- More than 700,000 people worldwide signed up to try veganism with Veganuary, an NGO that promotes plant-based diets around the world.
- In Latin America, countries such as Brazil, Argentina, Chile and Mexico have large turnouts, according to data from the first YouGov survey in the region.
Veganuary, the global organization that encourages people to try vegan in January and beyond, continues to grow in Latin America. Although the UK-origin NGO celebrates ten years this year since its first campaign, its presence in Spanish-speaking countries started in 2020, thus concluding its fourth campaign in 2023, with high compliance from countries such as Chile, Argentina, Brazil . and Mexico.
In this context, the world’s largest movement of veganism closed Vegan January 2023 with more than 700,000 people registered worldwide – a historical record for NGOs – where the majority of participation was concentrated in Latin America. According to the first survey conducted in January by YouGov in the region, to measure Vegan participation on the continent, 5% of those surveyed in Chile claimed to have participated in a Vegan January during that month, while in Argentina and Mexico it was 7% of the population. , and 8% in Brazil, thus confirming the growing movement and interest of the Latino population in incorporating a plant-based diet into their diet.
Likewise, companies are not left behind, and every year more and more are participating with promotions, launches, direct support for campaigns, or leveraging context to make their vegan products visible, which are increasingly in demand by customers. During January 2023, in Latin America and Spain, a total of 235 brands joined the campaign. Of these, more than 90 offer month-long promotions, and others, such as NotCo and Vilay, support advertising in supermarkets in Mexico. In addition, 14 major companies supported the January Vegan campaign through their own channels such as Subway, Dunkin’ Donuts, Heinz, Kraft, Papa Johns, Domino’s Pizza, Nestlé, and Unilever, among others.
Also at the corporate level, eight companies joined in the workplace challenge in January, an initiative that seeks to motivate work teams to try the plant-based diet. Some of them are Avon, Natura, Groupon and The Body Shop.
Mauricio Serrano, director of Veganuary Latin America, commented on that «This is the most vegan January since our initiative officially arrived in Latin America in 2020, demonstrating that people and companies trust the movement and rely on Veganuary to consume or promote plant-based products during January and beyond, predicting a more vegan future for the months- next month and January.
A movement that determines the trend
January Vegan Vegan is also trending on social media. Publication reach on Instagram and Facebook -in Spanish- increased by 273% over the six months prior to the campaign, with over 94 million accounts reached between December and January; while the media publishes more than 330 stories on issues related to the NGO’s 2023 campaign, in 9 Spanish-speaking countries, thus positioning Veganuary in the written press; in radio interviews; and even on television, in countries like Chile and Brazil.
Local celebrity endorsements are also relevant for growth in regional countries. This year, Veganuary is supported by prominent figures such as Kathy Moscoso in Colombia; Eliana Albasetti in Chile; Liz Solari, Gerardo Chendo and Leo Montero in Argentina, Marco Antonio Regil in Mexico; and Xuxa and Hana Khalil in Brazil.
Meanwhile, the political sphere is not left behind. This year, the campaign has the backing of Chilean congressman Jorge Brito – thus crowning Chile as the country with the most politicians who have experimented with veganism along with Veganuary- as well as the brother of the Chilean president, Tomás Boric; while in Colombia, the animal senator, Andrea Padilla, is also part of January Vegan.
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