Statistics

Disclaimer: This is a collation of third party sources about topics connected to veganism. Some of the links are not to the original sources; we are sharing them to help journalists or researchers with their research and because they may form a helpful starting point.

General

If the world went vegan, it could save 8 million human lives by 2050, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by two thirds and lead to healthcare-related savings and avoided climate damages of $1.5 trillion. Source
If the UK population was killed at the rate farmed animals are killed around the world, it would end in just 11 hours. Sources: [1], [2], [3]
Over a billion farmed animals in Britain are killed each year in slaughterhouses. Source
Over 10 million pigs, 15 million sheep, 14 million turkeys, 15 million ducks and geese, 982 million broiler chickens, 50 million 'spent hens', 2.6 million cattle, 4.5 billion fish and 2.6 billion shellfish are killed in the UK each year - over 8 billion animals. Source
Interest in 'veganism' increased seven fold in the five years between 2014 and 2019, according to Google trends. It now gets almost four times more interest than vegetarian and gluten free searches.

Treatment of animals

Cows

Cows bred for dairy produce up to 10 times more milk than they naturally would. Source
Male calves are of no use to the dairy industry and are less suitable for beef production. This means that every year around 95,000 male dairy calves are shot soon after birth and discarded as a by-product. Source
Domesticated cows have an average lifespan of 20 years, but on dairy farms they are killed after 5-6 years on average. Source
30% of cows bred for dairy in the UK have mastitis, a bacterial infection of the udder. Source
Every year on the UK, 2.6 million cattle are slaughtered for human consumption. Source
Cows can naturally live for around 20 years, but are sent for slaughter at around 10 - 12 months old. Source

Chickens and ducks

Globally, more than 66 billion chickens are reared annually as a source of food, for both their meat and eggs. Source
Every year in the UK we slaughter around 950 million birds for food consumption, including chickens, ducks and turkeys. Source
Over 90% of chicken production in the UK is in intensive windowless sheds which house 20,000-50,000 chickens each. Sources: [1, p.10], [2]
51% of eggs produced come from chickens in battery cages. Source
40 million day-old male chicks are killed in the UK by either being gassed or being thrown into a macerator - this practice occurs in all egg farming systems, including organic and free-range. Source
Beak trimming is the permanent removal of part of the beak of a bird at a young age. This is standard industry practice in the UK despite being illegal in many European countries due to the pain it inflicts. Source
A free-range egg farmer can legally house 16,000 birds in one building, meaning that they can house 9 birds per square metre of space. This means that free-range hens live out their entire lives in an overcrowded indoor farming unit. Source
Around 95% of duck production and 90% of turkey production comes from intensive indoor farming. Source

Pigs

Every year in the UK, 10 million pigs are slaughtered for human consumption. Source
Pigs have an average lifespan of 15 - 20 years, but reach slaughter rate at 6 months old. Source
Less than 3% of UK pigs spend their entire lives outdoors. Source
Most big slaughterhouses in the Britain and Europe kill pigs in gas chambers. Source
Around half of all antibiotics sold in the UK are used on farmed animals, with 60% of these being used on pigs. Sources: [1], [2]
Most pigs are entitled to less than one square metre of space each and the majority of sows (female breeding pigs) are kept in farrowing crates. Farrowing crates were made illegal in several countries across Europe, but are still standard farming practice here in the UK. Source [p.4]

Fish and other sea animals

Half of all plastic in the sea comes from fishing. Source
Three quarters of the world's fisheries are either exploited or depleted. Source
We kill between 1 and 2.8 trillion fish every year. This is 143-400x the amount of the entire human population. Source
308,000 cetaceans are unintentionally drowned each year after becoming entangled in fishing equipment. Source
Farmed salmon has 10x the amount of cancer-causing organic pollutants than wild salmon. Source
For every pound of fish caught, up to 5 pounds of unintended marine species are caught and discarded as by-kill. Source
Sharks kill 12 people per year. People kill 11,414 sharks per hour. Source

Sheep

Around 1.4 million sheep and goats are killed without being stunned each year in the UK using halal practices. Many people in the UK oppose this form of slaughter, yet purchase halal meat unknowingly, since it is sold in most major outlets, including supermarkets and takeaways, without always being labelled as halal. Sources: [1], [2]
Every year around 4 million newborn lambs die within a few days of birth, mainly because of malnutrition, disease or exposure to cold weather. Source
Male lambs are castrated using elastration, a technique that involves a thick rubber band being placed around the base of the infant’s scrotum, obstructing the blood supply and causing atrophy. This method causes severe pain to the lambs who are provided no pain relief during the process. Lambs also have their tails docked using the same method. Source [p.2]

For more statistics about intensive farming in the UK, please visit here.

