As more of us turn to veganism, we’re looking back at Veganuaries past and how Cumbrians have embraced a plant-based diet.
Committed vegan Fiona Wilson spoke about its benefits and shared her favourite recipes (Image: Newsquest)Veganuary is the annual challenge run by a UK non-profit organisation that promotes veganism by encouraging people to follow a vegan lifestyle for the month of January.
Vegan runners following a particularly muddy run (Image: Newsquest)Since the event began in 2014, participation has increased each year. In 2020, 400,000 people signed up to the campaign. It is estimated this represented the carbon dioxide equivalent of 450,000 flights and the lives of more than a million animals.
Natalie and Emmy Sealey eating a jerk soya meal at Cumbria Vegan Festival at the Sands Centre, Carlisle (Image: Newsquest)Founded by Jane Land and Matthew Glover, the first Veganuary was during January 2014. In 2015, the project registered 12,800 sign-ups. From there participation grew to over 500,000 in 2021.
Kerry Jones on her stall Elephant and Camel at Cumbria Vegan Festival at The Sands Centre (Image: Newsquest)In 2023, It’ll Never Catch On: The Veganuary Story, a documentary about the event, featured vegans Kellie Bright, Jane Fallon, Jasmine Harman, Evanna Lynch, Chris Packham and Benjamin Zephaniah. along with vegan chefs Henry Firth and Ian Threasby. It debuted at the November 2023 Plant Based World Expo.
Thousands of vegetarian food lovers flocked to South West Vegan Feastival (Image: Newsquest)Veganuary is a crowdfunded campaign in which participants sign up online and receive a downloadable starter kit and daily support emails. The starter kit contains restaurant guides, product directories, and a recipe database.
Kat Hale of Kat’s Kitchen, Vegetarian and Vegan Café in Keswick (Image: Newsquest)Participants are encouraged to share images and recipes on social media to create a sense of community and communicate the message that veganism is easy and fun.
Kat’s Kitchen chef Dan Grout hands over a food package (Image: Newsquest)In recent years, food businesses and restaurants in the UK have introduced new vegan products in January to coincide with Veganuary, with supermarkets including Tesco advertising it.
Vegan potato skins at Wild Zucchinis Bistro in Cockermouth (Image: Newsquest)
The challenge has spread to the US and in 2019, The Washington Post reported that “46 per cent of people signed up for health reasons, with 34 per cent citing animal cruelty and only 12 pe cent climate issues”.While annual participation continues to be highest in Britain, it is gaining popularity in America and many other countries including Mexico, Argentina, Germany and Sweden.In 2022, Veganuary published a deck of 40 inspirational cards called The Vegan Kit.Veganuary ambassadors include Billie Eilish, Paul McCartney and Joaquin Phoenix.