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The UK Vegan Society has always consistently misrepresented its own history. While we do not suggest that has always been deliberate, it does need correcting. The full details of what really happened are further down this page, but first a brief summary: The word "vegan" was coined by Donald Watson in November 1944 when he began publishing a newsletter, which he called Vegan News, initially sent to a group of UK Vegetarian Society members commonly known as "the Non-Dairy Vegetarians."
The definition Watson gave "veganism" (in his widely distributed newsletter, before the UK Vegan Society was founded) was a type of vegetarian diet that excludes eggs, dairy products and all other animal-derived ingredients. Watson also defined veganism as "encouraging" giving up non-food animal-derived commodities, and "encouraging" the creation of alternative, non-animal products. On April 8, 1945, Watson and his friends met for the first time to begin the founding of a more formal organization, which the
This website explains in detail how Watson's Vegan Society was captured in 1950 by animal rights activists who immediately re-defined the word "vegan," disrespected and discarded Watson, and how a disagreeable and often ego-driven struggle played out over many years. The modern UK Vegan Society has gone to some lengths to sanitize its own history about its beginnings; we endeavor here to present a more honest summary. The information on this site is based on published reports in the Society's own newsletter
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