billie Eilish, Paul McCartney, Chris Packham, Lucy Watson, Johnny Marr, Evanna Lynch, Deborah Meaden, Kellie Bright and more.
Veganuary 2024 saw huge brands join the campaign for the first time, including Hard Rock Café, which launched a vegan menu in all of its outlets worldwide, as well as Veganuary branded merchandise in flagship locations. Claire’s Accessories and the software giant Salesforce joined Veganuary’s Workplace Challenge and encouraged all their staff to try vegan for January alongside 115 other UK organisations – the largest number that has ever signed up to the challenge!
Reflecting on the success of the 2024 campaign, Veganuary’s Head of Communications Toni Vernelli says: “It is incredibly inspiring to see Veganuary’s participation and influence continue to grow around the world. As people become more aware of the incredible impact our food choices have on the health of our planet, attitudes towards veganism are changing everywhere and Veganuary’s friendly, non-judgmental, just-give-it-a-go-for-a-month-and-see-what-you-think approach has undoubtedly played an instrumental role in this shift.”
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