No Meat May, an annual campaign challenging participants to give up meat for 31 days, is celebrating its twelfth year.
The campaign has seen a record-breaking 76,000 signups in 2024, with many more people believed to be taking part unofficially. This is a 33% increase compared to 2023, indicating that interest in plant-based diets continues to rise.
Over a million people have taken part in No Meat May since it was founded in 2013. While the UK, the USA, Canada, and Australia see the largest numbers of participants, signups come from over 60 countries worldwide. The campaign has attracted celebrity endorsers such as Dame Joanna Lumley, Fearne Cotton, and Jasmine Harman.
“Why not give it a try? Day by day, go without meat, or cut down on how much you consume,” said Joanna Lumley. “Eventually, we are all going to have to reduce our reliance on the world struggling to feed cereals to fatten animals to be eaten by rich countries, so why not start now? I am as fit as a very fit flea and I never eat meat or fish… so truly it will not harm your health. Try it. Please. Just for May.”
Long-lasting impact
According to No Meat May’s 2023 Impact Report, a huge 90% of people who took part in last year’s campaign have continued to reduce their consumption of meat and animal products, while 34% have increased their fruit and vegetable intake. This is estimated to have spared 1.7 million animals.
If the 2023 participants maintain these changes, it will save 627.92 billion liters of water, 1.376 million tonnes of CO2, 27,181,056 chickens, and 71,771,750 fish and sea animals in 40 years. Additionally, 974,848 tonnes of crops will be freed up to feed more people.
No Meat May has previously been endorsed by doctors, who pointed out that a healthy plant-based diet significantly reduces the risk of chronic diseases. They also said that transitioning away from animal agriculture could prevent future pandemics.
“By reducing our consumption of animal products or adopting a meat-free diet, we can enhance our health, safeguard the environment, and alleviate the suffering of both humans and animals,” said Ryan Alexander, co-founder of No Meat May. “If meat eaters could appreciate the true benefits of eating plant-rich foods – from a taste as well as health perspective – they would soon realize they don’t need to miss out by not eating animals.”
