Veganuary provides the perfect opportunity for taking a vegan diet for a test drive. However, going meat free for a whole month can seem like a tough challenge. That’s why we’re here with your ultimate guide to Veganuary 2022.
With our guide, going vegan for the month will be a total breeze, and hopefully, tempt you to adopt a plant based diet and reduce your meat consumption even once Veganuary is over.
Veganuary is a non-profit organisation that is based in the UK and was founded in 2014. The Veganuary campaign was created in order to encourage people to try eating vegan for the month of January with the four core aims of:
Ever since its conception, the amount of people choosing to take part in Veganuary has grown year on year.
Veganuary 2021 saw more than 500,000 people make the pledge to go vegan during January. It also led to more than 825 new vegan products and new vegan menu options being launched in the charity’s key campaign countries.
On top of these amazing stats, Veganuary reported that 82% of the 2021 participants who weren’t already vegan have continued to successfully reduce their animal product intake with 30% going fully vegan, 38% eating 75% less meat and 14% eating at least 50% less meat.
Hopefully Veganuary 2022 will see even more people ditching animal products for January, and show participants that eating plant based is as delicious and easy as it is sustainable and ethical.
We’re kicking off our guide to Veganuary with 5 of our most useful tips that will get the month off to an inspiring start.
You’re going to find it so much harder to stick to a plant based diet if you’ve got all of the non vegan products you’re used to eating in conveniently tempting reach.
Making sure you only have vegan friendly products stocked in your food cupboards means you don’t have to worry about making a slip up when you’re searching for your lunchtime snack.
Of course, it’s important not to be wasteful, so try to eat any animal products you gave in your house before January begins, or alternatively donate anything to someone who isn’t participating in Veganuary.
Meal planning is going to be your best friend during Veganuary. It’s perfect for ensuring you get all the right ingredients when you do your weekly food shop, and makes it a lot less likely for you to stray from the diet due to having to come up with a meal on the spot.
Whilst you’re writing up your weekly vegan meal plan, figuring out vegan versions of your favourite foods is a great way to get you excited about eating plant based, and will make the transition much easier.
It’s so easy to adapt meals so that they’re meat free, whether it’s Friday night pizza, family BBQs or a romantic date night at home, there are so many resources available to help you alter any recipe to be plant based.
Don’t be put off of eating out by thinking that there won’t be any vegan foods on the menu.
Veganism has become incredibly popular all over the world and thanks to this popularity it has pushed restaurants to add delicious vegan options to their menus, and for numerous all-vegan restaurants to open up.
So now, you can dine out and experience some incredibly exciting and innovative vegan recipes which can also help to inspire what you cook up in your own kitchen.
Of course a completely vegan month is the goal for Veganuary, but know that it’s completely okay if you do happen to slip up and consume something that isn’t vegan.
Veganurary is meant to be a fun and enjoyable way to try out a vegan lifestyle, and being super strict to the point of stress isn’t going to give you the best possible experience.
Being kind to yourself if you stray slighlty is the best way to make a sustainable change, for both Veganuary and beyond.
We want to share our ultimate tricks for making sure your plant based experience runs smoothly, from making sure you’re getting the right nutrition, to simple food shop switches, you’ll be armed with all the information you need.
In cutting out meat, dairy and other animal based ingredients, you may find that you can no longer eat your usual go-to sources of protein, calcium and other nutrients.
It’s important to brush up on your nutrition knowledge so you can make sure you’re receiving all the correct supplements needed for a healthy diet.
The first thing to remember when it comes to food shopping is that most of your everyday staples are already vegan.
Things like pasta, beans, bread, rice, lots of tinned goods and of course fruit and veg are all vegan friendly products you’ll already be used to buying.
On top of this, most non vegan ingredients you usually find on your list will probably be able to be directly switched for a vegan version.
You can now get dairy free cheese, milks, yoghurts and chocolate.
You can swap your usual meats for tofu, tempeh, and plant-based alternatives, for example our veggie-packed vegan sausages, burgers and bites.
If you’re finding yourself lacking in motivation, there are a few ways you can help to boost your Veganuary vigour.
First of all – rally with your fellow vegans, vegetarians and Veganuary participants. There are so many people who will be embarking on the same journey as you, so when your motivation is dwindling, reach out to them for inspiration.
The best bit is that they don’t even need to be people you know personally. Use social media to your advantage and get stalking all the best vegan blogs, Instagrams and tik toks to amplify your positive Veganuary attitude!
Another great way to muster some more motivation is to take it all back to the reasons behind why you’re taking part in Veganuary. Remind yourself of the environmental, health, and animal welfare considerations that fuel the decision to go vegan to reinvigorate your resolve.
The final part of our guide is providing you with tons of fool-proof, taste bud tingling vegan recipes that you can test out in your kitchen.
As well as all of these recipe staples, you can download our free recipe #GoshGoodnessBowls eBook which is packed full of tasty meal ideas perfect for Veganuary.
One final step to our guide is to ask you to let us know how you get on this Veganuary!
We want to hear all about how you put our tips and tricks to use, and we definitely want to see all of the delicious vegan meals you make using our products.
So make sure to tag us on Instagram and Facebook so we can see your updates and all of your glorious Gosh! creations.
