An Urgent Message to Everyone Who Isn’t Vegan but Supports the Vegan Cause

Five alarming trends you need to be aware of

Image credit: Dennis Flinsenberg

Whether you discovered this article yourself or a friend asked you to read it, I promise the next few minutes will be worth your time. Understanding this information — and the stakes at play — is essential for anyone who cares about creating a more ethical, sustainable world.

“While I’m not vegan myself, I do support the goals and values of the vegan movement.” If you’re like many people, you may feel this way. And I completely understand; it’s exactly how I felt for years.

I knew, deep down, that there’s something fundamentally wrong with how society treats animals. And I knew that animal agriculture is a primary driver of rainforest destruction, environmental pollution, dying oceans, world hunger, antibiotic resistance, and climate change. And yet, despite all this awareness, it seemed unnecessary for me to personally change. After all, veganism is growing fast; surely, the movement didn’t need me.

But I was wrong, and this assumption, shared by so many, has consequences far beyond what you might imagine.

This article is dedicated to those who resonate with the vegan cause yet feel they can remain on the sidelines. There are some crucial insights I wish I had understood earlier — truths that reveal the full scope and urgency of the situation.

5 reasons why your support matters more than ever

Beyond the inherent urgency of the vegan cause, a series of alarming trends underscores just how crucial more active support is. From soaring meat consumption and industry-driven disinformation to political influence and unfair subsidies, the following developments reveal why the movement needs you now more than ever.

1) Rapid rise in meat consumption

Despite overwhelming evidence of the immense destruction and cruelty caused by animal agriculture, the consumption of animal products continues to skyrocket. Global production of animal flesh for human consumption was a staggering 56% higher in 2022 than in 2000. Over the same period, poultry meat production almost doubled. While veganism has also seen significant growth in recent years, it urgently needs more active support to counter the destructive upward trend in animal exploitation.

2) Pro-meat disinformation

The animal agriculture industry is waging a disinformation war to protect its profits. Investigations reveal that the industry advertises “like Big Oil”, uses “tobacco tactics” to market products, and spends millions on smearing plant-based diets.

Baseless anti-vegan talking points are disseminated by influential figures, such as Jordan Peterson, Donald Trump Jr, and Neil DeGrasse Tyson. In this critical moment, we urgently need individuals to actively challenge this barrage of falsehoods through informed consumer choices and vocal advocacy for an evidence-based vegan lifestyle, making it clear that they support truth over reckless manipulation. The spread of false information has been recognized as the greatest short-term risk to humanity.

3) Disturbing anti-vegan fad diets

Against the backdrop of industry-sponsored disinformation, several anti-vegan diet trends have emerged in recent years. Most notorious among them is the entirely pseudo-scientific “carnivore diet,” which consists only of animal-based foods. In a recent article, I have summarized the misconceptions and fallacies underlying this diet. Despite its baseless claims, devastating ethical and environmental impacts, and health risks, the carnivore diet has shockingly gained a following of tens of thousands.

Meat-based fad diets bolster the profits of the animal agriculture industry and distract from the proven benefits of plant-based living. To counter these harmful trends, we need to reduce the livestock industry’s influence and market power by choosing plant-based options.

4) Political influence of Big Meat and Big Dairy

The animal agriculture industry wields “gigantic power” and defends its market dominance through aggressive lobbying. This includes efforts to limit the appeal and accessibility of vegan options. The industry also spends vast sums to block animal welfare reforms and to hinder climate policy progress.

For example, farming lobbies fought “hard and dirty” against a ban on the cruel use of cages in livestock farming, using tactics to discredit scientific findings, sway journalists, and pressure EU officials to abandon the proposed changes. At the last UN Climate Change Conference, meat and dairy lobbyists appeared in record numbers (three times as many as the year before), far outpacing environmental advocates. Without broader public support for veganism, these lobbying efforts will continue to distort the market, restricting consumer access to plant-based foods, and stalling progress on ethical and environmental fronts.

5) Unfair taxes and subsidies

The animal agriculture industry is highly inefficient and could not survive without an unfair tax and subsidy system that skews the market. U.S. livestock farmers receive about 1,000 times more public funding than plant-based alternatives. The EU also spends a large portion of its budget on livestock subsidies. It is estimated that without this taxpayer-funded support, a pound of hamburger meat would cost $30.

While animal products remain more expensive than plant-based products overall (in other words: going plant-based will save you money), these government interventions create an unjust market advantage for animal products. In a fair market, animal agriculture wouldn’t stand a chance against a far more sustainable plant-based food system. Shifting consumer demand toward plant-based options is the most effective way to reduce this misuse of tax money and level the playing field.

Conclusion

The vegan movement is growing, but it needs more than passive backing to bring about lasting change. Every dollar we spend, every meal we choose, and every voice that speaks up counts in this fight. The powerful forces backing animal agriculture are determined to maintain their dominance, despite the devastating harm their industry inflicts on animals, the planet, and public health. These forces rely on our inaction to continue business as usual.

“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good people do nothing.”
— anonymous

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”
— anonymous

Change doesn’t just happen; it is created by individuals who recognize injustice and refuse to sit on the sidelines. Every person who makes a conscious choice for a plant-based lifestyle chips away at an industry built on cruelty, environmental harm, and misinformation. I’m not asking for perfection, just for each of us to contribute in our own way. Imagine the potential ripple effect if each person who believes in the movement’s values actively chose to live by them.

There will always be people we simply cannot reach with our message, and that’s okay. This is a challenge faced by every social movement in history. The real problem lies with those who resonate with the cause but do not contribute to its momentum. Like swing voters in an election, they hold considerable influence over the movement’s success.

Let me leave you with one question: If compassionate, thoughtful people like you don’t lead the way, then who will?

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Please share this article with those around you who resonate with the values of veganism but are reluctant to make the switch. Kindly ask them for just a few minutes of their time to help them see why their support matters.

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