For last year's Meatout, these Florida volunteers held a tabling event and greeted beach goers with vegan food samples.

Have you started planning your Meatout event? Now is the time!

On (or around) March 20, thousands of caring people in all 50 states and two dozen other countries encourage their friends, families, and communities to “kick the meat habit” and explore a wholesome, compassionate diet of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

FARM’s Meatout program is the world’s largest grassroots diet education campaign. Its purpose is to expose the public to the joys and benefits of a plant-based diet, while promoting the availability and selection alternatives to meat and dairy in mainstream grocery stores, restaurants, and catering operations.

Last year, Meatout activists served thousands of vegan food samples, and this year we’re aiming to reach 30,000 people! Once again we’re partnering with several vegan food companies that can provide samples to you directly, or you can apply for a grant through VegFund. In addition to serving free food samples, you can also leaflet, hold information tables, and host attention-grabbing events such as Meatout festivals.

Why Should I Register? Registering your event is very important because it allows us to keep you up-to-date with Meatout happenings, provide you support and materials, post your events on our website, inform activists and media in your area of your event, and use our international events directory to promote Meatout to national media. Registering is also a great way for you to get support from local activists and media.

Don’t miss this chance to inspire your friends, family, and community members to save animals, protect the environment, and improve their health. Register today to let us know your plans and request event materials.

From Portland to Chicago, from Israel to Germany and from Nigeria to Croatia, organizations have been making huge strides in educating the public on the plight of animals through grassroots activism. Every year, FARM receives upwards of 100 applications from eager groups around the world.

Each month in 2012, we will be highlighting a project that FARM has partnered with. For a complete list of organizations and projects we supported in 2011, please click here.

Humane Research Council Evaluates Vegan Literature

In late 2011, FARM partnered with VegFund and the prestigious Humane Research Council (HRC), located in Washington State, by offering the remainaing funding necessary to conduct a study relevant to the entire global animal protection movement. HRC’s team of research and communications professionals assessed the readability of 11 popular vegan educational booklets from nine different organizations. They understood that the number of pamphlets we hand out does not matter if the public is unable to read and understand the material.

Based on six readability tests, the average readability scores ranged from a low reading level of 11th grade to a high of 15th grade (beyond college level). In contrast, the average U.S. adult has a 9th or 10th grade reading level and 44% of U.S. adults have an 8th grade reading level or lower. These results revealed that the animal rights movement is writing materials for a higher reading level than the average citizen is capable of comprehending. HRC concluded that animal advocacy materials should be developed at a 7th or 8th grade reading level, using short sentences and smaller words, to ensure they speak to the majority of readers.

For us at FARM, this has reminded us that our message always needs to be able to resonate with the widest possible audience. Every sentence that requires the reader to pause or read-over is creating a barrier to change. Our goal is to achieve results on a large scale, which in this case means like our audience, not like animal advocates.

For more information on the study and to view the entire report, please click here.

Looking to connect with like-minded people who care about important animal welfare issues? Then, come join us at this year’s Animal Rights National Conference and enjoy the company of thousands of individuals who believe in the inherent self-worth of animals, as well as environmental protection and enhanced public health.

This year’s conference will be held on August 2^nd through the 5^th at the Alexandria Mark Center Hilton, just outside of Washington DC. Activities will include 80 speakers from 60 organizations, 100 training sessions on animal abuse, how to get organized, tactics, and issues, along with eyewitness reports on key animal rights campaigns, 90 exhibits that are free & open to the public, nightly networking receptions for making new friends and an awards banquet to honor those who have gone above and beyond in the name of protecting animals.

So register TODAY and receive our special “Insider Rate;” which will grant you access to all sessions, exhibits, videos, and free snacks. But don’t delay, this special deal only lasts until January 31^st. For more information and how to register, please visit ARConference.org. Hope to see you there!

