Animal Welfare and Veganism — The Evidence Base

Veganism is the most radical dietary intervention available to individuals seeking to reduce personal contribution to farmed animal suffering, with a strong evidence base for its welfare impact.

Key Facts

A vegan diet has been estimated to reduce an individual's contribution to animal deaths by over 95% compared to an omnivorous diet
The number of land animals killed for food globally each year exceeds 80 billion
Plant agriculture also kills animals through field cultivation, but at far lower rates per calorie than livestock farming
Nutritionally adequate vegan diets are achievable with planning and B12 supplementation
High-income country meat and dairy consumption is the largest controllable individual contribution to farmed animal suffering

Welfare Considerations

The welfare case for veganism operates at individual, species and systemic levels. Each reduction in consumption of animal products reduces demand that translates, across millions of consumers, into lower production volumes and fewer animals in poor conditions. The strength of the evidence connecting individual food choices to industrial animal farming demand makes dietary choice one of the highest-leverage personal welfare interventions available. Flexitarian approaches — reducing rather than eliminating — achieve substantial welfare benefit relative to full omnivorous consumption.

What You Can Do

Reduce consumption of animal products, particularly from factory-farmed sources, to reduce demand
Explore plant-based alternatives to your most frequently consumed animal products
Connect with evidence-based resources on nutritionally adequate plant-based eating
Support food environments — workplace, school, hospital — that make plant-based options the easy default choice