Your Campaigns, Policy and Research Vegan Society team works to bring us closer to a world where no animals are used or harmed by people. We engage with policy makers about laws, policies and practices – from schools to hospitals, farms to factories to restaurants, in workplaces and Parliaments – that need to change for a vegan-friendly world.
One way in which we do that is to submit persuasive, evidence-based responses to official consultations by the UK Government and other bodies. These consultations are often intended to seek expert opinion on changes in policy, such as proposed new laws. Our fully referenced submissions draw on decades of expertise and the most relevant current research in issues related to plant-based diets and food, from nutritional benefits to the legal rights of vegans.
Click on the arrows below to see a selection of our recent consultation responses. Click on the title to see the full submission.
2024 Phase 1 of 10 Year Health Plan for England
The 10 Year Health Plan for England should include dedicated action to increase the uptake of healthy plant-based foods and diets, and significantly reduce the current unhealthy and unsustainable overconsumption of meat, dairy and egg products. Therefore, we are calling for a comprehensive strategy to improve diet and nutrition.
2024 SACN/COT Plant-based (ALT) Milk
The Vegan Society supports the conclusions of the joint draft report from the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) and the Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COT). It welcomes the conclusion that fortified, unsweetened soya, almond or oat drinks are acceptable alternatives to cows’ milk and should be offered as an alternative where cows’ milk would usually be consumed, with soya being preferred due to the higher protein content.
2024 National Good Food Nutrition Plan (Scotland)
Scotland has a global duty to provide leadership towards the plant-based solutions needed to tackle the ongoing global food security, biodiversity, climate change and public health crises. Benefits of a plant-based food system transition in Scotland need to be appropriately highlighted.
2021 Agriculture (Wales) Bill
We call upon the Welsh Government to take urgent, decisive and comprehensive action. Wales should proactively give land managers all the support which they need to transition toward healthy, sustainable, climate-resilient plant-based methods.
2021 Healthy Food Healthy Planet
We need to be transparent with people about how plant-based food systems can help us achieve all our sustainable diet goals. Relying upon farming of animals to meet nutritional needs of 8 billion people is not sustainable by any measure.
2019 England National Food Strategy
We support a new ‘field to fork’ Food Strategy for England. There are proven ways to radically improve every part of our food system. We challenge the Government to:
- Ensure safe, healthy food for all, that is affordable for everyone;
- Restore and enhance the natural environment for everyone, including free-living nonhuman beings;
- Guarantee extensive support for people moving toward plant-based methods.
2019 Scotland Good Food Nation
The Good Food Nation (Scotland) legislation can achieve access to healthy, nutritious food, environmental sustainability and the avoidance of public health crises. A joined-up approach from government and public bodies is vital.
2019 Labour Party Sustainable Food Policy
People expect Government to lead on solutions, where our food system is causing problems. Now we have Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions targets, and as our eating patterns and attitudes change, the time for radical action on sustainable, healthy food is now.
2018 DEFRA England Health and Harmony: the future for food, farming and the environment in a Green Brexit
The UK as a whole needs to make new, broad, strong commitments to a transition toward a sustainable society, supplied by crop agriculture.
2018 Wales Brexit and our land: securing the future of Welsh farming
Wales needs a future for life and land that challenges current economic dogma, and truly integrates land use with our broader ambitions in the Wellbeing of Future Generations and Environment Acts.
2024 England Curriculum and Assessment Review
Personal, Social, Health, and Economic Education (PSHE) should be a statutory and integrative subject, serving as a backbone for the entire curriculum. By embedding PSHE throughout core subjects like Maths, English, and Science, learning will be centred on empathy, ethical relationships with all living beings, respect for the natural world and an understanding of our interconnectedness within global ecosystems. This will ensure that every young person has the chance to build a deeper understanding of values like empathy, sustainability and inclusivity – skills that are essential for fostering a kinder, more conscious society.
2021 Wales Curriculum: Religion, values & ethics
Veganism must be in in every religion, values and ethics syllabus, and taught to every student. Veganism upholds bodily autonomy, self-determination and allied rights for all, in accordance with our shared social ethic that it is wrong to cause harm unnecessarily.
2021 Design & delivery of mandatory Religion, Values & Ethics
Veganism opposes opinions such as holding non-human animals as property, and upholds rights to bodily autonomy and self-determination not limited by species. This aligns with the widely held ethical belief, that it is wrong to cause harm unnecessarily. Since sustainable, nutritious plant-based vegan diets are well understood, farming animals for food is an unnecessary harm. For the protection of public health, morals, and non-human animals, veganism should be included in every RVE syllabus.
2021 COVID Vaccination Certification
COVID-status certification proposals raises many ethical, legal, human rights and equalities issues. Any such practice must not infringe upon the rights of vegans (and others), and be a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim.
2021 Mandatory vax frontline health / care (England)
Veganism is a protected philosophical belief (the Equality Act 2010). Any system of COVID19 and influenza vaccination exemptions for health and social care workers based upon belief, must give vegans equivalent exemptions to those with other relevant beliefs, transparently, consistently and in line with the law.
2021 CAP and BCAP consultation on rules on harm and protected characteristics
The Vegan Society supports the adoption of these rules for advertising and promotions. The Advertising Standards Authority is not sufficiently considering the Public Sector Equality Duty around veganism as an a qualifying non-religious belief in law.
2020 Update to nutritional standards for school food in Northern Ireland
We need to collaborate with parents and guardians, children and young people, caterers, funders and where appropriate, registered dietitians, to ensure that suitable vegan-friendly options are available on all menus.
2020 Unequal impact: Coronavirus (Covid-19)
By focusing on humans, we can develop effective COVID19 treatments and vaccines free of non-human animal use, in line with protected beliefs including veganism. We must take seriously future potential fatal viruses too, many of which may be zoonotic and related to human agricultural activities.
2024 UK Fairer Food Labelling
More information must be available to people about the origin of their food, and the processes involved, through accurate labelling, so that everyone can make informed decisions that align with their values. Wherever there are ingredients or processing aids used which are taken from any animals the country where those animals were farmed, hunted, caught or otherwise lived, as well as the country where they were killed (if different) should be specified.
2021 DEFRA Labelling for animal welfare
Our food systems need to be fully transparent, with mandatory labelling about how animals and environment are harmed e.g. Welfare denied; Sanctuary; or No animals were used.
2021 The Fur Market in Great Britain
We strongly object to the use of any animals within the fashion and textile industries. In July 2020, a YouGov poll revealed that 93% of respondents do not wear fur and 72% dsupported a complete ban on imports.
2024 UK National Procurement
Public procurement is a vital way for the UK Government to demonstrate national and global leadership by prioritising environmental sustainability and public health through a focus on sourcing plant-based food and offering it as the default option.
2021 Green Paper: Transforming public procurement
Well-managed plant-based solutions are vital for sustainable public procurement. This is in line with the shared ethic, that it is wrong to cause harm unnecessarily.
2021 School Food Stakeholders Survey
Our school food system should be healthy, environmentally sustainable, and equitable. This will empower communities to practice their existing beliefs: that it is wrong to do harm unnecessarily, and that school food should feature healthy, tasty, sustainable plant-based meals every day.
2020 Public Sector procurement of food
Plant-based public procurement is one of the most significant ways that the Government can positively impact food systems and rural communities. In particular, farmers must be fully and fairly paid to ensure tasty, healthy, sustainable, affordable, ethical local vegan-friendly food in our schools, hospitals, prisons, local government offices and other institutions.
