2024: Viva! Review

Viva! began its 30th anniversary year doing what we do best: expanding our reach and taking on some of our most ambitious campaigns to date!

To kick off our milestone year, we launched the 50 For Our Planet campaign, setting an ambitious goal for UK eateries to make their menus 50 per cent plant-based. Media attention surged, with pieces in over 100 news outlets, including The Sun, Express, Mirror and Star, igniting widespread discussion and reaching 180 million people. Viva! branched out internationally and we took our message to Africa with Viva! Uganda, where we now have five projects from Would You Swap?, with VR headsets letting people experience the realities of animal farming, to Gorilla Defenders. Back in the UK, we launched our biggest outreach tour to date, reaching 21 cities with our Are You An Animal Lover? campaign. We held a controversial and challenging ‘Dog Roast’ at Henley Regatta. And our digital billboards, They all want to live, on pig gassing reached two million Londoners in just one week!

Celebrating our landmark year with a five-course anniversary dinner aboard the Elizabethan boat in London was a truly special highlight. We were joined by patrons Heather Mills, Peter Egan and Randal Plunkett, who shared their own inspiring words on Viva!’s legacy. The event also featured an emotional video, speeches, awards and an auction, raising vital funds to fuel our work in the years to come. Seeing the incredible community we’ve built over the last three decades filled me with immense gratitude.

With worrying statistics concerning health in the UK, in 2024 our commitment to health advocacy deepened. Our head of research, Dr Justine Butler, tackled issues such as the dangers of fur farms and factory farms spreading dangerous viruses and the consequences of meat consumption on heart disease and diabetes type 2. Her expert insights were included in publications such as The Sun and the Mirror.

At the end of the year, we launched A Very Vegan Christmas: The Complete Mini Cookbook for a Magical Festive Feast! with 96 pages of deliciousness promoted to vegans and non-vegans alike.

Viva!’s message has now reached millions, and our determination to create a world free from animal suffering has only grown. Thank you to every supporter, volunteer and member of our team – you are the heart of Viva!. Here’s to the next 30 years of groundbreaking campaigns and compassionate action! Cheers!

 

Juliet Gellatley
Founder & International Director

Juliet is interviewed by Faye on the incredible story of Viva! so far.

30th Anniversary Fundraiser

Viva! celebrated three decades of groundbreaking advocacy with an unforgettable fundraising dinner aboard the Elizabethan boat. The evening began with a look back at Viva!’s incredible journey, as guests watched our 30th anniversary video, setting the stage for reflections from our director and associate director, Juliet and Tony. Then, Chef Liam Penn took us on a culinary adventure with The Secret Garden, a stunning five-course plant-based feast that showcased the richness of vegan cuisine. Seriously, the pea and champagne soup was to die for.

Patrons Heather Mills, Peter Egan and Randal Plunkett (Lord Dunsany) delivered powerful speeches, celebrating Viva!’s impact and sharing their personal connections to the cause. The evening concluded with a lively auction, raffle and awards ceremony, where generous contributions and enthusiasm from our supporters made the event a resounding success. It was a night that brought our vibrant community together to celebrate all we’ve achieved. Thank you to everyone who attended! And to all the staff, particularly Bex, Emily and Sarah, for all their brilliant work on the event.

VCO 30th Anniversary Party

Viva! was delighted to partner with Vegan Camp Out for the seventh year, and we went above and beyond in our 30th celebrations. Cue 90s music, prosecco and celebrations! It was also thrilling to have so many people join us for this milestone event. A highlight in the vegan calendar, Vegan Camp Out always proves to be a momentous occasion, combining entertainment with activism, incredible food and inspiring speeches. And this year there was even cake! A special thanks to Emily and her team for the hard work to make VCO such a success for Viva!.

Trilogy of Talks

For those not at our fundraising boat party or Vegan Camp Out, we started the year with a sold-out talk by Dr Michael Greger on How Not to Age, and rounded off our 30^th celebrations with Viva!’s Trilogy of Talks – The Vegan Trailblazers event in October.

