More Like Paul is directed by Damian Sciberras of Short Stop Films, a Devon-based impact filmmaker who has been working on the documentary for the past two years.

In an Instagram post featuring the first-look trailer for More Like Paul, Sciberras described Youd as “incredible,” and said the upcoming film will be a “life-affirming documentary about resilience, purpose, and the power of leading by example – at any age.”

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Youd will need to average approximately six “ultras” per year to meet his target of 100. Sciberras recently told the Bloody Vegans Podcast that Youd has completed about 20 so far.

Read more: New Film Merges Art, Disability, And Animal Rights – How To Support ‘Liberty’

‘I’m as healthy as I’ve ever been’

Youd is an experienced runner and fundraiser, and completed a 31-mile (50km) ultra-distance marathon in March to raise money for animal rights charity Viva!. Advocacy group Running On Plants – which offers advice and challenges for people looking to learn about plant-based running – has supported Youd’s efforts. He is also a member of Vegan Runners.

“I want to do as much as I can for the animals,” said Youd in the trailer. “People use the word ‘compassionate,’ but I prefer the word respect. You should respect the life of an animal.”

Speaking to the BBC, Youd said that he felt “no pain” from his previously debilitating osteoarthritis after adopting a vegan diet 20 years ago. Several studies indicate that following a plant-based diet can reduce inflammation, manage joint pain, and promote longevity.

Youd completed his first ultra in 2021, the 62.1-mile (100km) Devon coast-to-coast, and is also challenging himself to do one million press-ups before he turns 90 years old. He completes at least 1,000 every three days and passed the 650,000 mark in 2023.

“I’m as healthy as I’ve ever been, I’m as fit as I’ve ever been, and I am living my best life,” said Youd. “I’m on no meds, and I want to keep going as long as I can.”

Read more: The Longevity ‘Superfood’ That Could Extend Your Life

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

Food for Thought is a feature-length documentary by actor and Born Free Foundation patron Dan Richardson and director Giles Alderson. It explores the growth of the vegan movement around the world through interviews with animal
rights activists, philanthropists, athletes, plant-based food developers, podcasters, and rock stars. They include CEO of Compassion in World Farming Philip Lymbery, Beyond Meat founder Ethan Brown, and YouTuber and personal trainer Paul Kerton, AKA Hench Herbivore.

“Among our top priorities was to create something unique in the genre,” Richardson, who co-directed and co-produced Food for Thought, said in a statement. “[W]e were determined from day one that, while we hope to take the audience on
a journey on which they’ll find themselves both laughing and crying, Food For Thought would ultimately be a positive and uplifting film and one which would leave people feeling understood, included and hopeful.”

Read more: ‘I Could Never Go Vegan’ Ads Take Over London Underground

Reaching a wide audience

The film strives to appeal to meat-eaters, as well as vegans. It features honest video diaries from a group of volunteers as they embark on the first 30 days of a plant-based diet.

“Making [the film] relatable to a wide audience was paramount,” said Richardson. “And it really feels like we’ve hit the jackpot in that regard thanks to our amazing vegan participants.”

Food for Thought delves into the ethical and environmental reasons for going vegan and the impact veganism could have on the world. The film follows Richardson and Alderson as they travel around conducting interviews and visiting an animal sanctuary.

“It is an incredible journey and if we can make a few people eat less meat because of it then I will be overjoyed,” said Alderson. “It was a really emotional project to be a part of.”

The Food For Thought world premiere takes place at the Royal Geographical Society in London on Friday, January 24. It will be hosted by actor and animal activist Peter Egan. All profits from the evening will go to Animal Aid and Goodheart Animal Sanctuaries. Tickets are available from Event Brite.

Read more: Cowspiracy Is The ‘Most Effective’ Vegan Documentary, Poll Finds

This article was written by Claire Hamlett on the PBN Website.

Street food vlogger Mark Wiens and several Thai celebrity chefs will guide viewers through “an array of culinary and cultural experiences,” including ancient breakfast traditions in the capital city of Bangkok and spiritual vegetarian festivals like Phuket’s annual celebration.

“This isn’t just a food documentary. This series highlights how traditional foods can guide us towards a more sustainable future.” said Culturally Plant-Based director Max Hellier.

“We wanted to diversify the conversation about sustainable food by showcasing ancient plant-based street foods and how they have been quietly thriving in Thailand for generations,” he added. “Especially now as we recognize the importance of sustainable food choices, we believe this fresh perspective is vital.”

According to Climate Cats Studios, which produced the project, Culturally Plant-Based focuses on the human stories behind the food, including street vendors, generational cooks, and community members who keep Thailand’s plant-based culinary traditions alive.

In the trailer for Culturally Plant-Based, Climate Cats producer Joanna Hellier notes that “foods that are now being seen by the rest of the world as these new, sustainable innovations, were actually pioneered in Asia thousands of years ago.”

Culturally Plant-Based will premiere in Bangkok in 2025, with streaming details to come.

Read more: Impossible Foods Founder Explores Turning Cattle Ranches Into Forests In New Documentary

Thailand to expand production and export of vegan foods

In 2019, around eight percent of the total population of Thailand did not eat meat. At the time, this amount was forecast to increase to around 15 percent by 2025.

While last June saw Thailand’s FDA propose a ban on meat and dairy labels for vegetarian alternatives, a few months later the Ministry of Commerce’s Trade Policy and Strategy Office (TPSO) published a roadmap to transform the country into a plant-based hub.

This roadmap included plans for research and technology, investment and marketing, and enhanced production, processing, and expansion. The TPSO also suggested a review of laws and regulations around plant-based products, including the proposed label ban.