Veganism in the UK

The number of vegans in Great Britain quadrupled between 2014 and 2019. In 2019 there were 600,000 vegans, or 1.16% of the population; 276,000 (0.46%) in 2016; and 150,000 (0.25%) in 2014. Sources: Ipsos Mori surveys, commissioned by The Vegan Society, 2016 and 2019, and The Food & You surveys, organised by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and the National Centre for Social Science Research (Natcen).
In 2018, the UK launched more vegan products than any nation. Source
In 2020, Brighton was found to be the most vegan-friendly city. It was also the most popular British city for veganism in 2019, according to Google Trends, followed by the Bristol, Norwich and Cardiff. Sources [1], [2]
2020 became the year that every one of the top UK supermarkets (by revenue) had their own vegan range.
2020 became the year that every one of the top UK restaurants / food-to-go outlets had a vegan (or plant-based) offering
The UK's purchase and consumption rates of vegan: milk, meat, butter/margarine, cheese, ready meals/food to go and seafood are the highest in Europe. Source
Waterstones have over 10,000 book titles with the word 'vegan' in them available for sale (as of November 2020) compared to 944 in August 2018. Source
Between November 2019 and November 2020, vegan food orders via Deliveroo shot up 115% Source
Demand for meat-free food in the UK increased by 987% in 2017 and going vegan was predicted to be the biggest food trend in 2018. Sources: [1], [2]
Vegans and vegetarians look set to make up a quarter of the British population in 2025, and flexitarians just under half of all UK consumers. Source
Almost half (42%) of UK vegans made the change in 2018, which shows veganism has been growing exponentially. Source
More than a quarter of all evening meals in the UK are vegan or vegetarian. Source
In 2020, The Grocer reported 62% of adults in the UK had purchased plant milk. Source
In 2019, Mintel reported nearly a quarter of Brits consuming plant milk, up from just 19% in 2018. Source
1 in 3 Brits have stopped or reduced their meat consumption. Source
Those who eat meat spend a whopping £645 extra a year on food, compared to those on a meat-free diet. Source
Over half (56%) of Brits adopt vegan buying behaviours such as buying vegan products and checking if their toiletries are cruelty-free. 50% of Brits said they know someone who is vegan. 1 in 5 Brits (19%) would consider going vegan. Source: Research carried out by Opinion Matters for The Vegan Society between 14 and 16 July 2017 involving a sample of 2,011 UK adults
The number of vegan residents in UK care homes has almost trebled in the five years to 2019, with a total of 7,000 vegans and vegetarians within 11,000 care homes. Source

Business / Food sales

The UK plant-based market was worth £443m in 2018. Source
Meat substitute sales grew by 451% in the European market in the four years to February 2018. Source
The UK meat-free market is estimated to grow from £559m in 2016 to £658m in 2021. Source: Mintel ‘meat free food’ report, UK, May 2017
In 2019, nearly one in four products launched in the UK carried a vegan claim. In 2018, this figure was one in six. Sources: [1], [2]
In 2020, 16% of ready meals in the UK were plant-based, rising from just 3% in 2018. Source
The line of 20 Wicked Kitchen vegan meals was rolled out at 600 Tesco stores at the start of 2018 and sold more than 2.5 million units in the first 20-week period ending in May 2018 — more than double the company’s sales projections. Source
In June 2018, Waitrose launched dedicated vegan sections in more than 130 stores after increasing its vegan and vegetarian product range by 60%. Source
Online grocer Ocado enjoyed a staggering 1,678% increase in sales within its 'vegan' category between 2015 and 2016. In 2020, nearly 30% of their ready meals are plant-based. Sources: [1], [2]
Between 2018 and 2020, Aldi, Morrisons and Asda have more than doubled their plant-based and vegetarian ready-meals offer as a proportion of their range. Source
Demand for vegan and vegetarian ready meals and snacks at Tesco grew by 40% from 2016 to 2017. Source
Fresh meat sales fell by £328m throughout 2016, a 7.3% decline (beef sales down £72m, pork lost £62m, sausages £51m, poultry £49m and lamb £21m). Cheese went down by £70m (2.8%). Free-from foods rose by £123m, with Alpro adding another £23m. Source
Sainsbury’s sales of its vegan cheeses surpassed the company’s predictions by 300%. Sources: [1], [2]
Sainsbury’s saw a 24% increase in customers searching for vegan products online and a 65% increase in sales of plant-based products year-on-year. Source
Veggie Pret was turning 70% profits increase within its first two weeks of operation, despite predictions that they would drop by up to 30%. Source
A staggering 92% of plant-based meals consumed in the UK in 2018 were eaten by non-vegans. Source
There was a 39% increase in searches for ‘vegan fashion’ and ‘vegan clothes’ from 2017 to 2018. Source: Hitwise UK survey
Adverts for vegan job roles increased by 123% in 2018. Source
Scotland: Sales of plant milk hit £367 million in the UK in 2017 and a farming expert called this an opportunity for Scotland to use its wonderful oats and pure water to produce oat milk. Source
Scotland: Demand for vegan haggis at Tesco in Scotland skyrocketed by 120% in 2018. Source
Scotland: There were over 100 vegan businesses in Scotland in 2019, up from just a handful in 2012-13. Source