Attendees were treated to inspiring talks from Juliet Gellatley, Heather Mills and Randal Plunkett (Lord Dunsany), each offering unique insights into the growing influence of veganism. Juliet’s talk, David vs Goliath: The Vegan Movement Taking on the Meat Industry, provided an electrifying look at the challenges faced when confronting the powerful meat industry and the innovative strategies being used to fight back.

Heather Mills shared her story of transformation in Heather Bites Back, offering an inside look at her journey as a vegan entrepreneur and her vision for supporting vegan businesses. Meanwhile, Randal Plunkett discussed the importance of V-Wilding, the vegan approach to rewilding, and how it’s helping restore ecosystems while challenging the myth of ‘regenerative grazing’.

The event, held at the Greenwood Theatre, also included a Q&A session and a chance for attendees to meet the speakers. It was an unforgettable day for anyone passionate about a plant-based future.

Dairy – Corporate Cruelty

Thanks to kind donations from you – our supporters – we have been able to continue breaking down the many myths that surround the dairy industry.
Our new video Dairy – Corporate Cruelty was central to street outreach and social media campaigns:

This campaign challenges the public’s preconception of the dairy industry. The majority of people are still unaware that to produce milk, a cow must first give birth and that her calf is ruthlessly stolen. Viva! shows how big corporations work to hide the reality, and we also encourage consumers to choose kinder plant-based options for animals, the planet and themselves.

We set ourselves a big target, promoting it as ‘the biggest anti-dairy campaign in UK history’ and so we set to work to ensure this was very much the case! With harrowing investigation footage captured by Viva! Campaigns at a dairy farm in west Wales, we exposed the barbarity of dairy alongside our earlier investigations material to emphasise that these are not rogue operators – it’s corporate cruelty.

Day of Action

On Saturday 27 January, we organised a huge Day of Action with 120 events across the UK! Thank you to all our supporters who made this such a successful campaign.

Viva! staff hosted a positive event at Leicester Square, London – joined by 30 volunteers, including experienced as well as new activists, and a month-old baby called Ziggy (in a cow costume)!

We talked to thousands of people about the dairy industry, showing them our national media coverage of the farm we investigated and exposed, and about going vegan. And, of course, we gave out free vegan food! Cheese and chocolate samples, which were immensely popular!

50 For Our Planet

Overall, the survey was featured in 11 publications, print and online, with a combined reach of 74 million people, with nearly 50 additional shares on social media.

Are You an Animal Lover?

This summer, Viva! launched our powerful and successful campaign Are You an Animal Lover?. We posed this provocative question in thousands of face-to-face conversations nationwide and reached tens of thousands more on social media. Our in-person chats sparked deep reflection, with many individuals reevaluating their meat consumption and some even committing to veganism on the spot, inspired by the resources we provided. The campaign embodied kindness and understanding as we guided people to reconcile their love for animals with their eating habits.

Are You an Animal Lover? – The Great Dog Roast

We kicked off the campaign with a media-grabbing stunt at the Henley Regatta, which attracts over 300,000 visitors. Crowds from all over the world were stunned by The Great Dog Roast. Thinking that the silicone dog was real made hundreds question why it was wrong to cook a dog while, nearby, animals such as pigs were being obscenely roasted without a second thought. Juliet talked to many Henley visitors, with James cooking the ‘dog’ and Ben and Gary filming the numerous reactions. The campaign made people question their values, and many said they would change their diet.

Our campaign launch video featuring The Great Dog Roast:

Are You an Animal Lover? – The Great Dog Roast videos

How would the public react to a DOG ROAST?!:

Juliet asks if you’d eat a woofing squealer:

Thanks to the many volunteers who worked hard on this campaign and to the staff on tour: Ben, James, Erin as well as Jazz and Finn. There were long queues of people lining up to give plant-based food a try, with over 1,400 hotdogs enjoyed nationwide. We engaged 5,000-6,000 more people, prompting them to consider how they cherish their own companion animals while supporting the suffering and slaughter of billions of other animals.

Many people watched footage of our latest investigations on VR headsets, helping them make the choice that veganism is the solution.