TPSO director general Poonpong Naiyanapakorn told The Nation that the roadmap would create domestic and international business opportunities in the coming years.

Read more: Portugal’s ‘Groundbreaking’ Climate Plan Includes Plant-Based Protein Strategy

This article was written by Liam Pritchett on the PBN Website.

The film follows award-winning documentary maker Thomas Pickering as he sets out to investigate some of the leading arguments against veganism, exploring whether or not they’re justified. The new ads coincide with the film’s release on streaming platforms in the UK and USA. 

The first billboard design centers on the slogan “Could You Do It?” It depicts a shocked couple at a posh restaurant, staring at a live chicken placed on their plates, while a waiter presents them with a set of knives on a silver platter. The concept challenges non-vegans by highlighting that most would be unwilling to kill an animal themselves, raising the question of whether they should pay for someone else to do it. Pickering described the ad as addressing the “huge disconnect” many people have with the reality behind the food on their plates.

The second design shows a man holding a coffee while standing in a barn with a cow. The copy on the ad reads: “Why would a human adult drink the milk made for a cow’s calf?” Pickering made this ad to tackle the idea that cow’s milk is “normal” milk for humans, when it’s in fact breast milk intended for a cow’s baby. 

Both ads are based on two video commercials directed by Pickering.

Read more: ‘Cowspiracy’ Co-Director Announces New Film: ‘How To Make Drugs’

About ‘I Could Never Go Vegan’

Pickering decided to make the documentary after noticing a pattern in the arguments put to him by non-vegans attempting to discredit his lifestyle. Topics explored include the B12 issue, whether veganism is too expensive, and the notion that farmed animals have a “good life.” 

“I Could Never Go Vegan is truly a film for anyone who has ever heard or said these words,” Pickering said. “It’s not uncommon for me to have daily conversations with friends, colleagues or strangers, and for them to utter these words to me. But why? That’s exactly what I wanted to explore in this film, seeking to find out whether the arguments that face the vegan movement are justified or not.”

The film features interviews and appearances by powerlifting champion Sophia Ellis, environmentalist George Monbiot, and health professional Dr Shireen Kassam, among others. One of the film’s executive producers, actor Alicia Silverstone, previously described the film as “the vegan documentary we’ve all been waiting for.” 

Find out how to watch I Could Never Go Vegan here.

Read more: Cowspiracy Is The ‘Most Effective’ Vegan Documentary, Poll Finds

This article was written by Polly Foreman on the PBN Website.

Joey Carbstrong, the creator of Pignorant, took to Instagram to share a video of Sheeran speaking about his festive menu. The Shape of You singer said his Christmas dinner plate features “all the stuff,” including “pigs in blankets, turkey, and stuffing.”

Responding to his words, Carbstrong said: “you’re a fantastic artist, love a bit of Ed Sheeran. But I don’t love animal cruelty and torture…”

The reality of pigs in blankets

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Pigs in blankets refer to pork sausages wrapped in bacon. They are a popular festive menu item, and around 668 million of them are eaten at Christmas time in the UK. In his video, Carbstrong described the brutal reality behind them. He said that the sausage is likely made from the minced flesh of an “exploited mother pig, who was pushing out piglet after piglet in a farrowing crate.” Carbstrong goes on to explain that she was likely killed using CO2 gas. According to experts, being exposed to this gas is comparable to being “burnt from the inside out.” Around 88 percent of UK pigs are killed using this method. 

Read more: Seth Rogen And Billy Eichner Discuss Animal Agriculture In ‘Mufasa’ Interview

The bacon, said Carbstrong, may have come from one of the mother pig’s babies, most of whom are raised as “meat producers” and slaughtered with gas at six months old. 

Carbstrong went on to say that he’s sure Sheeran “isn’t a bad guy,” but urged him to watch Pignorant to learn about the reality of UK pig farming. “Ed, you’ve got a lot of accountability, responsibility,” he added. In addition to Carbstrong’s video, many Instagram users flooded the comment section of one of Sheeran’s posts asking him to watch the documentary.

About ‘Pignorant’

Pignorant is a documentary film that follows Carbstrong, a former gang member turned animal advocate, as he embarks on a dangerous mission to uncover the hidden truths of the UK’s pork industry.

As part of the film, Carbstrong visited both factory and so-called “high welfare” farms, finding suffering at each that he visited. He also produced the first ever footage of pigs being gassed to death in the UK. The pigs were seen shrieking, gasping, and writhing in apparent distress. 

“The industry’s motivation for gassing has everything to do with the fact they can kill as many pigs as possible, for a lower cost,” Carbstrong previously told Plant Based News. “CO2 has been proven in study after study to be fear-inducing, painful and distressing. The NPA [National Pig Association] of course will downplay the horrors of CO2, but now the footage can speak for itself.”

Pignorant is available to watch on Amazon Prime now. You can also watch it for free on justwatch.com.

Read more: David And Victoria Beckham Praise ‘Spectacular’ Vegan Meal

This article was written by Polly Foreman on the PBN Website.

Read more: Farmed Animals Numbers Drop In Europe As Meat Production Falls

Food For Profit exposes the links between the European Parliament and the 387 billion euros-funded factory farming industry. It is the result of a five-year investigation by journalist Giulia Innocenzi and a team of investigators. The film is directed by Pablo D’Ambrosi, and it will soon be showing in the UK for the first time.

After the film aired primetime on Italy’s national broadcaster in May, Italy’s agriculture minister Francesco Lollobrigida publicly criticized it. He said it “targeted an entire industry” when in reality “it’s just a few exceptions who act in a bad way.” He defended Italy’s farming sector, saying that “the great majority of our farmers follow the rules.”

