NGO’s campaign assists people transition to sustainable diets in 2021

Animal protection organization Sinergia Animal offers free support to those who want to try a plant-based diet with professional and community help

With information about climate change, animal rights, healthier and more sustainable products getting more accessible recently, the number of people considering a vegan diet keeps rising each year. By 2018, 70% of the world’s population declared to be reducing meat consumption. This movement has been encouraged by animal protection organizations such as Sinergia Animal, an NGO that organizes vegan challenges for consumers in three different regions of the world, Latin America, Indonesia and Thailand.

Although veganism is often only associated with European and North American regions, populations in developing countries also show the same pattern. That is particularly the case in Latin America, especially with younger generations, where 37% of the population declared to have adopted more plant-oriented diets, and in Southeast Asia, where the amount of vegan products launched in the market has had an increase of 440% between the years of 2012 and 2016.

“We help people transition to a vegan diet via our vegan challenges in which we provide support with orientations by specialized nutritionists, recipes, and other tips. We feel that the most important aspect, however, is how our challenges enable us to embrace new people into the vegan community”, says Fernanda Vieira, Food Policy and Animal Welfare Global Director of Sinergia Animal.

A new year, a new solution

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the public eye has been closely watching the scientific debate and, therefore, the discussion and arguments surrounding the relations between the production and consumption of animal products and sustainability, climate change, and public health. “There is strong scientific evidence sustaining the correlations between animal agriculture and the risk of the emergence of new infectious diseases. New pandemics can start in pigs and chickens being raised in industrial farms”, says Vieira. According to the United Nations, 75% of all emerging infectious diseases originate in animals and factory farms, industrial units that confine thousands of animals together could be a bridge to transmit new diseases from animals to humans.

In addition to that, advocates say plant-based diets represent an ethical stance towards animals, a potentially healthier choice for ourselves, and a far more sustainable option for the environment. “We are optimistic that these and other reasons will lead a lot of new people into giving a plant-based diet a try and joining our vegan community in 2021, as a new year resolution”, says Vieira.

A new year, a new challenge

Sinergia Animal’s Desafío 21 Días Veg/21 Hari Veg/ Thai Challenge 22 offers professional and community support to those who seek guidance to change their eating habits in Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Thailand, Indonesia. This year alone, over 18 thousand people in Latin America /11 thousand people in Indonesia// 11 thousand people in Thailand have registered to try a vegan diet in the country through the campaign. Besides offering support from specialized nutritionists, Sinergia Animal’s Veg Challenges also provide vegan recipe tips, interaction in social media groups, and daily communications to its participants.

You can contribute to Sinergia Animal’s work by donating here