Here is the short film we created for the Animal Lover? outreach events that was viewed by the public:

Some of our favourite reflections from our campaign wrap up video:

• “It’s delicious, I will make the switch”
• “I would consider going vegan, it’s healthier and with ‘Are You an Animal Lover’, this is another reason”
• “It tastes better than the original!”
• “That’s it, I am going vegan!”

See our great tour video:

Are You an Animal Lover? – Pet Insurance Advert Parody

We continued our campaign with a powerful parody ad campaign. The ‘fake’ insurance advert tells the tale of our fondness for companion animals while drawing attention to the stark contradiction of slaughtering other equally loveable creatures. Its deliberately playful tone appeals to a meat-eating audience, culminating with a dark twist that exposes the pervasive speciesism within society. By tapping into deep-seated emotions, we shine a light on the hypocrisy that exists in numerous British households. The response levels on YouTube were very high and we are continuing to invest in the campaign!

Fake is Great!

June saw the launch of a mildly salacious Fake is Great campaign, smashing stereotypes about vegan food, with a hilariously tongue firmly planted in cheek video that you can watch below (warning: if you’re dildo averse, look away now)!

Gasping for Life

Viva!’s Gasping for Life campaign pulls back the curtain on the horrifying truth behind pig gassing. Each year, 9.8 million pigs in the UK are needlessly slaughtered, with 88 per cent being gassed to death in carbon dioxide gas chambers. It is utterly sickening to witness. The pigs are essentially suffocated while being tortured – the gas turns to acid which burns their eyes and internal organs so they feel they are burning from the inside out. It can take up to two minutes to die and of course they scream and frantically struggle in a futile attempt to free themselves from the metal-barred chambers that hold them captive.

Viva! in London

Please see our successful London event here:

We turned heads and raised awareness throughout London with our cinema truck, which drove slowly past famous landmarks and stopped in key places. Our team, including Ben, James, Laura, Erin and Rachel, spoke with hundreds of people, and everyone wanted to stop this torture. It led the way for us to talk to everyone about the real solution: to be vegan.

Heads were turned, people stopped on the street, car drivers halted in the middle of the road to watch.

The powerful event led many onlookers to want clarification and approach our campaigns team with questions. Some were in tears, others expressed disgust, and even more were seething with anger.

It was an extremely constructive and hope-filled day because, through our conversations, we spread the word that none of this happens when you go vegan. We reinforced the fact with delicious free tastings of vegan alternatives to pig meat. A combination of the two approaches saw many people commit to going vegan.

Billboards

A poignant billboard caused a very passionate and sympathetic response. We reached over two million people in two weeks with our hard-hitting video billboards in prime London locations, from Clapham Junction and Waterloo to Leicester Square; from Westminster, White City and Bethnal Green to New Cross and Wapping.

Videos

As part of the campaign, team members Ben and Gary also made several short videos and will be promoting each of them to relevant audiences. View them on the Gasping for Life web pages.

Takeaway the Meat returns to national TV – reaching 50 million people!

In December 2024, thanks to your unwavering support, Viva! was thrilled to announce that our Takeaway the Meat TV ad would return to UK screens from 18 to the 30 December. Together, we reached our ambitious £40,000 target, allowing us to broadcast our powerful vegan message to a staggering further 10 million people on Channel 4 and its associated networks, including E4, Dave and Film4. Thanks to Laura and Juliet for their work on this punchy, effective ad. This means that over its three airings, the TV ad will now have been seen by 50 million people!

This nationwide reach is a game-changer, delivering our urgent message on the direct link between animal cruelty and the food on our plates to millions across the UK. None of this would have been possible without the dedication of everyone who donated, shared and spread the word. This campaign marks one of the biggest moments in Viva!’s history, making it possible to inspire real change on a national level.

Salmon farming exposed again

Viva!’s investigation into Scottish salmon farming made waves in January, gaining mentions in The National and Sunday Mail.

March saw another impactful exposé in the Sunday Post revealing again the deficiencies in the RSPCA Assured Scheme’s so-called protection for fish. In May, Viva!’s head of investigations, Lex, filed a formal objection against the Scottish salmon industry’s bid to remove “farmed” from labelling, joining Animal Equality and Wildfish in the fight for transparency in a cruel industry.