Environment and sustainability

A 2018 Oxford University study – which is the most comprehensive analysis to date of the damage farming does to the planet – found that ‘avoiding meat and dairy is the single biggest way to reduce your impact on Earth’ as animal farming provides just 18% of calories but takes up 83% of our farmland. Sources: [1], [2]
A 2019 Harvard University report proved that if everyone in the UK went vegan, we would still have enough food for everyone to eat. If the UK returned meat, dairy and egg farms back to forest and grew health-promoting crops for human consumption, we would be able to sustain human calorie and protein needs in place of feed currently grown for animals. Source
A 2019 Imperial College study found that your diet is where you can make the biggest difference, followed by travel and heating. It is unrealistic to think that people could travel less or avoid heating their homes – many of them can’t, but everyone can indeed eat a vegan diet. Source
Animal agriculture contributes an estimated 18% to total greenhouse gas emissions from the five major sectors for greenhouse gas reporting. For the agriculture sector alone, farmed animals constitute nearly 80% of all emissions. Source [p. 112]
According to the Higg Materials Sustainability Index, leather from cows is nearly three times as harmful to the environment as vegan leather, and wool is twice as harmful as polyester. Source
The sustainability argument is often misrepresented as people think that just because something is made of plastic, it automatically must be the least environmentally friendly option; in fact, when you consider how much it takes to stop a piece of cow skin from decomposing, animal leather is right at the bottom of the sustainable materials list. Many people forget to factor in how much water and food the cows consume, how much land they take up, how much waste and methane they produce, and the amount of chemicals used in the tannery industry that harm its workers.
Humans around the world drink 5.2 billion gallons of water and eat 21 billion pounds of food each day. Cows around the world drink 45 billion gallons of water and eat 135 billion pounds of food each day - nine times as much water and seven times as much food as all humans. Source
If every family in the UK removed the meat from just one meal a week, it would have the same environmental impact as taking 16 million cars off the road. Source
A 2018 Greenpeace report found that “global meat and dairy production and consumption must be cut in half by 2050 to avoid dangerous climate change and keep the Paris Agreement on track. If left unchecked, agriculture is projected to produce 52% of global greenhouse gas emissions in the coming decades, 70% of which will come from meat and dairy.” Source
Animal agriculture is responsible for up to 91% of Amazon rainforest destruction. Sources: [1], [2], [3]
Even the most environmentally damaging plant milk type (almond) is better for the planet than dairy milk. Source
Avocados can be accused of having a high environmental impact as they have a total water footprint of 1,981 mᶾ/ton. When looking at animal products, the largest water footprint is from cow's meat (at 15,400 mᶾ/ton), followed by sheep (10,400 mᶾ/ton), pig (6,000 mᶾ/ton), chicken (4,300 mᶾ/ton) and eggs (3,300 mᶾ/ton). So avocados' water footprint is still less than the lowest animal product. Sources: [1], [2]
A study published in Environmental Research Letters found that eating a plant-based diet has three times more positive environmental impact than washing your clothes in cold water; four times more than hang-drying clothes or recycling; and eight times more than upgrading light bulbs. Source
We can always be more sustainable in our food choices, but an off-the-shelf vegan diet is the most sustainable of all diets. Source
Average annual amount of CO2 emitted by typical UK diets:
Meat-eater - 2,055 kg
Vegetarian - 1,391 kg
Vegan - 1,055 kg Source
82% of starving children live in countries where food is fed to animals who are then eaten by Western countries. Sources: [1], [2], [3]
Clean meat (grown in a lab) could be produced with up to 96% lower greenhouse gas emissions, use 45% less energy, 99% lower land use, and 96% lower water use than conventional meat. Source
A 2019 United Nations report urged people to eat less meat and dairy to help combat climate change. Source
Henning Steinfeld, Chief of FAO’s Livestock Information and Policy Branch and senior author of United Nations’ Livestock's Long Shadow report, said in 2006: “Livestock are one of the most significant contributors to today’s most serious environmental problems. Urgent action is required to remedy the situation.” Source
John Hopkins University found that, on average, a vegan diet is the most environmentally friendly of all diets and would cut emissions by 70%, while a Western style diet adds +135% to the emissions (see below). Source

For more statistics on the environment, please see this link.

