Image: Veganuary press kit.
Veganuary has broken its own record yet again, with 706,965 people officially signing up to try vegan for January 2023, the campaign's tenth year.
That's up from more than 629,000 in 2022, and it's the first time the number has passed 700,000. Sign-ups came from nearly every country in the world. The only two missing from the official list were Vatican City and North Korea (we're working on it).
In the tenth year of a campaign that began in January 2014, the hashtag #Veganuary has been viewed more than 900 million times on TikTok, and Veganuary says more than 300 million people engaged with its international social channels during January.
The organizers are clear that the official count is only part of the story. Plenty of people try vegan in January without ever filling in the form, and a YouGov survey found that 4% of all UK respondents said they took part this year. Veganuary's Head of Communications said:
It is incredibly inspiring to see Veganuary's participation and influence continue to grow around the world.
The trade press has noticed too. The Grocer and Grocery Gazette both picked up the record, and Grocery Gazette had it up the same day.
If you're one of the 706,965, your body will thank you. Research published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that plant protein is significantly more heart-healthy than animal protein, and a study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that plant protein builds muscle just as well. So there's no reason to stop on February 1.
The growth has been relentless. A record 250,000 people signed up in 2019, 400,000 in 2020 and 582,000 in 2021. Last month Edinburgh became the first European capital to endorse the Plant Based Treaty. Not bad for a movement that was tipped as the biggest food trend of 2018.
See you next January. Bring a friend.