Losing Hope for Veganism? This Will Help.
10 powerful reasons to feel optimistic about the vegan movement
People often ask me how I manage to stay positive in my activism — how I keep going while writing about such heavy, painful topics. Doesn’t it wear me down? And to be honest, sometimes it does. I’ve seen the horrors of the animal industry up close. I’ve listened to friends recount the cruelty they’ve witnessed from the inside. I know how vast the suffering is. We’re talking about nothing less than the largest act of systematic violence in human history.
So no — I don’t take this lightly. The challenges we face are enormous. But here’s what I’ve also found, after years of research, reporting, and conversations with experts and activists from all walks of life: there is real hope.
Strangely enough, it’s the very work that exposes me to so much darkness that has also shown me the most light. Because behind the scenes of grief and injustice, something powerful is taking shape. Here, in condensed form, are the developments that give me strength — and reasons to believe we’re starting to turn a historic corner.
1) Vegan is cheaper — and the cost gap will keep growing
Contrary to widespread belief, studies show that plant-based living significantly reduces food costs — by 16% to 40%, depending on meal composition and the frequency of home cooking.
While the cost of meat, dairy, and eggs continues to climb, plant-based alternatives are becoming more affordable due to shifting market dynamics. These price developments will attract budget-conscious consumers, boosting demand. This, in turn, allows producers to lower costs further through economies of scale — creating a reinforcing cycle of growth and affordability in the plant-based sector.
Worries about inflation and a looming economic downturn add to people’s frugality, making them more sensitive to price changes.
2) The momentum behind veganism
Veganism has become one of the fastest-growing lifestyle & social justice movements in the world. In the U.S., the number of vegans has jumped 3,000% in 15 Years — and the momentum keeps growing worldwide.
A fully vegan society may still seem a long way off — but the good news is that lasting social change has never required full consensus. History shows that small, committed groups can shift norms and transform entire societies, especially when their actions are grounded in urgent and compelling arguments.
While there have been occasional setbacks, the overall direction is unmistakable. People who went vegan a decade or two ago will tell you how much harder and less common it was back then. Today, vegan cafes and restaurants are easy to find in many places — and in some areas, vegan living has already progressed to the point of fully plant-based supermarkets.
3) Passionate vegan activism: from grassroots to celebrity support
The vegan movement is not only a global grassroots movement with over 100,000 volunteers and many charismatic leaders, but is also supported by growing number of well-known and outspoken celebrities — including will.i.am, A$AP Rocky, Stevie Wonder, RZA from Wu-Tang Clan, Colin Kaepernick, Liam Hemsworth, Yuval Noah Harari, Billie Eilish, Casey Affleck, Woody Harrelson, Joaquin Phoenix, Lewis Hamilton, Ricky Gervais, Tobey Maguire, Moby, Greta Thunberg, Ariana Grande, Jon Stewart, Pamela Anderson, and Natalie Portman.
4) The expanding infrastructure of resistance
Over the last years, the resistance against animal exploitation has become increasingly institutionalized through a thriving ecosystem of digital infrastructure, community support, and global coordination:
Dedicated online networks like r/vegan, Animal Rights Advocates, veganism.social, Vegan Hacktivists, Vegan Profile, and HIVE.
Conferences and gatherings such as Vegan Camp Out, VegFest, Plant Based World Expo, Vegan Playground, Vegan Summerfest, Animal Advocacy Conference, CARE Conference, Animal Liberation Gathering, and Animal Rights Conference.
Dedicated news sources, such as Plant Based News, VegNews, Live Kindly, The Beet, Sentient Media, Vegan Food & Living, Vegan.com, Green Queen, The Vegan Society Blog, Free From Harm, Gentle World, ChooseVeg Blog, The Minimalist Vegan — and, of course, useful newsletters, such as the one you’re reading right now ;-) Not on board yet? Join here.
International organizations, including Mercy For Animals, The Humane League, Animal Equality, ProVeg International, Viva!, Four Paws, Compassion in World Farming, Anima International, PETA, Direct Action Everywhere, Animal Outlook, Vegan Outreach, Surge, GenV, Kinder World, Sea Shepherd, L214, Farm Sanctuary, and Humane Society.
5) The animal industry will choke on its own inefficiency
Producing animal products consumes a disproportionate amount of resources, including grain, corn, soy, energy, land and fresh water. For instance, it takes 100 calories of feed to produce just 12 calories of chicken — or 3 calories of beef. The world’s cattle alone consume a quantity of food equal to the caloric needs of 8.7 billion people (more than the current world population).
This leads to growing ethical pressure on the animal agriculture industry. More and more organizations are questioning why scarce resources are not directed toward feeding hungry people, but instead used for the inefficient breeding of farmed animals.
It also creates mounting economic pressure, as resource scarcity — accelerated by wars and climate change — drives up production costs. Experts predict that climate-related cost increases could push half of the world’s largest animal agriculture companies into operating losses by 2030.
