Going Vegan--Tasty Goodness

According to a 2026 Harris poll commissioned by the Vegetarian Resource Group, 3% of Americns are vegan--the exact same percentage as a similar Harris poll found were vegan in 2020. In Canada too, the numbers have been flat for the past several years--and the percentage in Canada is lower than in the US--just 600,000 or 1.5% of Canadians identify as vegan. Similar patterns prevail in most Western countries (though both in Italy and in Australia the percentage of vegans increased from 2% to over 3% from 2020 to 2026).

In some other parts of the world, admittedly, the picture is much brighter. In Mexico and in India, for example, the percentage is about nine percent--but in those countries too it has remained flat for past several years. (In India, it should be noted, the statistics are widely regarded as suspect.)

Why has progress stalled, when just a few years ago the future for whole foods, plant-based diets seemed so bright?

A large part of the reason is surely that well-funded corporations have pushed back--increasing their advertising and lobbying expenditures while making little or no effort to curtail animal cruelty or reduce carbon emissions. And right-wing administrations have of course been more than happy to lend an ear--and, in many jurisdictions, to pass "ag-gag" legislation.

In the 25 July issue of the Globe and Mail Jessica Scott-Reid provides an excellent overview of how progress has stalled in Canada. One aspect her article doesn't cover is the complicity of the media--even when they are not hobbled by "ag-gag" legislation. I sent the following letter to the Globe on July 26.

Re “One Hop Forward, Two Trots Back” (July 25): Hats off to Jessica Scott-Reid for her excellent overview of how Canada is failing non-human animals. And hats off to the Globe for printing the piece.

The Globe deserves to share in the blame, though, for Canada’s U-turn on animal protection. Like other media outlets, the Globe has in recent years cut back considerably on coverage of these issues. A case in point is the “ag-gag” legislation that the Doug Ford government has long been trying to put in place. In January of this year the Ontario Court of Appeal (overturning a lower court ruling) gave them leave to do so—thereby allowing (as Scott-Reid puts it) “the animal-farming industry … to keep conditions on farms largely shielded from media coverage and public scrutiny.” Nowhere in the Globe (or in most other Canadian media outlets) was there any reporting on this.

It's not just cruelty to farm animals that the media have largely given up on reporting; it's also the vast contribution of the animal agriculture industry to global warming (widely estimated at 15% or higher of all carbon emissions).

In so many areas over the past few years, progress has stalled. But the issue of diet is unlike a good many other issues on which progress has stalled. We don't need to wait for governments to take action or for corporations to see the light (though pushing governments and corporations on these issues is always worth doing, even if it seems like an endless uphill battle!). All that any human being needs in order to help bring about at least some progress is to ask themselves two simple questions. Do I want to eat and drink in ways that contribute hugely to global warnming, contribute hugely to other forms of pollution, are less healthy for me, and and entail great cruelty to non-human animals? Or would I prefer to eat and drink in ways that contribute far less to global warming, contribute far less to other forms of pollution, are healthier for me, and entail no cruelty whatever to animals?

For most people, these are not difficult questions to answer--but I suspect most people are (as I was for so many years) reluctant to pose such questions to themselves, in large part because of a fear that adopting a whole-foods, plant-based diet will mean that they will have to give up a lot of foods that they love the taste of. If that's the case with you, I strongly recommend you try some of the vegan substitutes that have come on the market in recent years. I'm not thinking here just of burgers. The "Nuts for Cheese" versions of Brie and of Blue Cheese, for example, are quite extraordinary--as is the Tofurky Italian Style "sausage," as is Hellman's Vegan "mayonaise," as is Becel Vegan "margarine," as is So Delicious Salted Caramel "ice cream." More so now than ever, it tastes very, very good to do what's right ethically (and what's good for your health).