Responding to his words, Innocenzi told Plant Based News: “Usually the meat industry keeps silent in front of criticism, because they know it’s the best way to stay away from problems. But this time Food For Profit had too much echo, as public opinion was outraged by the reality of factory farm productions. So what they did was try to discredit our work by saying it’s just a few bad apples.”

“Unfortunately, intensive farms are the same in any country, with animal suffering and environmental pollution,” she added. “And people are starting to understand that. This is why the industry is so frightened.”

‘Food For Profit’ exposes politicians

Lollobrigida also defended Paolo De Castro, a former MEP who was secretly filmed for the film. De Castro became a MEP in 2009 and was twice Minister for Agriculture and Chair of the European Parliament Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development. Following the release of the film, he did not run for re-election.

Read more: German Farmers Offered Incentives To Move Away From Pigs

Lollobrigida expressed “solidarity” with De Castro, saying: “He has been victim of attacks that I believe come from a strong ideology.” He made these comments at a public meeting organized by meat industry associations about Food For Profit, at which they announced they would begin work on a film called Food For Life.

The Food For Profit filmmakers attended the meeting. Lollobrigida accused them of seeking to “gain success and money through a film that describes as criminals those who produce our great food.” He admitted to not having watched the film.

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Food For Profit has its UK premiere in Ealing, London, on October 29, Brighton on October 30, and Brixton, London, on November 7. You can find out more information here.

Read more: Lupita Nyong’o Endorses Plant-Based Food In ‘The Wild Robot’ Film Promo

This article was written by Claire Hamlett on the PBN Website.

How To Make Drugs (And Feel Great About Everything) follows the life of documentary filmmaker Journey Zephyr. After learning that many antidepressants are tested with a method called the “forced swim test” (where rats are forced to swim to see if they swim longer after being given the drugs), Zephyr sets out to find out more about how animals are used in drug experiments. 

Read more: ‘Food For Profit’: The New Documentary On Factory Farming In Europe

Keegan Kuhn, the co-producer and co-director of films Cowspiracy, What The Health, and The End Of Medicine, worked with Zephyr on the film. Kuhn told Plant Based News (PBN) that they use “hard-hitting facts” alongside “often sarcastic humor,” creating “an entertaining, informative and ultimately uplifting film about the future of medicine.”

How To Make Drugs features interviews with a number of prominent policy experts, physicians, lobbyists, and activists. Their testimonies “unravel a story of unchecked government spending, entrenched culture, and faulty science costing taxpayers billions of dollars and hundreds of thousands of lives each year,” according to the film’s press release.

Animal testing in pharmaceuticals

Over 100 million animals are used in tests in the US each year. The government spends $20 billion on such tests annually, despite the fact that many experts believe them to be largely ineffective. 

According to Cruelty Free International, 92 percent of drugs that pass animal tests go on to fail in human trials. Many diseases, including some cancers, heart disease, and Parkinson’s, do not affect animals in the same way as humans, and their physiological response to drugs is often very different from ours. 

Read more: ‘I Could Never Go Vegan’: How To Watch The Hugely Anticipated Documentary

There are a growing number of more humane alternatives to animal testing available, including computer models, human tissues, and lab grown cells. The How To Make Drugs film description states that use of animals is “wasteful, dangerous, and often absurd,” and Kuhn is calling for the pharmaceutical industry to invest in alternatives for the sake of both humans and animals. 

“We need governments to no longer fund ineffective and misguided research that uses animals, in favor of human-relevant and reliable testing methods that provide applicable information for human diseases,” they told PBN. “Close to half of Americans are against animal testing, but we need those people to speak up. We need a groundswell of informed citizens to put pressure on governments, universities and private corporations engaged in animal testing, to bring science and medical research into the 21st century. The aim of the film is to inspire that conversation and movement.”

How to watch How To Make Drugs

The film is set for release in the fall of this year. It will be screened in Washington DC in September or October, and the filmmakers are still finalizing the details of a digital release. They are currently crowdfunding to raise money to release the film. You can support the crowdfunder here. 

Read more: Cowspiracy Is The ‘Most Effective’ Vegan Documentary, Poll Finds

This article was written by Polly Foreman on the PBN Website.

Food For Profit is the result of a five-year investigation by journalist Guilia Innocenzi into the links between the European Parliament and the 387 billion euros-funded factory farming industry. Co-directed by Innocenzi and Pablo D’Ambrosi, the film premiered at the European Parliament in Brussels in February this year. An English-language film that features international experts on the farming industry, some have already dubbed it ‘the European Cowspiracy’. One description from an Italian TV show said that it “makes Europe tremble.”

Read more: Cowspiracy Is The ‘Most Effective’ Vegan Documentary, Poll Finds

Speaking to Plant Based News (PBN) about the film, D’Ambrosi said: “Europeans think that the meat and dairy that are consuming is of high quality, essentially different from the cheap meat that Americans or Chinese are eating. In Food For Profit, we show that in reality there is no difference, in fact, 90 percent of the meat consumed in Europe comes from factory farms.”

A 400 billion euro industry

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According to D’Ambrosi, this industry received a large part of the almost 400 billion euros of taxpayers money, “disguised within the Green Deal.” He said that this deal is “everything but green,” and instead finances big Agri Groups. “The trick is to divert the money in subsidies to crops for animal feed, allowing this machine of mass animal exploitation to carry on undisturbed and without the knowledge of the public,” he continued.

Read more: ‘I Could Never Go Vegan’: How To Watch The Hugely Anticipated Documentary

Using hidden camera footage, Innocenzi is seen in the film approaching politicians and people involved in factory farming, several of whom try to prevent her and the film crew from investigating and filming. 