In January, Viva! Health published several insightful articles focused on nutrition, including Veronika’s comprehensive guide on Fats – the Good, the Bad and in Between, explaining the complexities of dietary fats. Nick shared 10 Common Mistakes to Avoid When You Go Vegan, helping newcomers navigate their plant-based journey. Justine contributed to the Veganuary supplement in Vegan Food & Living, highlighting unexpected health benefits of a vegan diet beyond animal welfare, while February saw a flurry of new blogs on topics such as What is a Healthy, Balanced Vegan Diet? and the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle on mental and physical wellness.

Spring’s arrival saw Viva! dive deeper into health topics, proving yet again that plants are a force for heart health and cancer prevention. April also brought our firm response to a misguided meat and brain health article! With the latest research, we debunked myths and reinforced how vegan diets are a no-brainer for mental wellness.

Viva! Health also went all-in with a fresh lineup of wellness blogs. From weight-loss strategies to essential B12 facts for vegans, sprouting tips and the perks of green tea, diabetes, bone health and heart disease, our experts had readers covered

Viva!’s Dr Justine Butler even landed in The Sun, Scottish Sun and US Sun, with tips on healthier swaps and the benefits of plant-based choices – talk about high-impact reach! She also produced web pages on the hot topic of Fake News about Fake Meats and ultra processed foods – showing how the nation’s problem with junk foods is NOT a vegan issue.

There were also countless health blogs produced for Viva! Here are just a few of the latest:

• https://viva.org.uk/health/health-articles/minty-magic-not-just-for-after-dinner/
• https://viva.org.uk/health/health-articles/are-you-feeding-your-muscles-well/
• https://viva.org.uk/health/blog-health/8-frightening-facts-about-animal-based-foods/

Health Award

In March, Juliet was honoured to receive the College of Naturopathic Medicine Award for Outstanding Contribution in the Field of Natural Medicine. It was a big affair, with Juliet giving a speech at the graduation ceremony as the main award recipient. One of Juliet’s qualifications is as a nutritional therapist which has fed into Viva!’s health campaigns and talks.

What could be more exciting in our 30th anniversary year than launching Viva! in Africa?

Juliet says: “Factory farming is beginning to find its dirty way into Africa. Uganda is one of the most stunning countries in the world, with the most incredible wildlife hanging on for survival. The UK has destroyed most of our own wildlife and almost all our forests but in Uganda, iconic species – lions, giraffes, elephants, warthogs, cheetahs, leopards, mountain gorilla and chimpanzees – still have a home.

“The stunning continent of Africa has been stripped and exploited by the developed West for centuries and it is now time to give back and work with local people to promote kindness and sustainability and giving them the chance to decide their own future. One thing is certain, corporations promoting factory farming and intensive monoculture have to be challenged.”

Gorillas on the Brink

In the heart of Africa’s rugged embrace is the iconic mountain gorilla, one of our closest relatives with whom we share 98 per cent of our DNA. These gentle guardians of Uganda’s rainforests are extremely intelligent and have a variety of communication and problem-solving abilities. Yet they are critically endangered!

From their first discovery, mountain gorillas have faced poaching, civil wars, deforestation and persistent encroachment on their territory by humans. Populations collapsed, hitting a low of just 254 in 1981, with today’s global population sitting at just 1,063. The mountain gorilla is constantly in danger from poachers who kill them for bushmeat and through encroachment and habitat loss from the illegal forest trade.

Mike Hill, co-founder of vegan food company One Planet Pizza, completed the arduous IronMan challenge, smashing his £1k target and raising £1,381 for the gorillas. Viva! UK raised £15,000 to protect the people who protect the gorillas.

Protecting the Protectors

HUGO volunteers are essential to the mountain gorilla’s survival and Viva! is protecting them – the people who protect the gorillas.

