Business bosses back Veganuary

Veganuary is so much more than just an online pledge! Our corporate outreach team work hard not only to ensure companies launch exciting new vegan products in January, but also to help businesses increase their sustainability efforts by encouraging their staff to take part in Veganuary and provide more vegan options in their canteens.

This year dozens of big companies and institutions have gotten on board, not only supporting their workforce to eat vegan in January, but leading by example with CEOs and other senior team leaders taking part. In their own words, here are some of the reasons:

Credit: Jens Hofma


“Taking part in Veganuary, was a natural step for us to show our support for our vegan offering and also reflect our aim to be a carbon neutral business by 2030. At Pizza Hut Restaurants we are dedicated to evolving our practices and processes with the aim of being a more responsible business. Our Vegan Menu is one of the many initiatives we have in place – including our food donation programme and our continued commitment to food waste reduction.

“Having easy access to alternative products will be key to help us stay on track, that’s why we’ve already started introducing milk alternatives at our Restaurant Support Centre and also have a dedicated company vegan group set up for all our team members to share their experiences and useful hints and tips to eating vegan.” 

Jens Hofma CEO and Pizza Hut Restaurants Management Team

Credit: Liz Syms

“Having been a vegan now for nearly 3 years, I feel much healthier and have also come to understand more about the benefits plant-based eating has for animal welfare and the environment. I, therefore, felt ‘Veganuary’ was a great time to help some of my ‘vegan-curious’ friends to understand more.” Liz Syms CEO of Connect for Intermediaries

Josh Matthews© Ben Phillips

“Our company is one of the first UK B Corps and we strongly believe that companies should be a force of good in the community. I am personally very fit and am looking to be healthier by adopting a vegan diet and am an environmentalist who wants to reduce my carbon footprint and environmental impact by cutting out animal based food.

“We will be buying more vegan food for our staff in January and surprising them with vegan snacks from time to time throughout the month. We also plan to forward some of your emails to the team to create greater awareness of the benefits of following a vegan diet.”

Josh Matthews, Managing Partner, MASECO Private Wealth

Credit: Stuart Machin


“At M&S, we’ve seen a dramatic increase in interest in plant-based food and we are changing to meet this demand. We launched our award-winning Plant Kitchen range in January 2019 – one of our most successful launches ever, with over 1.5million customers trying the products and 81% coming back to re-purchase. This January, we’re growing even further introducing over a hundred brand new products which are 100% delicious and suitable for vegans, and we’re encouraging colleagues and their families to sign up to Veganuary and to give them a go. I’m personally really looking forward to the challenge.”

Stuart Machin, Managing Director of Food, M&S

Credit: PWC


“We’ve committed to a target of 25% of all spend on food to be plant-based by 2020, versus a baseline of 15% in 2017, as part of our programme to encourage our people to adopt sustainable lifestyles. We’re on track to achieve that, with spend at end 2019 around 24%. It’s been easier than we thought. Many people want to eat a more plant-based diet, for a variety of reasons – health, environmental, or animal welfare. Offering more options for our people to do this in their work context has been extremely well received. Last year 550 PwC people took part in the formal Veganuary WorkPlace Challenge, whilst many more tried plant-based options as part of a flexitarian approach. It looks like this year will be even bigger.

“With so many people in the UK now concerned about climate change, it’s an easy step for companies to take, to both reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase employee engagement.”

Bridget Jackson , Chief Sustainability Officer , PwC UK

Credit: Booking.com


“This is the first time that Booking.com has taken on the Veganuary Workplace Challenge and it’s been great to see so much enthusiasm and interest throughout the company, reflecting the importance of sustainability and well-being for our employees and company as a whole.

“As well as promoting it on digital displays all over our Manchester offices, we’ve reached out to colleagues around the world through our internal social media channels. We’ve had bake sales, food-sampling events and daily tasty vegan dishes in our canteen throughout the month. And it doesn’t end when January does: we’ve inspired a lot of people to continue exploring all things connected to sustainability, so I’m looking forward to seeing some lasting impact: healthier people, keen to live on a healthier planet!” 

Bryan Batista, CEO, Booking.com Transport Division

Credit: Upfield



“At Upfield we have a vision for a better plant-based future, which aims to drive positive change in people’s health and our impact on the planet. As a leader in plant-based nutrition, it was a no-brainer for the team at Upfield to get involved in Veganuary. We created an inspiration board in our office, where colleagues could put their goals for the month along with quotes and photos of themselves! We also shared vegan recipes amongst each other to encourage and inspire.

“As an organisation that promotes plant-based living, we hope this month motivates people to continue to find plant-based alternatives for staples in their diet beyond the month of January.”

Dr. Jeanette Fielding, Chief Corporate Affairs and Communication Officer, Upfield

Credit: Leeds Beckett University


“Beckett Food are taking part in Veganuary to encourage students, staff and all our customers to try something new and make a positive lifestyle change. We work hard to be as sustainable as possible and are aware of the positive impact that a plant-based or flexitarian approach can have on the environment, and on our health. We hope this month we will have persuaded our non-vegan customers to go vegan, even if it’s just 1 day a week!”

Lyndsey Gallaher, Food Service Manager, Leeds Beckett University

Credit: DocuSign


“Sustainability is core to DocuSign’s values, so when a group of employees approached me to support Veganuary in the London office, I had no hesitations. Our Veganuary activities have sparked incredible conversation among employees on how they can lead more sustainable lives. Vegan lunches, baking contests and cooking classes all increase employee engagement and unite us in this common purpose”

Andy Champion, VP Enterprise Sales EMEA, DocuSign


Other organisations taking part in the Veganuary Workplace Challenge and helping their staff to eat vegan in January include:

  • ITV
  • Ernst & Young
  • Food companies Deliveroo, Wagamama, Stoats and Bells & Whistles
  • Businesses including Ecotricity, Booking.com, Contiki Travel, London & Partners and Hastings Direct, Quotacom
  • Health institutions Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust, Educational bodies Cardiff Metropolitan University, York College, National Foundation for Educational Research
  • And even Sheffield United FC!

Whether you’re an employer who wants to demonstrate your commitment to sustainability, or a Veganuary participant who doesn’t want to go it alone, we have all the resources you need to run your own Veganuary Workplace Challenge.

Thinking of trying vegan?

Veganuary inspires and supports people all over the world to try vegan for January and beyond. Millions of people have already taken part. Will you join them?