In discussing tactics for promoting animal rights and the vegan lifestyle, we are frequently confronted by seemingly conflicting choices:

• Embrace “humane” animal farming as an incremental step –OR- insist on instant veganism
• Dwell either on symptoms of animal agriculture –OR- on the philosophy of animal liberation
• Downplay and apologize for our own veganism –OR- lecture righteously

In short, we are asked to choose between effectiveness and integrity.

I propose that these are false dichotomies – that we can be effective and maintain our integrity. Our mission must be to reduce the number of animals abused and killed for food as quickly as possible, while building the paradigm shift that will lead eventually to animal liberation.

Therefore, we can and should point out the fatal flaws of “humane meat” while offering incremental steps toward eliminating consumption of animal products. We can and should cite the animal welfare, environmental and health impacts of animal agriculture without ever suggesting that their amelioration would make animal agriculture acceptable. We can and should adapt our presentations and conversations to people’s values, concerns, and needs without ever compromising or apologizing for our own.

In summary, we can and should be tolerant and patient with people who “haven’t gotten it,” perhaps sharing the experiences of our own meat-eating past, without ever losing our outrage at animal exploitation or our passion for the vegan lifestyle.

An article by Hal Herzog in Psychology Today quotes a 2005 CBS News survey suggesting that 75% of vegetarians eventually revert to eating meat. Herzog conducted his own survey of 77 “ex-vegetarians,” which found that 40% reverted because of the hassle and social pressure, 35% for health reasons, and 20% just couldn’t resist the taste of meat.

The validity of both surveys is flawed by small sample sizes and their reliance on self-identification of vegetarians. Still our personal experience with the “I used to be a vegetarian” refrain suggests that a substantial number do regress.

Some small fraction of the health arguments for regression may well be legitimate, but most may be attributed to consumers’ failure to become informed and to exercise due diligence about a healthy meat-free diet. The hassle and social pressure cited by Herzog are particularly important factors in communities and social settings where vegetarianism is an anomaly.

In our advocacy efforts, we focus on the “low-hanging fruit” – those who already agree with us on ethical, ecological, and/or health grounds. But, regressing vegetarians are way beyond “low-hanging.” They are literally the “falling fruit.” In our eagerness to recruit new vegetarians/vegans, we are failing to provide adequate educational and social support to those who already are. We need to do better by these folks.

To begin addressing this problem, FARM plans to arrange a comprehensive and technically sound survey of the nature and extent of the problem, including the numbers, the reasons, and the actual dietary changes. After analyzing the results, we will be in a good position to suggest effective remedial measures. In the meantime, our movement’s websites, newsletters, and blogs should consider additional support to fellow vegetarians/vegans with issues of health or social acceptance.

The holiday season is the perfect time to give the gift of compassion. So why not show your friends and family how much you care about them and animals by making a donation in their honor?

When I got married this past summer, we received the typical gifts—kitchen items, towels, picture frames—but the best gift we received was a donation to our favorite animal charity in honor of our special occasion. Knowing that animals were being saved and a great vegan organization was being supported, was the most meaningful gift we could have received. That tribute gift was more special and personal than any of the household items we received that day, and it was the most memorable!

So this holiday season, give a gift that you can feel good about…give a gift that not only saves lives, but one that will continue to give throughout the year. Forget the clothes, do-dads and gadgets and give a gift that your friends and family will really thank you for. The animals will thank you too! Happy Holidays!

Thank you to everyone who attended FARM’s 35th Anniversary Celebration this past Sunday. We had an amazing turn out and are immensely grateful for the support!

The night was filled with compassionate people sharing inspirational stories to encourage us as a movement to keep pushing forward into the New Year. Everyday we hear tragic accounts of animal suffering but we must remind ourselves of the strides we are making towards taking animals off the menu and celebrate each triumph as we continue to fight such cruelty.

In case you missed the celebration, we used the evening to make a special announcement about taking Pay-Per-View on tour. Thanks to a generous donor, who is willing to match every donation, we will be constructing a customized van to take Pay-Per-View national, reaching college campuses, festivals, and streets across the country. If we reach our goal of 100,000 viewers, we can spare 1 million animals in the first year alone! For more information about Pay-Per-View, please visit our website.