D’Ambrosi explains how the film crew “infiltrated the high sphere of power in Europe by sending a lobbyist to meet with MEPs and other lobbyists.”

“We filmed them secretly talking about gene editing and how to improve productivity in intensive farms, to keep up with their competitors, notably China and the USA,” he explained. “The picture that emerges is shocking: a complete disregard for animals, nature, and communities. A system of legalized corruption exposes the huge power lobbies have in Europe (in Brussels alone there are 25,000 lobbyists), revealing a wide democratic gap between ‘us’ — citizens, and ‘them’ — politicians and lobbyists.”

The wide-ranging impact of the film

The film has had quite an impact so far, with its Instagram page amassing 70,000 followers in a short space of time, and Italian national newspapers and television have covered the film’s release also. It has been shown in over 500 Italian cinemas, as well as screenings in universities and schools. “It was the first time that an independent documentary reached these levels and this is all thanks to the people and activists that supported us,” D’Ambrosi said.

Read more: What Is ‘Christspiracy’? Inside The Film Everyone’s Talking About

Innocenzi, who features heavily throughout the film, added: “We’ve already screened the film at the European Parliament, which was our premiere, and we’ll screen the film at the Italian Parliament. Last week we were the number one film in Italy for occupancy rate in cinemas. We will screen the film also at Yale, Melbourne University, in Barcelona, and many other European countries.”

You can learn more about the film on its official website.

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• Cowspiracy Is The ‘Most Effective’ Vegan Documentary, Poll Finds
• Why US Farmers Are Dumping Milk In Sewers
• ‘I Could Never Go Vegan’: How To Watch The Hugely Anticipated Documentary

This article was written by Adam Protz on the PBN Website.

I Could Never Go Vegan, which comes from Dartmouth Films, explores and refutes some of the many arguments that non-vegans use against veganism. 

The film is directed by award-winning filmmaker Thomas Pickering, who switched to a vegan lifestyle after being raised vegetarian. Despite the undeniable benefits veganism has for animals, us, and the planet, Pickering has stated that he is constantly being told by others that they are unable to drop animal products. 

“I Could Never Go Vegan is truly a film for anyone who has ever heard or said these words,” Pickering said in a statement. “It’s not uncommon for me to have daily conversations with friends, colleagues or strangers, and for them to utter these words to me. But why? That’s exactly what I wanted to explore in this film, seeking to find out whether the arguments that face the vegan movement are justified or not”

Arguments against veganism

Arguments explored in the film include “Where would I get my protein?”, that animals live a “good life,” the B12 issue, as well as the idea that veganism is too expensive. 

The film features a number of well-known faces in the vegan community, including environmentalist and author George Monbiot, powerlifting champion Sophia Ellis, as well as health professionals Dr Shireen Kassam, Dr Gemma Newman, and Dr Alan Desmond. 

Vegan actor Alicia Silverstone endorsed the film describing it as “the vegan documentary we’ve all been waiting for.” She, alongside musician Alissa White-Gluz, businesswoman Heather Mills, and actor Peter Egan, serves as executive producer. 

How to watch ‘I Could Never Go Vegan’

There will be two premieres of the film – one in London’s Curzon Soho on April 10, and the other at Curzon Sheffield on April 11. Both premieres will also feature a Q&A session, and Peter Egan will host the London one. Premiere tickets are available to buy on the Curzon website. 

The film is set for release on April 19, and will be available to watch in cinemas in the UK and Ireland. The current confirmed dates and locations are as follows (please note: there will be more cinema dates added in due course). 

• April 19 – Oxford Curzon
• April 20 – Picturehouse Brighton
• April 21 – Picturehouse Ritzy (Brixton, London)
• April 22 – Picturehouse Little Theatre Cinema (Bath)
• April 22 – Depot (Lewes)
• April 23 – Picturehouse Hackney Cinema (London)
• April 24 – Picturehouse Cambridge
• April 25 – Picturehouse Norwich
• April 26 – The Poly (Falmouth)
• April 27 – Picturehouse Liverpool
• April 28 – The Poly (Falmouth)
• April 29 – Picturehouse Cameo (Edinburgh)
• May 15 – Picturehouse Henley-On-Thames

Buy tickets for Picturehouse screenings here

Will ‘I Could Never Go Vegan’ be available to watch online?

Pickering confirmed to Plant Based News that the film will be available to watch online after the cinema release. This means that viewers in the US and other countries will be able to watch it. The filmmakers will confirm what online platform it will be on at a later date.

Watch the ‘I Could Never Go Vegan’ trailer

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This article was written by Polly Foreman on the PBN Website.

Based on a global survey by vegan dating app Veggly, Cowspiracy remains the most effective documentary. Other classics like Earthlings, What The Health, and The Game Changers also made the list.

The study revealed too that respondents think documentaries are the most effective way to encourage new vegans.

Alex Felipelli, Founder of Veggly, told Plant Based News (PBN): “The votes prove that all of these documentaries helped lots of vegans make the transition.”

Vegans rank Cowspiracy “most effective” documentary

Cowspiracy tops the list as the most effective documentary to show to new vegans, with more than one in five respondents choosing it.

The feature-length environmental documentary follows filmmaker Kip Andersen as he discovers the impacts of animal agriculture industry on the planet – and the extreme lengths that meat lobbyists go to stop people finding out about them. Originally released in 2014, the hard-hitting investigative film put the “sustainability secret” into the spotlight and opened many people’s eyes to the impacts of animal agriculture.

A decade later, its message remains as relevant. Despite an even larger body of scientific evidence, government-backed advertising campaigns still try to play down the harms of meat, fish and dairy. Scientists are pleading with governments to act on evidence rather than the interests of big corporations. All the while, the meat industry continues to confuse consumers will deliberately misleading stats.