Beauty and household products

Vegan facial skincare launches almost tripled between 2013 and 2018, rising from 13% of all launches in 2014 to 28% in 2018. Sources: [1], [2]
19% people check if their toiletries are tested on animals. Source
Sales of vegan cleaning products at Tesco increased by 80% in 2019. Source
Superdrug's own brand vegan cosmetics saw a 750% sale increase in January 2019. Source
Boots.com reported a 56% increase in vegan-related searches in 2019. Source
'Not tested on animals' is the most important packaging claim for 57% people. Source
The sale of vegan prestige beauty products in the UK reported an increase of 38% in the 12-month period between February 2017 to end of January 2018. Source
76% people think that more effort should be made to find alternatives to using animals and 44% cite the word 'secretive' as the first thing on their mind associated with animal experimentation. Source
Beauty brands with cruelty-free certification account for 20% of the women's face skincare and grew by 18% compared to the overall category which grew by only 7% in 2018. Source
There was a 50% increase in the number of beauty and personal care products launched in the UK in 2016. Out of all beauty products with a vegan claim launched in the UK in 2016, 31% were skincare products, 29% colour cosmetics, 23% hair products, 13% soap and bath products, 2% fragrances and 2% deodorants. Source
A Market Research Future report predicts a 6% growth in cruelty-free cosmetics in the years between 2017-2023. Source
The UK is one of the biggest reported users of animals in Europe, with 3.52 million animal experiments reported in 2018. Sources: [1], [2]

Lots of facts and figures on animal testing can be found here. Please contact Cruelty Free International’s (formerly BUAV) press office with specific questions as this is their area of expertise.

Health

A global move to a vegan diet would avert 8.1 million premature deaths per year. Sources: [1], [2]
A 2019 study, totaling over 300,000 participants, by Harvard scientists discovered that eating a vegan diet can cut your risk of developing type 2 diabetes by almost a quarter (23%). Sources: [1], [2]
A 2019 study of more than 12,000 people found those who ate mostly plant-based foods were 32% less likely to die from heart disease. Sources: [1], [2]
Eating a vegan diet may help people who are overweight reduce body fat and promote weight loss without restricting calories. Sources: [1], [2]
We could feed twice as many humans with today’s global harvest (in 2019) if we did not feed farmed animals but rather consumed the yield ourselves. Source
World Health Organization's first step to healthy eating is: "Eat a nutritious diet based on a variety of foods originating mainly from plants, rather than animals". Source
The World Health Organisation report in November 2015 ranked processed meat ranked as a group 1 carcinogen (the same category as cigarettes, alcohol and asbestos). Eating just 50g per day (two rashers of bacon) increases the risk of colorectal cancer by 18%. It also classified red meat as a group 2A carcinogen. Source
Vegan diets have been linked to a 35% lower risk of prostate cancer. Source
High blood pressure, a major risk factor for heart disease and stroke, is less common among vegans. Source
Body mass index and cholesterol levels are lower among vegans. Source
Those who eat seven or more portions of fruit and vegetables per day have a 33% reduced risk of premature death, compared with people who eat less than one portion. Source
The Vegan Society developed the chewable VEG1 multi-vitamin supplement in 2005. VEG1 has 7 nutrients in-one to support vegan nutrition, and sold over 150,000 units in 2019.

Vegan Society statistics

The first ever newsletter by The Vegan Society records that there were just 25 members.
The Vegan Trademark was introduced in 1990 to help businesses showcase their products meeting the authentic international vegan standard set by The Vegan Society. Today, over 46,000 products from more than 1300 companies are registered globally, including 19,000 cosmetics and toiletries, and 17,000 food and drink items.
In 2019 alone The Vegan Society registered an impressive 14,262 products with The Vegan Trademark. That’s an increase in registrations from 2018 of 49%, that saw 9,590 products successfully registered.
The Vegan Trademark is present in 108 countries around the world, with over 50% of products registered coming from companies based outside of the UK.
Products made by companies such as Flora, Alpro, Asda, Aldi, LUSH, Mars, Costa Coffee, Nestle, New Look, and Caffe Nero carry the Vegan Trademark.

