VEGANUARY – HOW ADOPTING A VEGAN LIFESTYLE CAN HELP THE PLANET
January is typically the month in which we all try something new, whether this is to attempt a new exercise class, start a new course or even try a new career. But sometimes this can be a complete shift in your current lifestyle and a change in what you consume through food and what you purchase and wear.
Veganuary
A movement that has gained more and more participants since its launch in 2014 is Veganuary. In fact, since its launch 7 years ago over 1,000,000 people from across the world have participated. Veganuary was set up with the mission to "inspire and support people to try vegan, drive corporate change, and create a global mass movement championing compassionate food choices with the aim of ending animal farming, protecting the planet, and improving human health."
Learn more about Veganuary here.
What is Veganism?
According to the Vegan Society “Veganism 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 animals, humans and the environment. In dietary terms, it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals."
How Veganism can help the planet
The short answer to this question is yes. The Vegan society notes that the worlds meat production has quadrupled since 1960. While the United Nations predicts that by 2050 world meat production will have almost doubled. More animals mean that we will need more crops to feed them and with both human and farmed animal populations increasing (according to the UN The world’s population is projected to grow from 7.7 billion in 2019 to 8.5 billion in 2030) the pressure this will put on the planet is immense. This trend will contribute to global warming, widespread pollution, deforestation, land degradation, water scarcity and species extinction.
How to Embrace Vegan Living
Going 100% vegan can be a big ask for many people. But there many ways to embrace aspects of a vegan living if you are not confident committing wholly to the lifestyle at first. One of the main things we can all do is incorporate aspects of a plant-based diet. A plant-based diet is avoiding all animal foods such as meat (including fish and shellfish), dairy, eggs, and honey. There are thousands of nutritious and simple recipes available online to make the task less daunting and many of our major supermarkets and independent grocers also stock a wide range of vegan food.
Veganism is not only about food
While not consuming meat is a major part of a vegan lifestyle, it is not the only aspect. Veganism also involves avoiding animal-derived materials, such as leather, wool and fur, products tested on animals and places that use animals for entertainment. You can find out more about how to manoeuvre a vegan lifestyle with the Vegan Society’s lifestyle directory here:
Most Beauty Brands are not Vegan
‘Vegan’ labels can be misleading and all too often many beauty and make-up brands use non-vegan ingredients in their formulations but still try to pass their products off as certified vegan or vegan friendly. Unfortunately, many also still test on animals. We advise thoroughly checking the ingredients of any beauty or skincare product before you purchase and decide for yourself as to whether they are being 100% transparent. You can also check which brands are cruelty-free on the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) website.
VOYA & Vegan-Friendly Products
Here at VOYA, proud to be a cruelty-free brand, we are totally opposed to the practice of animal testing in cosmetic research. We do not test any products on animals and have an agreement with our contract manufacturers that they do not or will never be involved in animal testing of any kind.
We also try our best to be 100% transparent about our products. We are proud to say that over 90% of our products are vegan-friendly, we only have a handful of products that would not be suitable for vegans and we highlight on each product page as to whether they are vegan-friendly or not so that the customer can make an informed choice.