Follow ups to Cowspiracy, including What The Health and Seaspiracy also feature on the list of most effective documentaries. Additionally, the upcoming spirituality-themed documentary, Christspiracy, is already creating a buzz. “We’ll be keeping a close eye on the impact of new documentaries, and on Christspiracy, which is due to come out later this year,” said Felipelli. “That will ruffle a lot of feathers!”

Catering to every angle

If Cowspiracy brought environmental knowledge of veganism into the mainstream, The Game Changers could be said to have done the same for health and fitness. Starring James Wilks as its charismatic centerpiece, the 2018 documentary looks at the sporting prowess of vegan athletes around the globe. It also busts anti-vegan myths around male sexual performance and protein intake.

In the survey, more than one in 10 respondents ranked The Game Changers as the most effective vegan documentary. Other health-focussed films such as What The Health (12.3 percent) and Forks Over Knives (5.3 percent) also made the list. You Are What You Eat, a new Netflix documentary tracking the health of identical twins, seems likely to be another game changer.

“There are many great reasons to go vegan,” Felipelli added. “For the animals, for the planet, for other people and food resources, for health, and for your wallet. So understanding the key motivations and most attractive arguments, based on these documentaries, is highly useful for sharing the vegan message more widely around the world.”

A screen onto the hidden truth

Meat industry propaganda relies on lies and misconceptions. Bucolic imagery of happy cows mask what really happens on farms and in slaughterhouses. One documentary that shook up that comfortable ignorance was Earthlings.

Combining the environmental and ethical reasons for veganism, Earthlings (17.6 percent) was the second most popular vegan documentary voted by vegans, behind only Cowspiracy. Narrated by Joaquin Phoenix, the 2005 feature-length film explores the many ways humans exploit animals. From food and pets to clothing, science, and entertainment, it addresses many key talking points for vegan educators.

Similarly, Dominion is a jolt in the arm for people who prefer not to know the reality of where their food comes from. Freely available to watch online, Dominion shows the horrifying realities of slaughter. Directed by Chris Delforce, the documentary was filmed using hidden cameras and drone footage. Animal activists frequently use clips from Dominion to educate people about the hidden truth happening behind slaughterhouse walls.

While it is uncomfortable to watch, Dominion has helped many people empathize with animals as a suffering individual, not just a number. Last year, film fans in Sweden unknowingly turned up to a cinema to watch Dominion at a secret Halloween film screening. Some 8.7 percent of respondents ranked Dominion as the most effective vegan documentary.

Documentaries are a great tool for veganism

The data also highlight how documentaries are crucial in helping to spread the vegan message. Watching vegan documentaries (50.9 percent) topped the list of best methods for encouraging new vegans, ahead of books and articles (20.3 percent), talking to friends (17.1 percent) and family (11.1 percent), and public speakers (10.7 percent).

Felipelli told PBN: “Whether these documentaries have helped you go vegan, motivated a new vegan to carry on their journey, or sparked meaningful conversations with friends about veganism – all of this makes a difference.”

The most effective vegan documentaries:

• Cowspiracy 21.8%
• Earthlings 17.6%
• What The Health 12.3%
• The Game Changers 10.1%
• Other 9.0%
• Dominion 8.7%
• Forks Over Knives 5.3%
• Seaspiracy 4.8%
• Eating Animals 4.8%
• Live & Let Live 2.6%
• Before The Flood 1.8% 
• Glass Walls 1.1%

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This article was written by Daniel Clark on the PBN Website.

The four-part documentary series, named You Are What You Eat: Twin Experiment, follows four pairs of identical twins in the US for eight weeks. In each pair, one twin follows an omnivorous diet and the other an animal-free diet.

The documentary allows viewers to visualize the randomized control trial published last month by the Stanford University Department of Medicine.

After seeing the documentary, some omnivore viewers reacted with surprise. “Watching You Are What You Eat: Twin Experiment and I am shoooooook,” one wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

“Mannnn I’m really going vegan after watching this,” another declared. “Watching ‘You Are What You Eat’ on Netflix…and am now seriously considering eating little to no red meat from now on,” added a third.

Netflix documentary shows benefits of vegan eating

Released in time for Veganuary 2024, when many people sustain a plant-based diet for the first time, the documentary provides a rundown of the main benefits of veganism.

The results of the study provide a compelling case for eating a plant-based diet for personal health. Participants following a vegan diet saw visceral fat – the bad kind of fat that builds up around organs – reduce significantly. In contrast, the meat-eaters experienced small increases in visceral fat.

Moreover, after eight weeks, the plant-based twins had significantly lower LDL cholesterol (known as “bad” cholesterol) than the omnivores. Both omnivores and those on a vegan diet lost weight. However, the latter lost an average of 4.2 pounds (1.9 kilos) more than the omnivores.

Viewers shaken by realities of animal agriculture

As well as dramatizing the results of the experiment, the documentary also outlines some of the effects of animal agriculture on the environment, people, and animals.

An explainer on the salmon farming industry revealed the realities of intensively farming fishes*. In the episode, disease-ridden salmon disgusted the twins and made them vow to be more careful with what they are eating.

Another section explored the environmental racism of large-scale pig farms in North Carolina. In majority Black and poor neighborhoods, residents suffer adverse health effects from farmers spraying pig manure near their homes.

Cultural heritage to eating meat

Making a research study into a Netflix documentary allowed viewers to see the participants as more than a statistic. This meant seeing some of the barriers to moving towards plant-based eating.