A BIG thank you to Elizabeth and Dennis Kucinich for spending the evening with us and to all the wonderful restaurants (Great Sage, The Vegetable Garden, Pete’s Apizza, Lotus Foods) for donating delicious food, along with the cruelty-free companies (VegNews, Pangea Vegan Products, Sound Earth) for generously donating thank you gifts for our attendees. To see more pictures of the event, please visit our Facebook page.

FARM is excited to announce an unprecedented and exciting addition to our Pay-Per-View program: a full-time touring vehicle (mock-up illustration pictured above)! Under the direction of driver/coordinator Jeni Haines, we intend to reach over 100,000 people each year through nearly 300 events, starting June 2012 for Warped Tour.

By showing Mercy for Animals’ powerful Farm to Fridge video, Pay-Per-View continues to provide amazing results: around 80% of viewers pledge to decrease animal product consumption and over 50% of viewers have made these changes 1 month later. Based on the survey data, we estimate that an average of 10 animals per year are spared for each Pay-Per-View participant. If we reach our goal of 100,000 viewers, we can spare 1 million animals in the first year alone!

The vehicle — currently in the design stages with our manufacturer — will feature 8 glare-proof touch screen monitors, headphones for up to 32 viewers, and interior accommodations like a bunk bed and refrigerator, giving touring activists some extra comfort and convenience on the road.

While we’ve made every effort to be cost-effective, building this vehicle is a large undertaking, and we have spared no minor details. Luckily, we have a generous donor who is willing to match every donation made toward the cost of the van — up to the $60,000 needed to complete the project! Select “Wherever Needed Most” on our donations page today and your contribution will be doubled!

The vehicle will bring Pay-Per-View to college campuses, festivals, and streets across the country, but it is not a replacement for grassroots efforts. Our Pay-Per-View program has 27 amazing coordinators across the United States and Canada and it’s growing every day! Please consider bringing this highly effective program to your community.

During the month of December, anyone traveling in Atlanta is sure to catch a glimpse of our poignant message along Peachtree Industrial Boulevard at New Peachtree Road, or at one of the other four locations. Interested viewers are encouraged to visit LiveVegan.org for delicious and nutritious recipes and tips on making the transition to an animal-free lifestyle.

“The holiday season is a perfect time to reflect on the impact we’re having on the world,” says FARM’s Program Director Michael Weber. “A change in our diet can spare the lives of hundreds of animals, and add years to our own lives!”

Our billboards have been spreading the vegan message across the country for over a decade. And this month, we expect to motivate thousands of travelers to adopt a kinder diet. With today’s abundance of delightful, cruelty-free foods, implementing a vegan diet is easier than ever. For tips on hosting a compassionate holiday, please visit www.LiveVegan.org.

In keeping with the life-affirming spirit of Thanksgiving, FARM’s president and founder, Alex Hershaft, faxed a letter to President Obama asking him to pardon ALL turkeys bound for White House dinners.

The letter thanks the president for granting reprieve to two turkeys and for making healthy eating a top priority for this administration, while urging him to do more than ceremoniously pardon turkeys. FARM asks Obama to create a new White House tradition by becoming “the first president to observe a truly nonviolent holiday season” by pardoning all turkeys.

To experience the true meaning of Thanksgiving is to encourage kindness towards all beings, including turkeys. The conditions under which the birds are raised are so harsh that they must be pumped full of antibiotics, and 13% die before reaching the slaughterhouse. Consuming turkey only perpetuates these cruel and violent practices.

At a time when one-third of U.S. adults and about 17% of children and adolescents are obese, we can nourish our bodies with vegetables, whole grains, legumes and the traditional “three sisters” plants – squash, beans and corn – that were the focus of the first Thanksgiving celebration. After filling up on all of these delightfully healthy foods, there is no reason to include turkey in your meal!

To read the entire letter, please click here.