How veganism looks different in the UK, Germany, USA, India, and beyond.
9 min read
Veganism has spread from a small UK movement to a global phenomenon — but adoption rates, cultural attitudes, and daily experiences vary enormously by country.
79m+
vegans worldwide (est.)
Statista 2023
24%
UK adults eating less meat (YouGov 2023)
8%
Germans identifying as vegan or vegetarian
38%
of Indians vegetarian (NFHS)
The UK has a legitimate claim to being the birthplace of modern veganism — the Vegan Society was founded in London in 1944. Today, approximately 3% of the UK population identifies as vegan (around 2 million people), with surveys suggesting a further 14–17% as vegetarian.
Veganuary — the January vegan challenge — began in the UK and has spread globally, with over 700,000 sign-ups in 2024. The UK plant-based food market was worth £1.1bn in 2023. Vegan labelling, dedicated sections in every supermarket, and widespread restaurant options make the UK one of the easiest places to be vegan.
Germany has undergone perhaps the most dramatic shift in vegan attitudes in Europe. From a country famous for bratwurst and schnitzel, Germany now has more vegan product launches per capita than any other country and the most vegan restaurants per capita of any large European nation.
Berlin is widely considered one of the world's most vegan-friendly cities, with hundreds of vegan restaurants and a deeply established plant-based food culture. German supermarkets (REWE, Edeka, Aldi, Lidl) all stock extensive vegan ranges.
Around 1–3% of Americans identify as vegan, with 5–9% vegetarian. The distribution is highly uneven: coastal cities (New York, Los Angeles, Portland, Seattle, Austin) have thriving vegan communities and extensive plant-based food options, while many rural areas lag significantly behind.
The US plant-based food market is the world's largest in absolute terms, driven by significant investment in brands like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat.
India presents a fascinating case. While 30–40% of Indians are vegetarian (by far the highest proportion of any large country), veganism as a distinct movement remains relatively small. Traditional Indian vegetarianism is primarily driven by religion (Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism) rather than animal rights philosophy, and dairy is deeply embedded in culture and religion (ghee, paneer, lassi).
However, a plant-based vegan movement is growing in urban India, driven by younger generations and health concerns.
China has a rich Buddhist vegetarian tradition (su cai), but meat consumption has risen dramatically with economic development. That said, alternative protein technology is taken seriously at government level in China, and massive investment in plant-based and cultivated meat is underway.
Brazil has one of the world's fastest-growing vegan populations, with an estimated 14% of Brazilians identifying as vegetarian and 7% as vegan — remarkable growth in a country famous for its beef culture. The change is driven by young urban Brazilians concerned about both health and the Amazon.
ℹ️ The global trend