Two sisters with South African heritage discussed the importance of meat to their culture. After seeing positive health outcomes and learning some of the effects of animal agriculture, they started to explore alternatives. In the final episode, they prepared vegan biltong for their friends and family.

From reducing your greenhouse gas footprint to boosting your own fitness, swapping from meat to plant-based food has been linked with many better outcomes for the environment and health.

*While the English language usually refers to multiple fishes as “fish,” we have chosen to use “fishes” to emphasize their individuality

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• Veganuary 2024: The Best New Food Launches In The UK
• World Health Organization Head Calls For Plant-Based Diet Shift

This article was written by Daniel Clark on the PBN Website.

It’s the latest brainchild of Kip Andersen, known for his renowned films Cowspiracy (2014), What The Health (2017), and Seaspiracy (2021). All of these explored different aspects of the benefits of veganism, covering the environment, health, animals, and human rights.  

Christspiracy: The Spirituality Secret looks set to explore veganism and its links to spirituality. It explores the link between the vegan lifestyle and various religions, and aims to answer one question: “Is there a spiritual way to kill an animal?”

This question was put to Andersen by an audience member named Kameron Waters at a Q&A session a few years ago. The two subsequently teamed up, and decided to set off on a six-year investigation together to answer it through the lens of religion, philosophy, spirituality, sociology, and psychology.

Here’s everything you need to know about the new release. 

What is Christspiracy about? 

In an attempt to find out whether there is a spiritual way to kill an animal, Andersen and Waters traveled to four continents to explore animal ethics within five different religions. As the name suggests, one of these religions was Christianity. The two spoke to experts around the world to shed new light on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ.

The film includes conversations with a number of interviewees, including well-known archaeologists and theologians. The interviews were conducted, say the filmmakers, to uncover “the biggest cover-up in the last 2,000 years, one that will transform history, forever.”

Waters grew up in Georgia in the US, and spent much of his life in the church. He even attended a Christian hunting and fishing club, and didn’t initially question the treatment of animals by members of his faith. After a few years, however, he eventually started to think seriously about his relationship with animals, leading him, eventually, to the Q&A session with Andersen. 

“Kam’s relationship to food and faith were intertwined from the day he was born,” the filmmakers previously said in a statement. “But it wasn’t until he started reassessing how his Church’s interpretation of scripture had convinced him that hunting and eating animals was okay, that he started to question, ‘How would Jesus kill an animal?’”.

Is Christspiracy a Christian film?

While Christianity may have been the initial plan of focus, the film is by no means limited to this religion. It explores the issue of animal ethics in a variety of different faiths, and Andersen previously told Plant Based News (PBN) that the film has universal appeal for all. 

“We’re not pointing fingers, we’re asking questions,” he said. “It’s a very full spectrum discussion and exploration of this subject. What’s been really fun [in test screenings] is that from atheists to hardcore conservative Christians, any walk of life, they love this film.”

Due to the name, however, some people have assumed that Christspiracy would focus wholly on Christianity. In response to whether Christspiracy is a “Christian or Christian-bashing film,” Waters and Andersen wrote on Instagram: “Absolutely not. In fact, this film explores more than the Christian faith and includes Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, and even philosophy, sociology, and history to deeply explore how faiths around the world answer the question: ‘Is there a spiritual way to kill an animal?’ No Christians were harmed in the making of this film. We promise.”

The filmmakers have also emphasized that, while the film does explore religion, it is more than a religious film – focusing on ethics, as well as a number of different areas and disciplines.

Christspiracy release date

We don’t yet have a confirmed Christspiracy release date, but we do know it will be some time in 2024. 

How can I watch Christspiracy?

Andersen’s other films are available to stream on Netflix, but he previously confirmed to PBN that he turned down the streaming service for Christspiracy due to the fact that they wanted to retain their own edit of the film (which was initially called Cowspiritual).

Waters and Andersen have stated that Netflix wanted to “redact” key parts of the documentary to take it in a different direction than they had intended. They therefore decided to go it alone. 

“[We are] super grateful to Netflix for providing a platform and releasing the other three previous films,” said Andersen. “With this film it is a little challenging, as some of the subject matter is so bold and so controversial.”

The filmmakers have fundraised to help bring the film to as large an audience as possible. They are aiming to bring the film to at least a billion viewers. According to their Kickstarter page, they raised USD $433,747 to help them to do this. 

Andersen and Waters say that they want the Christspiracy documentary to “go where no film has ever gone before,” and that they hope to bring it to billions of viewers. To do this, they have launched a “pay-it-forward” model where it’s hoped that people will watch the film and donate money to allow someone else to watch it for free. “It’s a cycle of kindness that YOU get to start,” they said. “This philosophy allows the film to be accessible to anyone around the world, regardless of one’s income status or subscription.”

They hope that Christspiracy will be shown in movie theaters, places of worship, and many more platforms, including “our own collective” one. “It’s more than a movie, it’s a movement,” they said. 

Find out more about the film here. 

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To some, the subject matter might sound about as appealing as the fecal kind that infects the residents’ air. But this is a film that everyone whose money goes to supporting the pork industry should be compelled to watch. In it, the devastation animal agriculture causes communities – often unseen and under-appreciated – is clear for all to witness.

“Our goal for the film has always been to create an impact and inspire change,” Jamie Berger, the film’s writer and producer, tells Plant Based News (PBN). “So that’s the lens through which we’ve approached the entire experience.”

A film about North Carolina

The Smell of Money puts North Carolina’s pig farms on trial. The state is one of the largest pork producers in the world, with 9.4 million pigs. Berger, along with director Shawn Bannon, make sure that viewers understand just how astronomical and ruinous this industry is.

