Celebrities rooting for ‘Veganuary’ in UK to combat new rise in meat sales

Paul McCartney and Chris Packham among stars urging people to ditch meat and dairy in 2021 to fight climate change and avoid another pandemic

A host of musicians, actors and sports stars have joined up with businesses and environmental groups in what they hope will be a successful push to get more people to ditch meat, fish and dairy in the new year.

Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, Sir Paul McCartney, Ricky Gervais, Lily Cole and Alan Cumming have all signed a letter calling for people to change their diet for Veganuary" next month. We cannot tackle climate change while we farm and eat animals on an industrial scale", the open letter written by the Veganuary association says.