Why this World Vegan Month is the perfect time to go vegan

It’s nearly November, which is the highlight of our year because it's World Vegan Month, a time when we get to celebrate the staggering growth of the vegan movement. 

As you probably know, The Vegan Society coined the term ‘vegan’ in 1944. World Vegan Day was founded 50 years later, as a way to recognise the positive and joyful side to veganism. Today, World Vegan Day and World Vegan Month are recognised and celebrated around the world – just take a look at all that took place last year!

With all that positive energy and good news flying around, it's no surprise that World Vegan Month is a time when many decide to start their own vegan journey. If you’ve been debating going vegan, we think that this year is the perfect time to give it a go, here are the reasons why:

The time for action is now

Most have known about the dangers of climate change for some time now, but this year feels like the year when a sense of urgency has reached the masses. In October, The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published a report that stated we had just 12 years to limit a climate change catastrophe. In the report, leading climate scientists highlighted the urgency in taking action to avoid global warming reaching beyond 1.5C. The report made it clear that avoiding meat and dairy products is the single biggest way to reduce your environmental impact on the planet.

It is widely acknowledged that animal agriculture is one of the key driving forces behind climate change.  Our Grow Green report stresses the need to move towards plant protein agriculture, but on an individual level, going vegan is one of the most significant changes you can make to reduce your personal carbon footprint.

You will be spoiled for choice 

This year has been a year of incredible innovation in the vegan food sector. We saw high street restaurants launching or expanding vegan menus, multiple supermarkets introducing dedicated vegan ranges and even the likes of Asda adding vegan cheese to their create-your-own pizza counter! Vegan food has never been more visible, which makes it easier than ever for budding vegans to make the transition.  

You won’t be short of support

According to our own research, the number of vegans in Great Britain has quadrupled in the last four years. With the soaring number of vegans, you will likely find that any struggles you encounter as a new vegan have probably been encountered by plenty before you. Vegan social media communities are growing rapidly, which means you will always have the vegan hive mind to fall back on for guidance and support. 

You will be catered for while travelling

Earlier this year we launched the second phase of our Vegan on the Go campaign that focused on vegan options while travelling.  We encouraged the main train operators to carry at least one vegan option and we have had a brilliant response. 

If you’re thinking about going vegan, you won’t need to worry about being caught out when out and about, the likes of Virgin Trains and CrossCountry Trains have both released vegan meal options this year. 

You will be catered for in the public sector

Did you know that in 2016, the Portuguese government made it compulsory for all public sector canteens to offer a vegan option? We recently launched our Catering for Everyone petitions with the aim of getting the rights of vegans also recognised in the UK. The petitions call for every school, hospital, prison, university and every other public service, to offer a good vegan option on their menus, every day. This probably seems like a small ask, but if passed, this law will have a significant impact on the lives of vegans, watch this video to find out why. 

You can use an app to make it easier than ever 

Last but not least, we know that this World Vegan Month in particular, is the absolute best time to go vegan, because we’re making it incredibly easy. 

On World Vegan Day 2018, we will release a brand new app called VeGuide that will help you sail through your transition to veganism. Log in each day to watch a video covering the most common struggles and barriers to going vegan and be guided through the experience by our friendly presenters. You can even choose your motivation for going vegan and benefit from tailored content to help you stay on track. As you progress, you will be rewarded by unlocking tasty recipes and discount codes.

The app will be completely free to use and will be available on both Android and iOS from November 1st. Simply search for “VeGuide” on your app store. 

Happy World Vegan Month!