The holidays are a time of joy and peace, which should be extended to all.

As we surprise the dogs in our lives with wrapped chew toys and treat the cat with whom we share our home to a new bed, an increasing number of Aussies are understandably feeling uneasy about then putting the body parts of other animals on our plates.

With love in the air as Christmas approaches, now is a great time to pack away our speciesism, realise that a pig’s life is just as valuable to them as ours are to us, and celebrate a vegan Christmas. 

After all, the holidays are a time for coming together, and everyone can enjoy animal-free foods!

Carve a Cruelty-free Roast

Nowadays, supermarkets are awash with vegan upgrades to meat-heavy meals, and the holidays are no exception. Grab a Woolworths Plantitude Christmas Roast with a delicious cranberry glaze, Plantein’s Festive Roasts, or Coles’ Nature’s Kitchen Plant-based entertaining roast. 

Or, if you’re a keen cook who wants to impress, try your hand at Chef Zac Bird’s roast turkey!

Not keen on firing up the oven in summer? No worries, but spare sea life by skipping the fish markets and indulging instead in vegan prawns, salmon, crab, and calamari alongside crispy salads and creamy potato salad made with vegan mayonnaise. 

Tempt Guests with Tasty Trimmings

From roast pumpkin and crispy potatoes to juicy plums and cherries, many of the staples we consider Christmas fare are already vegan. Whether you go for a table laden with roast veg or cold salads, ensuring your sides are kind to animals is easy.

Wrap crispy animal-free bacon around plant-based sausages to make not-pigs-in-blankets and serve this walnut-based “faux gras” with accidentally vegan Ritz crackers. Creative sides are a delicious way to ensure guests rave about your festive table for years.

Serve Truly Sweet Sweets

Whether you like to top off your festive feast with a pavlova or indulge in a rum-soaked plum pudding and custard, it’s easier than ever to sub your dessert offering for one that’s as kind as it is delicious. Impress with Sara Kidd’s indulgent chocolate cake with spiced ganache, or visit taste.com.au for a treasure trove of easy-to-make vegan Christmas recipes, from gingerbread and trifle to tarts and cheesecake.

If baking isn’t your thing, there are many pre-packaged dessert options in the shops. Serve mini pavlovas with Plantitide Mini Méringue nets or Coles’ ‘I’m Free From’ fruit mince pies with Blue Ribbon Plant-based ice cream.

Stuff Stockings with Animal-Free Treats

Did you know that many snacks are “accidentally vegan?” Biscoff biscuits and spread, Allen’s Jellybeans, Burger Rings, many Pringles’ and Smith’s chips’ flavours, fruit and cola flavoured Chupa Chups, iconic Lolly Gobble Bliss Bombs, and many other everyday items are naturally free from animal-based ingredients and make perfect additions to any stocking or snack table.

Add to this purposefully vegan goodies like NOMO mini chocolate shareboxes and reindeer, Sweet William chocolate koalas, Natural Confectionary Co. Vegan jellies, Health Lab chocolates, and lollies from Totally Vegan By Charlie, and you’ll be enjoying the spoils of an animal-friendly Christmas well into 2025!

Start a New Tradition

Traditions only continue if they evolve, and starting a kind Christmas with your kin is a wonderful way to make Christmas more inclusive, sustainable, and aligned with your love of animals.

Around 5 million social and playful turkeys are raised on factory farms and slaughtered annually in Australia, most used for Christmas dinners. Meanwhile, around 43% of fish and 90% of the 6 million pigs raised in Australia for food are raised on filthy and crowded factory farms.

Regardless of how they’re farmed, all the animals whose bodies are served at our festive tables are slaughtered at a young age— but it’s never too late to help them by enjoying an animal-free holiday season.

Keep the Kindness in the New Year and Beyond!

Of course, compassion need not be packed away with the decorations!

Find inspiration to keep your vegan resolution strong with your free vegan starter kit.