Plant-based diets, which require significantly fewer resources, are increasingly recognized as a much more sustainable — and ultimately inevitable — alternative.
6) A ‘demographic time bomb’ is about to hit the animal industry
The vegan movement is driven by younger generations. UK data shows adults aged 18–49 are more than twice as likely to be vegan as those over 50, while children aged 5–16 are over four times as likely.
A recent US study found that only 12% of the county’s population consume half of all beef. People aged between 50-65 were most likely to be in this group of “disproportionate beef eaters”.
Inevitable Shift: As younger generations age and replace older ones, their values and habits — including a strong shift toward plant-based eating — will shape the future.
As a WIRED headline puts it, “A demographic time bomb is about to hit the beef industry” — and survey data shows this shift extends beyond beef to all animal products.
7) New approaches for vegan outreach & living
Each month, creative vegans develop fresh, effective ways to make our movement more accessible and impactful, including:
Cutting-edge technology for vegan advocacy, such as AI-powered responders to automatically address anti-vegan arguments, drone footage to expose farming conditions, and virtual reality to immerse people in the experiences of farmed animals.
Vegan self-commitments and challenges, like Plant-Based Treaty, the Plant-Based Pledge, Plant-Based Universities, Challenge 22, and Veganuary.
Exciting books, award-winning documentaries, and short movies about veganism and animal rights.
Apps that make everyday vegan life easier, like HappyCow, Is It Vegan?, or Daily Dozen.
Funding opportunities to support vegan projects and activism, such as Vegan Hacktivists Grants, ProVeg Grants, Vegan Society Grants, or The Pollination Project.
Helpful overviews and resource guides, such as the Animal Rights Map and the Vegan Cheat Sheet, as well as knowledge hubs like Plant-Based Data that compile research and facts to support vegan advocacy.
New forms of vegan advocacy, including street activism, vegan music and art projects, organized civil disobedience, debate formats, mass protests, and viral online campaigns.
8) The animal industry depends on huge taxpayer subsidies to survive — and governments can’t support it forever
One of the biggest misconceptions surrounding animal agriculture is that it’s a natural, self-sustaining part of our economy. In reality, this industry could not survive without tax advantages and massive government subsidies.
Many civil society organizations — and even ethical companies and investors — are pressing for change. They call for the repurposing of $470 billion of agricultural support that currently distorts prices and undermines environmental and social goals.
A study from the University of California Berkeley estimated that one pound of hamburger meat would cost $30 without any government subsidies. The European Union spends nearly a fifth of its entire budget on subsidizing livestock farming. In face of a global economic slowdown, many countries simply won’t be able to afford propping up this wasteful industry for much longer.
9) It’s becoming harder and harder to ignore the animal industry’s health and environmental impacts
The consumption of animal products has devastating effects on the environment, climate, and public health — effects that are rapidly becoming too significant to ignore.
The health issues range from a wide array of risks linked to consuming meat, eggs, and dairy to the alarming rise in antibiotic resistance. Animal agriculture is also considered the single most risky human behavior for pandemic risk. Research shows that shifting to plant-based diets would save over eight million lives and hundreds of billions in health costs every year.
The environmental consequences are vast and multi-dimensional. Animal agriculture is the world’s leading cause of deforestation and rainforest destruction, the most serious threat to our oceans, the largest user of land, the leading cause of species extinction, the biggest emitter of methane, nitrous oxide, and ammonia, the main cause of soil degradation, and a leading driver of climate change. The industry breaches five of Earth’s six most critical boundaries. The United Nations has described animal agriculture as one of the top contributors “to the most serious environmental problems, at every scale from local to global.”
Because of their potential to reduce harm in so many areas, plant-based diets are recommended by leading authoritative bodies, including the World Health Organization, the United Nations, the Mayo Clinic (ranked as “best hospital in the world”), the American Heart Association, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Institute for Cancer Research.
10) Vegan innovations are revolutionizing the food industry
The growing demand for vegan products has sparked a global innovation race. With a flourishing ecosystem of over 800 vegan startups and a surge in vegan-related patents, the coming years are poised to deliver transformative innovations in fields like vertical farming, cultivated meat, and advanced plant-based proteins.
While the progress made so far is already impressive, breakthrough vegan innovations could sharply reduce demand for animal products at any moment — creating an increasing financial risk for those invested in animal agriculture.
Based on current trends, experts and AI systems predict that animal flesh will vanish from most super market shelves by 2040, that the US will be completely vegan by 2050, and that most of the world will be vegan by 2075.
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I am making the slow shift away from animal protein. The concept of eating meat has bothered me for some time, but, living with my husband, who was a serious meat eater, proved too difficult to implement. Now that I’m alone, it seems the right time to make the switch.
I live for the day when animals are regarded as family not food. Like all social movements, it's a long, slow process, especially so because humans tend to be blind to the rights of other species. But you are right, Pala - change IS happening. Thanks for the encouragement!