Vegan Outreach is a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

nonprofit organization advocating against the exploitation of farmed animals. It was founded in 1993 by Jack Norris and Matt Ball in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, and was originally named Animal Liberation Action (ALA). Vegan Outreach aims to reduce the suffering of farmed animals and to promote

animal rights Animal rights is the philosophy according to which many or all Animal consciousness, sentient animals have Moral patienthood, moral worth independent of their Utilitarianism, utility to humans, and that their most basic interests—such as ...

. It engages in various outreach efforts, which have changed over the years. They started with a campaign of holding "Stop Eating Animals" banners on city streets and highway overpasses. From 1995 to 2020, they focused on doing in-person outreach on college campuses in the United States, Mexico, India, and Australia. During the pandemic, they expanded their online program, ''10 Weeks to Vegan'', to dozens of countries. They recently expanded their vegan chef challenge program and offer a mentorship program for aspiring vegans.

History

As members of the

community of Cincinnati, Matt Ball and Jack Norris spent the winter of 1990–1991 holding fur protests outside cultural events. Their focus turned to

vegetarianism Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the Eating, consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects as food, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slau ...

in 1992, and the Animal Rights Community of Cincinnati funded the printing and distribution of 10,000 pro-vegetarian flyers titled ''Vegetarianism''. In June 1993, Norris and Ball organized a three-day "Fast for Farm Animals" in front of a Cincinnati slaughterhouse; twelve activists took part''.'' On the last day of the fast, some of the protesters took a large banner reading "Stop Eating Animals" to the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati, informally Cincy) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1819 and had an enrollment of over 53,000 students in 2024, making it the ...

campus. Following this event, Ball and Norris formed Animal Liberation Action (ALA) and started a campaign of holding "Stop Eating Animals" banners on street corners. In 1994, ALA developed a booklet called ''And Justice For All''. It promoted a vegan diet, focusing on the abuse of the animals involved. In 1995, ALA's name was officially changed to Vegan Outreach.

Programs

College Outreach

Vegan Outreach is best known for its massive outreach program of leafleting on college campuses. At its peak, they were handing ou
booklets
to over 1 million students at 1,000 schools per semester. In 2025, staff and volunteers began leafleting college campuses again.

10 Weeks to Vegan

Based on research showing that veg challenges are highly effective ways to facilitate change, Vegan Outreach created ''10 Weeks to Vegan'', a series to help people go vegan, providing resources, recipes, nutrition information, and personal support. Over 1.5 million people have signed up for ''10 Weeks to Vegan'' since its launch in 2019.

Vegan Chef Challenges

In 2022, Vegan Outreach reignited its Vegan Chef Challenge program. These are month-long events showcasing new vegan menu items at local non-vegan restaurants. The dining public is encouraged to vote for their favorite dishes. The challenges create a buzz about vegan food and receiv
local media attention

Green Tuesday

Vegan Outreach India has a Green Tuesday Initiative campaign that works with institutions to add vegan options and decrease their animal product usage.

Food-Planet-Health

Food Planet Health: Talks for Future
' is a campaign by Vegan Outreach educating the youth in India about the impact of our dietary choices on animals, health, and the environment through in-person and webinar awareness sessions.

References

External links

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Vegan Chef Challenge websiteGreen Tuesday website
{{Authority control 501(c)(3) organizations Animal rights organizations Animal welfare organizations based in the United States Vegan organizations Veganism in the United States