“I was born and raised in North Carolina,” Berger says. “Learning about my home state’s pork industry and its impacts on people, animals, and the environment in college transformed me into an activist and inspired me to devote my life to ending factory farming.”

North Carolina is home to more pigs than people. A wide-angle shot of more than 800 pigs crammed into one small barn shows how that is possible. We also see the impact of all these animals: giant open-air cesspools filled with millions of tons of feces and urine.

In the film, Rene Miller, a lifelong resident of North Carolina gives a tour of the fields and hog farms surrounding her home. She points out the “lagoon”, where the pigs’ waste is stored. Once filled, its contents get sprayed onto a field opposite her property.

People versus pork

Miller is one of the plaintiffs in the epic legal battle at the heart of the film. Taking on Smithfield Foods, the world’s largest pork company, the residents fight to reclaim their rights to clean air and pure water.

As with most David-vs-Goliath battles, it is clear whose side we are on. The nameless, faceless multinational is a ruinous giant destroying the livelihoods of local residents through its ruthless profit-making activities.

“We strove to allow those most affected by this issue to tell their own stories, in their own time, and in the hope of creating a film that would resonate with audiences on a deeply human level,” says Berger. “In exposing an industry that robs our participants of their dignity, we did our best not to replicate this harm through extractive filmmaking.”

Naeema Muhammed, another local resident, poses two of the film’s key questions. “What’s the real cost of what we want?” she asks. “Who’s paying the price?”

Around the world, more people are waking up to the ethical and environmental impacts of animal agriculture. Likewise, researchers have documented the effects on human health; for example, air pollution from farms is responsible for 17,900 deaths in the US every year. Yet, the human stories of the meat industry’s destruction are sometimes pushed to the margin. 

Environmental racism at the heart of factory farming

The Smell of Money puts the focus onto the racial injustices at the heart of factory farming.

The devastating effect of pig farming on residents is nothing new. Eastern North Carolina’s mostly Black residents have long been disproportionately affected by mega industrial farms (or concentrated animal feeding operations, CAFOs). This is an example of environmental racism, where communities of color are adversely affected by policies that force them to live in proximity to toxic waste.

“We are under no illusion that our film alone will bring justice to communities in North Carolina,” Berger says. “But we hope the film unites diverse groups fighting against factory farming. As we illustrate in the movie, this is a system that harms all of us, and we will only transform it when we work together.”

“A good American won’t intentionally stink up another American’s home”

One of the film’s key protagonists is Don Webb, a teacher who got into the pig industry in its early days in North Carolina as a way to make some extra cash.

New to the industry, he quickly became aware that the stench of his operations was harming his neighbors. “A good American won’t intentionally stink up another American’s home,” Don says in one of the film’s most memorable lines. He escaped the pig business and has since devoted his life to fighting back against the industry.

“Don’s story exemplifies what true allyship looks like,” Berger says. “He made an enormous personal sacrifice to do what he knew was right and to use his own racial and economic privilege to fight for others who had been deprived of their fundamental human rights to clean air, clean water, and a safe place to live.”

Stop paying for environmental racism

Berger hopes the film will be a useful resource for environmental and social justice causes. “We hope that advocates and organizations fighting for justice will use the film as an education and advocacy tool to achieve their own goals,” she says.

Beyond activist groups, the film should open all viewer’s eyes to the true impacts of animal agriculture. “One clear, empowering action consumers can take right away is to withdraw our support from factory farming by refusing to buy animal products,” says Berger. In the US, 99 percent of all meat, dairy, and eggs comes from factory farms.

“Animal agriculture is rooted in deeply entrenched systems like capitalism and colonialism that oppress and commodify living beings,” Berger adds. Although changing these structural forces involves decades or centuries of collective effort, individuals are not powerless to influence.

One farmer’s transition to plant based

Tom Butler is a North Carolina hog farmer, who became disillusioned when he realized the impacts his activities were having on local communities. “The consumer can shut down Smithfield next week,” he says in the film.

He is now actively transitioning towards growing mushrooms in partnership with his son, Will. “They have been wonderful supporters of the film and we are excited to see their progress,” says Berger.

Tom and Will are working with Mercy For Animals’ Transfarmation Project, which supports factory farmers to transition to growing sustainable crops. “Many farmers are desperate to get out of this business that keeps them trapped in debt and emotional and physical anguish,” Berger adds. “So the hope is that Tom and others in the program will serve as models others can follow.”

The Smell of Money is available to stream now on Apple, Google Play, Amazon, and YouTube

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In an episode named “Human”, which aired on BBC One on Sunday night, Sir David praised plant-based diets for being “so much more efficient.”

“A profound impact on the natural world”

Planet Earth III is full of footage of the destruction inflicted on rainforests around the world. Sir David has been committed to shining a light on the biodiversity loss ravaging the planet.

Until recently, however, many of his documentaries have shied away from pointing a finger at animal agriculture, which is the number one cause of deforestation.

In last night’s episode, he was more direct. “Currently the vast majority of agricultural land – more than 75 percent – is used to raise livestock and this is very inefficient,” he told viewers. 

He also said that we “rear 70 billion farm animals each year and every one of them needs feeding.”

Sir David added that “producing the food for such numbers of domesticated animals is having a profound impact on the natural world.”

Plant-based diets give back to nature

Turning to the environmental destruction that he has witnessed during his decades-long career, Attenborough laid out the impacts of animal agriculture.

“Year after year, we clear over two million hectares of the Amazon forest – an area the size of Wales. And we use nearly all of it to make more space for cattle and to grow soya to feed our livestock.”

He added: “If we shift away from eating meat and dairy and move towards a plant-based diet then the sun’s energy goes directly into growing our food. And because that’s so much more efficient, we could still produce enough to feed us but do so using a quarter of the land.”