The men who volunteer are extremely poor and come from local communities in the Bwindi region, where gorillas live in the ancient mountain forests. They are trained in gorilla behaviour so that when the noble and mighty apes leave the forest and explore the surrounding villages and cropland, they are herded back to their home before they can come to harm.

This intervention has been successfully managed for some time without harm to either gorillas or men. In fact, the HUGO project is a huge success and as the mountain gorilla numbers slowly increase, more volunteers are needed to avert conflict.

Perhaps just as importantly, HUGO are helping to ensure that poachers become anti-poachers and now there are poacher reform groups in Bwindi villages.

Equipment handover in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest

Viva! Uganda and Viva! UK were delighted to collaborate with the Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) to hold an event to celebrate HUGO’s work. Along with Viva! Uganda’s Denis Kasaija and Sam Galiwango, Juliet handed over the equipment directly to the HUGO volunteers, 50 of whom attended.

Equipment included raincoats and trousers, gum boots, tents, insulating jackets, water bottles, first aid kits and much more.

The Verdict

The Hugo volunteers rushed to try out their warm jackets, raingear and gum boots. The verdict: Joseph: “I am overjoyed. I thank you. Please send my gracious appreciation to the UK.” David: “This makes me happy; all your help is very well received.” George: “I will now be warm when I meet my fellow gorillas. Their conservation is very important to me.”

The Media

It is difficult to get TV news coverage in Uganda – but we succeeded! The Gorilla Defenders initiative and the HUGO event, along with footage of a gorilla family, were a main item on the news of Central Uganda. Journalist T Mwajuma Twaha Adams interviewed Juliet at the event and ran a detailed (and completely supportive) feature on one of Uganda’s biggest news platforms, the Informer. Bwindi rangers were delighted that photos from the day went viral on Uganda’s social media.

In the UK, Juliet’s gorilla diary was featured in MSN Viral Videos and the Bristol Post.

Gorilla Defender Posters

As part of the Gorilla Defenders initiative, Viva! created A3 posters to raise awareness about gorilla conservation, now displayed in Bwindi and Mgahinga national parks.

Project Kindheart

An exciting campaign by Viva! Uganda is Project Kindheart – a school-based initiative organised by campaigns manager Dash. He and his brilliant volunteers, Faith and Huss, have been giving school talks on veganism and animal rights and have reached over 11,000 students so far in over 30 schools around the Kabale district. They have helped to raise young Ugandans’ awareness of critical issues surrounding wildlife and biodiversity loss, animal rights and the importance of empathy and compassion towards their animal populations.

It is wonderful to see such positive responses in such beautiful and unique regions. So naturally, we aren’t stopping there! Project Kindheart will spread this vital work throughout schools in the nation’s capital, Kampala. Integrating wildlife conservation and animal rights topics into their curriculums has the very real possibility of creating a ripple effect through Ugandan society, allowing these values to grow and become the norm and create lasting change!

This is a vision that we at Viva! – whatever the country – share. Our aim is that ‘be kind to all kind’ is the default the world over, giving children the opportunity to expand their compassion to all life in a world that often teaches them to do the opposite. That’s why we’re not taking our foot off the pedal any time soon.

Safe Trails

In August 2024, Viva! Uganda launched the SAFE TRAILS initiative, a groundbreaking campaign aimed at ending the cruelty faced by farmed animals during transport in Uganda. This important project seeks to address the inhumane conditions that animals endure while being transported, highlighting the need for better regulations and animal welfare standards, whilst working tirelessly to promote plant-based food.

Viva! Provides Vegan Food to an Orphanage

Juliet’s visit to the COVCC orphanage in Uganda engaged children with teachings on gorilla protection, the reasons to be vegan and how to have healthy plant-based diets. The children received animal toys, which they loved, and were served healthy vegan lunches throughout the last school year. The orphanage had also been directly handed much-needed computer equipment and a projector.

