Veganuary 2023 breaks all records in campaign’s tenth year

Veganuary, the global organisation encouraging people to try vegan in January and beyond, has again broken all previous records and welcomed more participants than ever before with 706,965 people officially signing up from nearly every country in the world.

Only Vatican City and North Korea (where the internet is banned) are missing from the official list of participants for 2023 – the tenth year the campaign has taken place – report the campaigners.

However, even the record-breaking sign-up number is likely to be just the tip of the iceberg as several studies have suggested total participation in Veganuary is significantly larger than the number of people who register through Veganuary’s website.

In a YouGov survey conducted in January 2023, 4% of UK respondents reported participating in Veganuary during the month (all figures from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2200 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 23 and 24 January 2023. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all UK adults (aged 18+)), while a 2022 YouGov poll found that 9% of Brits had ever participated in Veganuary since the campaign began in January 2014 (all figures from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2129 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 18-19 August 2022. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+)).

These figures provide a glimpse into the broader public participation in Veganuary and its influence as a social movement. The campaign’s social media presence also continues to grow around the world with #Veganuary now having been viewed on TikTok more than 894 million times and over 300 million people engaging with Veganuary’s international social media channels in January 2023. Launching its first month-long vegan pledge in the UK in January 2014, Veganuary has been increasing its global reach for several years, opening offices in the US, Germany and Chile in 2019, Argentina and Brazil in 2020 and India in 2021. Official Veganuary campaigns also take place in Italy, France, Switzerland, South Africa, Australia, Singapore and Mexico in collaboration with local organisations. Veganuary’s five-year strategy envisions the campaign expanding into a further ten countries by 2027.

Celebrities are increasingly drawn to the campaign’s fun, friendly approach to diet change with 2023 participants including Peter Andre, actor Diane Morgan, ITV chef Juliet Sear and Corrie’s Alexandra Mardell taking part in Veganuary 2023, while Lucy Watson and Alexis Gauthier became official ambassadors for the charity this year. Previous Veganuary participants include rock legend Brian May, TV presenter Jasmine

Harman, wildlife presenter Chris Packham, ‘dragon’ Deborah Meaden, Eastender’s Kellie Bright and actor Peter Egan, all of whom continue to support the charity.

To enable people to participate in the campaign in ways that suit their lifestyle in an ever-changing world, Veganuary launched two new platforms for public engagement this year – a 31-day YouTube series providing helpful tips and advice, as well as a weekly podcast series with guests including Veganuary Ambassador Lucy Watson, Ella Mills (aka Deliciously Ella), gourmet French chef Alexis Gauthier and actor Danny Hatchard.

Reflecting on the success of the 2023 campaign, Veganuary’s head of communications Toni Vernelli said: “The impact our food choices have on the planet is getting harder to ignore, and it’s very inspiring to see so many people around the world starting the new year by taking action. Attitudes towards veganism are changing, and Veganuary’s just-give-it-a-go-fora-month-and-see-what-you-think approach has undoubtedly played an instrumental role in this shift, offering a nonjudgmental way for businesses and individuals alike to explore a transition towards plant-based.”