It’s World Vegan Day! 

Today is the day to celebrate the vegan lifestyle, and all of the amazing benefits that come with it. 


But what IS World Vegan Day?

World Vegan Day actually began with the group who coined the term “vegan” in the first place -- the Vegan Society. In 1944, a woodworker named Donald Watson invited five people who considered themselves “non-dairy vegetarians” to a meeting, where they discussed a new name for their lifestyle.

The Vegan Society was born, and took on the task of clearly defining what it meant to call yourself a vegan. The group went through a few definitions (which has changed a bit over the years). The current definition provided by The Vegan Society is:

“[…] a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude—as far as is possible and practicable—all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment. In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals.” -TheVeganSociety  

World Vegan day became a national holiday in 1994, fifty years after the Vegan Society was created! Every year there are plenty of fun events surrounding the holiday. 


How has veganism evolved?

A LOT! Veganism was pretty uncommon for decades. However, In 2020, there are approximately 78 million vegans in the world (around 1 percent of the population).

Veganism in the United States has also seen some unprecedented growth, with the plant-based population increasing 300 percent in the last 15 years!

In grocery stores, vegan food has expanded well beyond the produce section. With the growth of plant-based alternatives to meat, dairy and egg products, the vegan diet became quite a bit easier to adopt.

Societally, there has been a growing knowledge and acceptance of what it means to be vegan -- but of course there is still plenty of progress to be made!


What’s next?

Hopefully, many more vegans around the world! The best way to make that happen is to live your best vegan life and show others that veganism is completely worth it. In fact, in one year being vegan saves approximately 198 tons of water, 72,000 pounds of CO2 emissions, and over 350 animal lives. 

This World Vegan Day, be sure to make some awesome vegan food, show the animals some love, and set your intentions for lessening your impact on the environment. 

For more information about living a healthy vegan lifestyle, check out our free vegan nutrition course, Be Vegan, Be Healthy!