World Vegan Day
Next: November 1, 2027
Cook someone a plant-based meal.
The story
Where it comes from
World Vegan Day was created by Louise Wallis of The Vegan Society to mark the society's 50th anniversary on 1 November 1994. The society itself began in November 1944, when Donald Watson called a meeting with five other non-dairy vegetarians, including Elsie Shrigley. They wanted a short word for people who eat no animal products at all, and chose 'vegan', which Watson later described as 'the beginning and end of vegetarian'. The society is now the world's oldest vegan charity.
How it's celebrated
The day opens World Vegan Month, which runs through November. Shops and cafés promote vegan dishes and products, local vegan groups hold events, and The Vegan Society invites people to take a 30-day pledge. You don't need to be vegan to join in: cook a plant-based meal for someone and share it.
Did you know
- Before settling on 'vegan', the founders rejected names including 'dairyban', 'vitan' and 'benevore'.
- Donald Watson, who coined the word, lived to the age of 95, from 1910 to 2005.
- Indonesia has nominated the culture of tempeh, its fermented soybean cake, for UNESCO's list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
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