Worldwide statistics

Worldwide: The sign-ups for the Veganuary campaign - where people eat vegan for the month of January - hit record highs in 2020, with over 400,000 people signing up. In comparison, there were 250,000 participants in 2019, 168,500 in 2018; 59,500 in 2017; 23,000 in 2016; 12,800 in 2015; and 3,300 in 2014. In October 2020, Veganuary welcomes their one millionth participant. Sources: [1], [2]
Worldwide: Average annual growth in global food and beverage launches with vegan and plant-based claims grew 21% and 58% between 2015-2019, respectively. Source: Innova Market Insights, The Future of Plant-based September 2020
Worldwide: The UK was the most popular country for veganism in 2019, according to Google Trends, followed by the Australia and New Zealand. Source
Worldwide: The vegan leather market is set to take over the animal leather market by 2025, by this time it is set to be worth nearly $90 billion. Sources: [1], [2]
Americas: In 2020, 5% of consumers across the region stated that they were vegan. Source
USA: The number of vegans in America grew by 600% from nearly 4 million in 2014 to 19.6 million in 2017. Source
USA: 2 in 3 Americans have stopped or reduced their meat consumption. Source
USA: Between 2017 and 2019, retail sales of plant-based meat grew 31%, while total US retail meat sales grew just 5%. Source.
USA: Consumption of plant milk increased by 61% while consumption of cow's milk decreased by 22%. Sources: [1], [2]
USA: Plant milks make up 13% of the entire milk category. Their sale gew by 6% in 2019, while cow's milk sales decline by 3%. Source
USA: 41% of US households purchase plant-based milks. Source
USA: Agriculture is responsible for 80-90% of all US water consumption. Source
USA: 80% of all antibiotics sold in the US are for farmed animals - not to treat illness but to promote growth and preventatively due to the stressful conditions the animals are raised in. Sources: [1], [2], [3]
USA: There were as many people searching for vegan Thanksgiving recipes as there were people searching for turkey Thanksgiving recipes in November 2018. Source
USA: A farm with 2,500 dairy cows produces the same amount of waste as a city of 411,000 people. Source
USA: 72% Americans oppose testing cosmetics products on animals. Source
South America: 90% of the region would be interested in consuming plant-based foods, driven by the desire to eat healthier and take care of their health. Source
Europe: In 2020, 4% of consumers across the region stated that they were vegan. Source
Europe: There were 11,655 vegan food and drink businesses launched in Europe in 2019, an increase of 93% from 2016 which was 6,041. Source
Europe: Europe was the largest market for meat substitutes in 2016, accounting for 39% of global sales. Source
Germany: Germany is one of the global leaders when it comes to vegan product development and launches, accounting for 15% of global vegan introductions between July 2017 and June 2018. Source
Germany: One in ten consumers buy meat alternatives, rising to one in five for Germans in the 16-24 age group. In 2005, only 1% of Germans considered themselves vegetarians; this rose to 7% in 2018. Source
Iceland: Iceland topped the worldwide rankings for popularity of veganism between June 2018 and June 2019. Source
Italy: Italy had the fastest growing meat-free population over 2011-2016 with a growth of 94.4%. Source
Italy: Around half of Italian consumers say they are lowering their red meat intake, while 24% say they are increasing the amount of vegetarian processed foods in their diet. Source
Ireland: The Just Eat website saw a 94% increase in vegan food orders in Ireland in 2017. Source
Poland: Around 60% of Poles said they planned to cut back on their meat consumption in 2018. Source
Poland: Since Uber Eats launched in 2017, the number of vegan food orders has risen by 500%, placing the country second in Europe for plant-based online ordering, behind the UK. Source
Sweden: Accoring to the Swedish Board of Agriculture, Sweden saw its largest decrease in meat consumption for 30 years with a 2.6% drop in people eating meat in 2017. Source
Asia: In 2020, 13% of consumers across the region stated that they were vegan. Source
China: The Chinese health ministry released dietary guidelines in 2016 that encourage their population of more than 1.3 billion people to reduce their meat consumption by 50%. Sources: [1], [2]
China: Chinese consumers are twice as likely to purchase clean meat and plant-based meats. Source
Southeast Asia: Between 2012 and 2016, new vegetarian and vegan product launches increased by 140% and 440% respectively in Southeast Asia alone. Source
Australia: In 2019, Australia's packaged vegan food market was worth almost $200 million and is set to reach $215 million by 2020. Source
South Africa: South Africa is the only African country with a sizable vegan following and the 23rd most popular destination for vegans in the world. Source

Please see this link for more US statistics.

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