Articles Reflecting a Vegan Lifestyle used with permission from All-Creatures.org

In spite of recent setbacks in the mainstream success and acceptance of veganism, Bill Muir reminds us that the animal agriculture industry will not be defeated overnight and invites us to take heart from the gradual but definite progress we’ve made over the years.

Hang In There, Vegans!
From Bill Muir aka SGT. VEGAN, American Vegan Society, AmericanVegan.org
May 2026

Photo from Bill Muir

Originally printed in American Vegan magazine, Spring/Summer 2026, reprinted with permission.

As a vegan, it is easy to get discouraged these days. Everywhere we look, from the news to social media, people are trying to sell us on the defeat of the plant-based movement. After an amazing start on the stock exchange, BEYOND MEAT is doing poorly, vegan restaurants are going under, old school vegan products such as YVES are going away and some of our favorite celebrities are quitting the plant-based lifestyle. I can see how this can get us down, and YET, I say, “Hang in there, vegans!”

In my opinion, some of the fluctuation in the popularity of our movement can be traced to the initial high points of mainstream interest in veganism in 2018. Veganism was sold to the public as the most amazing new trend, which is problematic, as veganism is neither new nor a trend. People were told that it was the answer to all of the world’s problems, which isn’t completely true, either.

Veganism will help solve climate change, and can be healthier than the standard American diet, but just adding a plant-based burger in fast-food restaurants won’t be enough to truly make a difference.

It is easy to forget just how much money is wrapped up in animal agriculture. Did anyone actually think that an industry that generates over $260 billion in annual revenues was going to quietly go away? Much like fossil fuel companies that make billions while the world burns, animal agriculture isn’t just going to “do the right thing” and stop killing animals for profit. The fight for our future is just that—a fight, with no predetermined outcome.

The good news is that the number of vegans has been uptrending for decades. When I went vegan in 1992, less than 1 percent of Americans identified as vegan. Now that number is around 3 percent, with about 5 percent total self-identifying as vegetarian. Even better is that 7 percent of young adults between the ages of 18 to 34 identify as vegetarian, and a whopping 33 percent of adults identify as “always, sometimes, or usually” eating a plant-based diet.*

While things are always changing, they ARE generally getting better for vegans, and our numbers ARE on the rise. As the younger generations get older, and the older generations die off, these demographics will continue to shift in our favor. Like the electric car, the rise of veganism will be a bumpy road, filled with triumphs as well as setbacks. I believe justice will prevail in the end. “Hang in there, vegans!” Together, one day we will create a vegan world.

*All of these numbers come from Google, feel free to do your own research. —SGT. VEGAN

Bill Muir, RN (aka “SGT VEGAN”) left a cushy job teaching English in Japan after 9/11 to join the Army. Despite being afraid of heights, he became a paratrooper, and served with the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Afghanistan as a Combat Medic. A vegan since 1992, Bill adhered to his PLANT-FUELED diet throughout his rigorous Army training and deployment. Since being honorably discharged from the Armed Services, Bill has earned a certificate in Vegan Culinary Arts from Atlantic Union College and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree from Drexel University, and has authored the books VEGAN STRONG and The Adventures of Sergeant Piggy.

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Posted on All-Creatures: May 19, 2026
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