Continues to go from strength to strength. We were delighted to welcome the team from Viva! Poland at our UK HQ in Bristol. We shared numerous ideas and strategies. Sadly, we also had to say goodbye to the CEO of Viva! Poland for 20 years, Cezary Wyszynski. He is an incredible person, having achieved so much – making Viva! a household name in Poland. His achievements are many, including:

• 12 years ago, taking over 20 hectares of a shelter from an animal hoarder where hundreds of animals died every year and turning it into an educational centre and shelter for many animal species, including pigs, cows, horses, chickens, geese, dogs, cats and foxes
• Conducting investigations of slaughterhouses, which resulted in 60 slaughterhouse employees being charged, including a record 35 people at the McKeen slaughterhouse.
• After 10 years of campaigning and court cases, the use of animals in circuses has almost completely ceased in Poland

We are delighted that the manager of 20 years, Anna Zielinksa, has become the CEO of Viva! Poland and will continue to collaborate and strengthen our close ties.

Outreach Hosts

Central to Viva!’s outreach are our awesome outreach hosts, managed by Jo.
Viva! has a strong core team who are building their groups and consistently delivering effective outreach to thousands of people throughout the year. Want to be part of our volunteer community, see here.

We currently have teams in the following towns and cities: Swindon, Bath, Oxford, Exeter and Taunton, Lancaster, Walsall, Loughborough, Doncaster, Lincoln and Peterborough, Eastbourne and Hastings, Brighton, Lincoln, Leeds, Manchester, Swansea, Norwich, Leicester, Burton-Upon-Trent, Newbury, Windsor, Birmingham and Worcester, Liverpool, London, Telford, York, Edinburgh and Glasgow and most recently, Tunbridge Wells.

The hosts choose their own theme for their monthly outreach, but also become involved when Viva! has a national campaign. This year the teams organised more than 18 Are You An Animal Lover? events and became involved with Viva!’s heart-wrenching Gasping for Life campaign. Additionally, we are on course to beat the Christmas 2023 campaign with over 20 events currently planned.

The host network has an active WhatsApp group and a monthly Zoom meeting. Both have developed to provide support, a platform to share good practice and a valued sense of community. Training is delivered every other month and is based on our outreach guide. We are also in the process of creating a training video to ensure that outreach continues to be presented professionally and consistently around the country.

In early September we had our second team day at a rescue sanctuary. Almost 30 people attended. Here is an excerpt from the personal reflection of one of the attendees:

“Although I was nervous to say the least, Viva!’s team day turned out to be a lightbulb moment for me. Each volunteer has their own reasons for taking the leap and getting involved, but for all of us, at the heart of the matter is a profound love and respect for all life and a desperation to give a voice to those without one. As our day reached its end, it was hard not to reflect that not long ago we were all strangers. In fact, some of us had met for the very first time that day. But being around these people, in this beautiful patch of land on this sunny day, I felt a sense that I was completely at home. Our team day did what it was supposed to – connected us to each other, reminded us that we are not alone, and showed us just what we are fighting for.”

Viva! received a glowing review of our school outreach from Wellacre Academy, where students were captivated by Viva!’s eye-opening presentation on animal farming.

In April, Lex and Laura gave talks at the Vegan Animal Rights Conference (VARC) in Manchester. Jo, Erin and James also attended, with Jo leading the stall.

In June, Juliet gave a talk at National Animal Rights Day (NARD) at Exchange, Bristol, following a march. Several hundred people were in attendance, and Jazz and Finn helped to run a Viva! stall.

Later that month, Jo attended the Restore Nature Now March in London alongside Viva! volunteers. She gave a short talk to the audience to encourage people to prioritise the environment by adopting a vegan diet.

Juliet hosted a Q&A with Ed Winters (Earthling Ed) for the launch of his book How to Argue with a Meat Eater (and Win Every Time) at Waterstones Bristol, talking to a packed audience and had a great time.

And in October, Viva! attended Vegan Life Live with a merchandise stall and two talks: Juliet’s Mood Food and Erin’s Beyond the Screens.

School Talks

In addition to our university outreach, James took the campaign into schools, delivering 30 talks to about 600 students. These sessions covered a range of important topics, from the health benefits of a plant-based diet to the environmental impact of animal agriculture, while also highlighting Viva!’s key campaigns. James also taught the students how to cook vegan meals, ensuring they walked away with both knowledge and full stomachs!

