In recent years, the population of vegans has rapidly increased worldwide. Fans of veganism avoid meat consumption, and they exclude all its dairy, animal derivatives and products from their diet. This movement first appeared in early 1980΄s as an expression of vegan hippies’ and punks’ political activism for animal rights. Sometimes their attitude had violent extensions, such as throwing paint and objects against people who wore furs, etc.

According to Guardian, main reasons for this unpredictable rise of veganism are:  the increased awareness about brutal treatment of livestock and about the climate change and the possibility of improving health through nutrition.
It is also evident that the role of Internet and Social Media has been essential for the growth of vegan foods’ consumption. Many consumers search the Web, in order to be informed about: where and how exactly their preferable food is produced, the benefits of eating more vegetables, the effects of meat consumption and animal derivatives etc. For instance, the International Health Organization has linked processed meats (bacon, ham and so on) to cancer.
Furthermore, many relevant documentaries (such as Cowspiracy, “What The Health!,” Fork Over Knives), have informed viewers about; conditions in slaughterhouses and farms, the gradual destruction of the environment caused by industrialized livestock farming, vegetarianism etc. This has led to the augmentation of vegans’ population around the world.  Finally there is also a percentage of consumers that “follows” veganism simply because it is a diet-trend!
As for countries around the world, over the past three years there has been an increase of up to 600% in a segment of US population that is characterized as a vegan (GlobalData research), while countries such as Australia, Israel, Canada and Austria have shown an impressive boost of vegans’ percentage from 2004 to 2018. In the United Kingdom, the percentage has raised by 350%, compared to a decade ago. In addition, countries such as China, entire companies like Google, many celebrities and athletes are proud supporters of the vegetarian movement!
This shift in eating habits worldwide has an impact on the world market. Companies have realized the profit margins created by these diet-trends are huge, so they have been adjusting their strategies to take advantage of it!
For instance, Walmart which is the largest retailer in the world is now purchasing more vegetarian products from wholesalers than in the past, while in Britain firms such as Tesco and Marks & Spencer have already launched new categories of vegan products.
As for restaurant companies such as Pizza Hut and Wagamama, they have already launched a vegan menu while many start-up companies are somehow involved in veganism business. (recipe books have released, YouTube channels are opened, food test events takes place etc.)
An extensive research by the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America), has shown that:
“During the years between 2016 and 2050 , the international decrease in meat consumption could save more than 8,000,000 lives a year, with $ 31 trillion less costs in the United States”.
So, is veganism a partial solution for many worldwide problems? …future is near….!