{"id":778026,"date":"2025-04-09T10:35:22","date_gmt":"2025-04-09T14:35:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/animalrightswatch.us\/?p=778026"},"modified":"2025-04-09T10:49:37","modified_gmt":"2025-04-09T14:49:37","slug":"protein-politics-an-anti-vegan-backlash-is-brewing-why","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/animalrightswatch.us\/?p=778026","title":{"rendered":"Protein Politics: An anti-vegan backlash is brewing. Why?"},"content":{"rendered":"\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t

Recent news headlines suggest that an anti-vegan backlash has begun. It comes just as research shows that the popularity of veganism today has returned to pre-2020 levels. So how did we got to this point? And is it truly all over for vegans? One of the biggest criticisms of vegan meat alternative products today is that they\u2019re processed. Then there\u2019s the protein brigade. Aligned with the narrative pedaled by the meat industry, led by influential political figures such as Elon Musk, alpha males and ultra-masculine gym bros are leading the carnivorous diet charge. These arguments have been successful enough in turning people against and away from meat alternatives, gutting sales and sometimes entire businesses. But it doesn\u2019t mean veganism is dead. As media investigations and social media continue to shine a harsh light on how we treat animals \u2013 which remains shocking, cruel and inhumane \u2013 and the true environmental impact of farming them, it\u2019s likely the philosophy of veganism will continue to attract adherents. Long live veganism!<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\n

ANAY MRIDUL:<\/strong> Recently, mainstream news media The Daily Telegraph and Financial Times suggested that an \u201canti-vegan backlash\u201d has begun… In response, The Spectator came out with its own take: \u201cBlame vegans for the \u2018anti-vegan backlash\u2019.\u201d It comes just as research shows that the popularity of veganism today has \u201creturned to pre-2020 levels\u201d, according to food magazine Chef\u2019s Pencil…<\/em><\/p>\n

To make matters worse, sales of plant-based meat fell by 9% between July 2023 and 2024 in the US (though it\u2019s still selling better than pre-pandemic levels), and 7% in the UK. And yes, a host of vegan restaurants have closed, including those owned or backed by celebrities, while others have put meat on their menu and then closed…<\/em><\/p>\n

So how have we got to this point? And is it truly all over for vegans?.. One of the biggest criticisms of vegan meat alternative products today is that they\u2019re processed… Then there\u2019s the protein brigade. For as long as they\u2019ve been around, plant-based products have been attacked for not having enough protein. It doesn\u2019t matter that most meat analogues actually match the protein levels of the products they\u2019re trying to replace, and some overtake them…<\/em><\/p>\n

But politics plays its part. Spearheaded by figures like Elon Musk \u2013 never one to shy away from a culture war \u2013 the pro-meat movement is reflective of the larger political landscape, one where wokeism is unwelcome and DEI policies are blamed for plane crashes.<\/em><\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not just alpha males and ultra-masculine gym bros who are leading the carnivorous diet charge \u2013 women from their late 20s to early 40s make up the majority of the market for brands like Equip Foods, which sells products like grass-fed beef protein and colostrum gummies, as per the Financial Times.<\/em><\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s the backlash against climate change. With President Donald Trump back in the White House, the US is once again pulling out of the Paris Agreement, which should come as no surprise given that the climate-denying president did so in his first term too. Moreover, Trump has demanded all mentions of the climate crisis be scrubbed from government websites.<\/em><\/p>\n

He may be flanked by former environmentalists in Musk and Robert F Kennedy Jr, but these two are figureheads for the people who\u2019ve put personal power over the planet. The former has raised doubts over the scientifically established climate harms of animal agriculture and added information from a climate alarmism think tank on his Department of Government Efficiency website. The latter, now the health secretary, has railed against \u201cfake meat\u201d products despite their environmental superiority.<\/em><\/p>\n

It aligns with the narrative pedalled by the meat industry, which would have you believe that plant-based food isn\u2019t sustainable, despite animal agriculture accounting for up to a fifth of global emissions. In addition, the meat lobby will dupe you into thinking that overlong ingredient lists are 1. universally bad (they\u2019re not) and 2. only found in vegan products (they\u2019re not)…<\/em><\/p>\n

These arguments have been successful in turning people against and away from meat alternatives, gutting sales and sometimes entire businesses. But it doesn\u2019t mean veganism is dead… Vegan population numbers have remained steady over the years at 1.5% worldwide… However, veganism has been growing in Asia too. In 2021, a tenth of Indians identified as vegan, and this has remained steady this year too. Similarly, the number of vegans in Singapore has grown from 7% in 2020 to 9% today.<\/em><\/p>\n

But perhaps the most crucial misconception of this argument is that veganism is all about diet \u2013 it\u2019s not. Veganism is, as The Vegan Society explains, a \u201cphilosophy and way of living\u201d that excludes all forms of animal exploitation \u2013 for food, clothing and other purposes.<\/em><\/p>\n

It\u2019s why we see companies making animal-free leather and silk, cruelty-free cosmetics, and vegan toothpaste and shampoos. Veganism isn\u2019t dead \u2013 if it were, investors and companies wouldn\u2019t still be spending hundreds of millions of dollars on these products.<\/em><\/p>\n

Most of the population may not change their way of living. But as media investigations and social media continue to shine a harsh light on how we treat animals \u2013 which remains shocking, cruel and inhumane \u2013 and the true environmental impact of farming them, it\u2019s likely the philosophy of veganism will continue to attract adherents. SOURCE…<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

RELATED VIDEO:<\/strong><\/p>\n