In a final push before Christmas, the campaigns team took to the streets for their final outreach of the year, hitting up cities across December, including Cardiff, Manchester, Liverpool and Bath.

Season One of The Viva! Vegan Podcast launched in January, drawing in listeners with a diverse lineup of guests, including renowned vegan activists and influencers like Captain Paul Watson, Jane Valez-Mitchell, Andrew Fearn (Sleaford Mods), Mark Wakeling, Earthling Ed, Kip Andersen, Dani Taylor (PlantBuilt – more on her later) and Georgie Purcell of Australia’s Animal Justice Party. Hosted by Faye, Issy and Rachel, the episodes spanned engaging discussions on veganism’s intersections with politics, activism and media.

Season Two saw guests include Andy Shovel of brand THIS, Stephanie Lane, Ryan Edwards of Queen’s Inn, Nicole Whittle, filmmaker Thomas Pickering, rapper Feldi and doctors Clare Day and Daisy Lund.

Viva!’s podcast mini-episodes continued to draw attention, with stories ranging from Martin Freeman’s vegetarian U-turn to Lidl’s plant-based price parity in Belgium. Heartfelt pleas to Greggs to revive the vegan steak bake struck a chord with listeners, and co-host Erin joined Faye from August 2024.

Live from Vegan Camp Out, Season Three of the Viva! Vegan Podcast featured guests including Chris Packham, Peter Egan, Gaz Oakley, Genesis Butler, The Happy Pear, Dr Michael Greger, Macka B, Lucy Watson, Mic the Vegan and Vegan Queen V… In fact, there were no less than 46 interviews and Minisodes released in 2024!

The hard work paid off as in October 2024, Goodpods ranked it as #1 in the Top 100 Activist Podcasts of All Time!

Apart from the campaigns coverage above, we hit the media again and again.

For example:

Juliet was a guest on the very longstanding Radio 4 programme Moral Maze. The show has four witnesses, all questioned one at a time by four panellists (all meat-eaters), Ed Winters being the third, on the morality of veganism.

At the end, the panellists then discuss if any witnesses had an impact on their thinking. Radio 4 has 9.1 million listeners a week. https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qk11

In March, Lex spoke to the Standard regarding the so-called decline of oat milk.

The big problem with cow’s milk: ‘There is no ethical way to consume dairy milk’ | Evening Standard

Faye denounced chick-hatching school projects in MailOnline, and James brought his expertise on the ethics of veganism to TalkTV, holding his own against host Ian Collins in a lively debate.

Juliet also appeared on GB TV news on the topic Is Veganism in Ve-cline? – as the main guest rebutting many arguments and positively reinforcing the power of veganism.

In June, Juliet shared Viva!’s 30-year journey on the Plant CEO show, and July’s Dog Roast protest at the Henley Regatta struck a nerve, with Oxford Mail, Herald Series and Yahoo News covering the shock and awe. And Veronika’s insights on skin-friendly foods took the stage in The Independent in July.

In March, Viva! celebrated reaching 100,000 Facebook followers and Vegan Recipe Club (our food-orientated FB page) hit over 230,000 followers, marking an impressive milestone in online engagement.

April saw Viva!’s Instagram following pass 40,000, helping Viva! increase widespread online visibility, and YouTube had over 15,000 followers ahead of target in October! Huge congratulations to Dani and Amy for taking the social media marketing from strength to strength.

As the socials grew, more of the staff braved the camera to make trending posts, including giving shocking facts about animal agriculture.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C7ljoD9KbI_/
https://www.tiktok.com/@vivacharity/video/7374718641771793697</a
https://www.facebook.com/reel/416438158053167/?s=single_unit
https://x.com/vivacampaigns/status/1796104358741848435
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/oEbDl_8j-o4

In 2024, the sports and fitness page underwent a redesign (thanks to Conor) to better cater to a gym-going, high-protein audience. The page and accompanying content, including a series of videos addressing common questions like “Where do you get your protein from?”, were developed in collaboration with the PlantBuilt Team in the USA. This team made an impressive mark at the 2024 Mr America competition, securing over 40 gold medals.

