A new Veganuary survey has found that 78% of participants who were not already vegan when they signed up will permanently change their diet either by staying vegan or halving their intake of animal products.

Veganuary, the global organisation and movement encouraging people to try vegan in January and beyond, found that more than 700,000 people from 228 countries and territories took part in Veganuary 2023, breaking all previous records.

The results from the survey show that most respondents plan to make permanent diet changes after participating, as 25% of those who were not already vegan before Veganuary planned to stay vegan at the end of their pledge.

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Almost half (40%) said animals were their number one motivation for trying vegan, followed by personal health (21%) and the environment (18%).

Half (53%) were still eating meat and/or fish when they signed-up to take part, 29% were vegetarian and 18% were vegan.

72% of those not staying vegan plan to at least halve their intake of animal products going forward, and 69% are very/extremely likely to try vegan again in the future.

The number one reason people decided to stay vegan is that they learned more about veganism (24%), followed by improved health (19%) and finding it easier than expected (18%).

The Veganuary survey also found that around half saw some improvement to their overall health (47%), with increased energy (46%), improved mood (49%), better skin (38%) and desired change in body weight (35%) being the most common benefits.

“These incredible results show that Veganuary is so much more than a one-month pledge as taking part leads to lasting diet change for most participants,” veganuary’s international head of communications, Toni Vernelli said.

“With 78% of our 2023 participants planning to at least halve their intake of animal products permanently – including 25% who plan to stay fully vegan, Veganuary really is driving positive change for animals, people and the planet.”

She added: “We work very hard to equip our participants with as much useful advice, delicious recipes and friendly support as possible, so it’s very rewarding to know that 98% would recommend Veganuary to others.

“This figure has been consistent for several years, demonstrating the value of Veganuary’s work in making plant-based eating easy and accessible for everyone.”