44 VegNews SUMMER 2019
financial interests are at play, working to
prevent a shift away from meat toward
plants. The conservative political group
Bancada Ruralista wields an extraordinary
amount of influence thanks in part
to its defense of the interests of rural
landowners and ties to agricultural
sectors. Indeed, some of the most powerful
meat companies are also some of the
biggest sponsors of the country’s political
parties—the Parliamentary Agricultural
Front (the agribusiness lobby) is deeply
entangled in the nation’s congress, whose
members occupy a third of the Chamber
of Deputies and a quarter of the Senate.
Indeed, the political outlook in Brazil can
appear bleak, but, fortunately, there is a
growing number of activists on the ground
combating these influences.VEGANO, POR FAVOR
When he went vegetarian in high school,
Lucas Alvarenga, now Senior Vice President
of International Programs at Mercy For
Animals, didn’t know anyone abstaining
from meat. “My friends said, ‘That’s not
going to last a week. That’s not something
for men.’” Eighteen years later, things in
Brazil are vastly different. In São Paulo, the
country’s most populous city, Alvarenga
can go out for vegan pizza and even eat
veganized versions of traditional Brazilian
dishes, such as feijoada, a stew typically
made with pork, beef, and sausage. He says
that now, friends, loved ones, and even
casual passersby express interest in eating
less meat themselves.
But beyond one man’s story, signs
all point to a plant-based revolution.
Proponents cite Brazil’s openness as
a major reason for its receptiveness to
veganism. “The reality about Brazilians is
that people here are very open to change,
are very flexible, and are very eager to
learn new things,” says Vivian Mocellin,
Animal Equality’s executive director in
Brazil. The international organization
recently opened an office in Brazil, and
Mocellin noted that the country is the
perfect place for progress. “The culture
is constantly evolving. I think people are
very open to understanding veganism as a
social justice movement. And I think there
is a new generation of Brazilians very
eager to change the culture."BRAZIL
by the Numbers209
million
The population of Brazil14%
The percentage of Brazilians
who identify as vegetarian82%
The percentage of Brazilians
who found living conditions for hens
“unacceptable” after viewing
footage of battery-cage farms40%
The annual growth rate of the
vegan market in BrazilAs is often the case, young people
and social media seem to be leading the
charge. Brazilians are the third-largest
Facebook user-base in the world (after
India and the US) and spend more time
online than people in any other country.
So celebrities like pop star Anitta—who
recently proclaimed herself vegan and
told her 38 million Instagram followers
to watch Cowspiracy—have a powerful
impact. Veganism has reached the small
screen, too. Writer and activist Alana
Rox’s vegan cooking show, Diary of a
Vegan is the first of its kind in Latin
America, and her cookbook of the same
name is a bestseller in Brazil.
Social media is also credited with
increasing public awareness of undercover
investigations into factory farms in Brazil.
“When social media pages used to show
undercover investigations in the United
States and Canada, people always used to
say, ‘Oh, this doesn’t happen in Brazil,’”
Alvarenga said. “Now [with all] these
investigations, they are seeing what’s