Sports & Nutrition on a Vegan Diet | Viva! The Vegan Charity

In addition, a new leaflet was given out at university fayres and a number of interviews were conducted with the PlantBuilt team for a campaign aimed at reaching 18–35-year-old men that was launched in November.

Earlier in the year, James, Bex and Finn attended Vegan Runners’ 20^th anniversary at Ashton Court, and in May, James, Jo and Erin attended Bristol Great Run, talking to people about how they can achieve their fitness goals on a vegan diet and how to make the transition.

In September, Viva! proudly announced the launch of its new V7 High-Protein Meal Plan, in partnership with the renowned PlantBuilt Team. Designed for fitness enthusiasts and active individuals, the meal plan delivers nutrient-rich, plant-based recipes that are high in protein without sacrificing taste. Maryanne worked tirelessly on the recipes.

Featuring a week of energising meals and snacks, the V7 High-Protein Meal Plan is packed with versatile recipes, like Vanilla & Coconut Granola and Sticky Gochujang Tofu Bowls. This collaboration with the PlantBuilt Team, a collective of vegan athletes, aims to promote peak performance and sustainable nutrition. V7’s High-Protein Meal Plan.

Viva! also worked on new V7 video creatives to relaunch the V7 website. The premise was simple: challenge a meat reducer and vegetarian to go vegan for a week, while showcasing the new V7 recipes.

Vegan Meal Plans For One Week – V7

The two participants cooked vegan food for a week and discussed how easy they found it, showing how delicious and easy vegan food can be to make from scratch.  Thank you Maryanne for the recipe development, Conor for the page design and Faye for the videos.

Viva!’s Vegan Recipe Club grew with its app, website and social media platforms reaching record numbers of people.

January kicked off with Viva! receiving national magazine exposure in Pick Me Up as part of Veganuary, showcasing recipes from our cookbook, Everyone Can Cook Vegan.

Circulation (average per issue). 51,180. (ABC 2022)

In March, Amy’s pitch earned VRC a full-page spread in Your Home magazine, featuring a delicious VRC recipe, as did Plant Based News.

Viva!’s cookbook Everyone Can Cook Vegan also made Plant Based News’s “Best Vegan Cookbooks of 2024. By June, our recipe for vegan egg and cress sandwiches graced Stylist Online, which talks to five million women a month.

If that wasn’t enough, in October, Everyone Can Cook Vegan came in first place in the International Vegan Film Festival 2024 Vegan Cookbook Contest! The winners were announced at the festival on Saturday 16 November at Innis Town Hall Theatre (University of Toronto campus) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Vegan Food & Living regularly featured our work and in October, Erin debuted her first column  alongside articles by Justine and Veronika.

On top of launching Everyone Can Cook Vegan in 2023, Maryanne worked on a new Christmas mini cookbook and in October we launched the 96-page stunner: A Very Vegan Christmas: The Complete Mini Cookbook for a Magical Festive Feast!

In 2024, Amy worked with content creators such as @millievegan, @farmgirlgoesvegan and @jessvegram to promote dishes from Everyone Can Cook Vegan and the new V7 Standard Meal Plan.

Throughout the year, Amy and Dani worked together to produce social content in line with what was trending across platforms such as TikTok. As an example, they filmed, edited and shared three Sylvanian families’ videos around veganism, which were all well received and left viewers asking for more (and more they shall have)!

In 2024, Viva! rolled out four issues of our popular supporters’ magazine, Viva!life, edited by Tony and including many features on campaigns, vegan news and interviews with celebrities such as Earthling Ed and Gaz Oakley. You can get your copies by joining today!

Another amazing Gifts for Life catalogue and Viva! Shop was produced with a range of great new vegan designs, yummy chocolates and sweets and gifts. Thank you Emily and Simon for your hard work.

We are incredibly proud of this year’s collection and hope it brought you as much inspiration as it did to us.

Finally, a heartfelt thank you for your unwavering support throughout what has been both a challenging and deeply rewarding year. None of our work would be possible without you.

Yours for the animals

Juliet Gellatley
Founder & International Director