Studies have shown that shifting to a plant-based food system could free up an area the size of the United States, China, the European Union, and Australia combined. This space “could then be given back to nature,” Attenborough added.

Is David Attenborough vegan?

He is widely renowned for his work in educating people about the climate crisis, but Sir David is not currently thought to be vegan. Last year, he was confronted by a climate protestor at a fish restaurant.

The much-loved presenter has previously spoken about the need to reduce meat consumption.

In 2020, he released a film named A Life On Our Planet, in which he spoke about the huge impact of meat.

“We must change our diet. The true tragedy of our time is still unfolding – the loss of biodiversity,” Attenborough said in the film. “Half of fertile land on Earth is now farmland, 70 percent of birds are domestic, majority chickens. There’s little left for the world. We have completely destroyed it.”

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Waters, an aspiring filmmaker at the time, posed the question at a Q&A session with Andersen, a director and producer already known for his coverage of human health, environmental issues, and animal rights in the documentaries What the Health (2017), Cowspiracy (2015), and Seaspiracy (2021).

“I’ll put it this way,” Waters told Andersen at the Q&A. “How would Jesus kill an animal?”

That provocative philosophical question was the catalyst for five years of investigation, research, and filmmaking by Andersen and Waters as they explored how religious teachings, practices, and lore intersect with industrialized farming and large-scale animal exploitation.

Christspiracy carefully documents that journey, depicting Andersen and Waters traveling from continent to continent and interviewing experts of all kinds – from world-renowned theologians to Christian farmers and Indigenous shamans.

The two co-creators say that their new film will finally conclude the series that Andersen began with Cowspiracy nearly a decade ago, and could revolutionize the way viewers “think about faith, ethics, and our relationship to animals forever.”

Plant Based News spoke to Andersen and Waters to learn more about the upcoming documentary and to find out why this is the first of Andersen’s films not coming to Netflix.

Christspiracy: where animal rights meets theology

Andersen (a self-described non-religious quasi-spiritual documentarian) and Waters (a Southern Baptist gospel musician) aren’t the first to delve into spirituality and the ethics of eating animals. In fact, debate over modern interpretation and potential misinterpretation of religious texts and ideas is one of the key concepts at the heart of Christspiracy.

Andersen and Waters believe that modern spiritual leaders are simply ignoring the pressing issues of industrial animal exploitation – which impacts human lives and the planet along with animals themselves – despite historical and theological precedents for engaging with them.

“In a way, this film was the most dear to me,” Andersen tells Plant Based News. “Because it touches on the subject that was most personal for me and dealing with animal ethics. We feel it’s gonna make the most impact globally and in a lot of different ways—historically, and for the movement, and rewriting history in a way. It’s a very, very important film.”

This intersection of theology and animal ethics hits particularly close to home for Waters, who grew up in Georgia and spent the majority of his childhood in church. He comes from a long family line of ministers and church music leaders and was actually a professional gospel songwriter and performer himself before becoming a documentarian.

As a teenager, Waters was involved in a Christian hunting and fishing club, and at the time he accepted his peers’ attitudes towards animals at face value—until he eventually asked himself the same questions he would put to Andersen years later. Is there a spiritual way to kill an animal? And if so, how would Jesus kill an animal?

Waters’ awareness of meat consumption and animal agriculture first began to change when he participated in something called the ‘Daniel fast’ – a partial fast based on the lifelong Kosher diet of the biblical figure Daniel – and stopped eating meat. (For most folks, the fast typically means no meat, no dairy, no rich foods, and plenty of vegetables.)

“These characters from the Bible were like my superheroes,” explains Waters. “I wanted to be like Daniel, and I didn’t realize that aspect until I was old enough to comprehend. I started asking questions, [and] those questions made my peers uncomfortable, which made me want to ask those questions more deeply.”

Despite the title Christspiracy and Waters’ personal experiences, he and Andersen are quick to say their work goes “way beyond” just Christianity, exploring all the ethics of different religions as well as the psychological, sociological, and philosophical factors at play.

“We’re not pointing fingers, we’re asking questions,” adds Andersen. “It’s a very full spectrum discussion and exploration of this subject. What’s been really fun [in test screenings] is that from atheists to hardcore conservative Christians, any walk of life, they love this film.”

‘Why we turned down Netflix’ for the Christspiracy documentary

Despite the extremely positive test screenings reported by Andersen and Waters, theology and animal rights are two topics that will always have the potential to be divisive. (During production, the pair had their homes ransacked and Waters even moved into his van.)

So while Netflix was set to distribute its own edit of the new film, which was at the time called Cowspiritual, the filmmakers ultimately chose to retain creative direction and release Christspiracy themselves, independently, with the help of a crowdfunding campaign. This was to avoid proposed redactions from Netflix. 

“[We are] super grateful to Netflix for providing a platform and releasing the other three previous films,” says Andersen. “With this film it is a little challenging, as some of the subject matter is so bold and so controversial.”

In the two weeks since launching a Kickstarter campaign, supporters have already donated over £290,000 GBP, and fans will have until December 1 to back the project. The filmmakers are also using a “Pay-It-Forward” model, meaning that the film will theoretically be available to billions of people for free or pay-what-you-can, rather than just to Netflix’s subscribers.

“It was a gut-wrenching decision to step away from Netflix,” adds Waters. “But now that we’ve sat with it—and have considered how much more reach this message will have with people around the world by doing this independently—we’re very excited.”

Christspiracy is coming to theatres and streaming platforms internationally in 2024 in line with global demand. You can back the project and find out more on Kickstarter here.

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