Research In Progress | Completed Projects | Upcoming Projects | Legacy Projects | Prioritization
2022
Animal Product Impact Scales: 2022 Update (December)
Local Laws as a Strategic Stepping Stone for Legislative Efforts (November)
Going Vegan Or Vegetarian: Barriers & Strategies (September)
Global Animal Slaughter Statistics & Charts: 2022 Update (July)
Planting Seeds: The Impact Of Diet & Different Animal Advocacy Tactics (April)
Attitudes Towards Chickens & Fishes: A Study Of Brazil, Canada, China, & India (January)
2021
Going Vegan Or Vegetarian: Motivations & Influences (December)
Growing A Community: How To Support Farmed Animal Protection In China (August)
Going Vegan Or Vegetarian: Many Paths To One Goal (June)
What Does 15 Years Of Wildlife Trade Data Tell Us? (May)
Twitter Trends: #CageFree, #Vegan, #AnimalRights, And More! (January)
2020
U.S. Beliefs About Chickens And Fish & Their Relation To Animal-Positive Behaviors (November)
A Farm Sanctuary Tour’s Effects On Intentions And Diet Change (October)
Animal Product Impact Scales (September)
The State Of Animal Advocacy In North America: Experiences & Turnover (July)
COVID-19 & Animals: Faunalytics Poll Results (April)
“Reduce” Or “Go Veg”? Effects On Meal Choice (February)
The Rise Of Veg, The Fall Of Meat: A Restaurant Case Study (February)
2019
Increasing Donations Through Appeal Types, Exposure, And Donor Characteristics (November)
Faunalytics’ Animal Tracker: Animal-Related Attitudes and Behavior (2008 – 2019)
Impact of Corporate Commitments on Consumer Attitudes: A Qualitative Study (May)
Who are the Vegetarians? (April 2019/June 2018)
The People Who Support Animal Causes: Descriptive Results (February)
Labeling Plant-Based Meat Alternatives to Appeal to Meat Consumers (January)
2018
Animal-Focused Reanalysis Of A Donor Dataset (November 2018)
Pork or Pig? Beef or Cow? Using Standard Euphemisms vs. Explicit Language (November 2018)
Global Animal Slaughter Statistics And Charts (October 2018)
Attitudes toward Farmed Animals in BRIC Countries (September 2018)
Naturalness Concerns And Clean Meat Acceptance (August 2018)
How Does Video Outreach Impact Pork Consumption? (February 2018)
Reforming Animal Agriculture Subsidies: A Guide for Advocates (January 2023)
Data Collection, Qualtitative, Global
Government subsidies for animal agriculture pose a well-known and difficult barrier facing animal advocates around the globe. The purpose of this study was to understand organizations’ successes and challenges in their efforts to shift, reduce, or eliminate animal agriculture subsidies. We interviewed 13 organizations from Brazil, Canada, the U.K., and U.S. to better understand their approaches to reforming animal agriculture subsidies. In doing so, we hope to facilitate knowledge sharing among advocates, and we provide recommendations and lessons learned from a wide range of approaches.
The Animal Agriculture Industry’s Perspective On Advocates & Cage-Free Reforms (January 2023)
Public Data, Qualitative, U.S.
There is relatively little information available on how the animal agriculture industry perceives, portrays, and reacts to advocate tactics, including those that target farm subsidies. In order to examine how the industry responds to advocates’ efforts, we reviewed a small sample of industry publications, the findings of which are outlined in this report. We hope that this will help animal advocates prepare for Big Ag’s response to their work, and thus be more effective in strategizing to help farmed animals.
Animal Product Impact Scales: 2022 Update (December 2022)
Public Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Descriptive Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
In this update to the Animal Product Impact Scales we published in September 2020, we have made several improvements and updates to our estimates of how many lives and days of suffering go into U.S. consumption of animal products each day. This resource is intended to help a wide range of people prioritize animal product substitutes. In the two years since its original release, it has been used by nonprofit organizations, alt-protein start-ups, investors, and individuals to make better choices.
Resource Hub | Blog Post | Total Consumption Impact Lists | Per-Serving Impact Lists | All Data & Materials
Local Laws as a Strategic Stepping Stone for Legislative Efforts (November, 2022)
Public Data, Literature Review, Qualitative, USA
Legislation is a key avenue animal advocates use to effect change at scale, but there is not much research about how to choose tractable issues and lobby for them successfully. As local action is often more feasible for advocates but not necessarily as directly impactful, the goal of this project was to look for evidence of whether local laws support passage of similar laws at higher levels of government. To do so, we reviewed the legal literature related to several farmed animal issues and related others, presenting evidence about where local action has and has not been effective.
Chinese Consumers’ Attitudes Toward Animal Welfare: Behaviors, Beliefs, And Responses To Messaging (October 2022)
Data Collection, Qualitative, Private Data, China
After seeking input from members of the farmed animal protection community in China in a previous phase of this research (see the Growing A Community study below), we conducted focus groups with Chinese consumers. The goal was to better understand attitudes of Chinese consumers towards meat consumption and farmed animal welfare, and to test different types of messaging and strategies with consumers. We compare the results against the assumptions identified in Phase 1.
Going Vegan Or Vegetarian: Barriers & Strategies (September 2022)
Data Collection, Longitudinal, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Descriptive Statistics, USA, Canada
This is the third report from Faunalytics’ ambitious six-month longitudinal study of people just starting new veg*n diets. It focuses on the critical issue of barriers and supports facing people who start a new veg*n diet, as well as the effectiveness of various strategies. We provide recommendations for advocates who want to use the results to inform how they support new vegans and vegetarians on their journey.
Global Animal Slaughter Statistics & Charts: 2022 Update (July 2022)
Public Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, Global
In 2018 and 2020, we published a series of blogs that documented how many animals are slaughtered for food every year based on United Nations data. This post offers an updated and improved version using the latest data, and includes two additional years worth of numbers. The animal groups we focus on are cows, chickens, pigs, sheep, and fish. The data for land animals is part of the FAOSTAT database from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. Meanwhile, the data for fish was pulled from the database “Global Production by production source 1950-2020”, which can be found in FishStatJ, the software for fishery and aquaculture from the FAO.
Planting Seeds: The Impact Of Diet & Different Animal Advocacy Tactics (April 2022)
Data Collection, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Descriptive Statistics, USA
There are many different approaches to advocacy in the movement, and it is both important and difficult to test their relative impact on public attitudes and behavior. This ambitious project included two studies, one retrospective and one experimental, to address the question of how different types of advocacy affect pro-animal behaviors and attitudes. With two types of study methodology and other research brought in to supplement our findings, this project allows for the first direct comparison of a wide range of advocacy techniques. It will provide valuable information to guide groups, independent advocates, and prospective funders about how to support and advance the protection of animals.
Attitudes Towards Chickens & Fishes: A Study Of Brazil, Canada, China, & India (January 2022)
Data Collection, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Descriptive Statistics, Brazil, Canada, China, India
This study, which was conducted in collaboration with researchers at Mercy For Animals, expands on our previous research looking at beliefs about chickens and fishes. We examined the frequency of key beliefs about these small-bodied animals in Brazil, Canada, China, and India, as well as how they are linked to the positive behaviors of signing a welfare petition and taking a diet pledge to reduce consumption. Advocates in these four countries will get the most use from the country-specific reports available in multiple languages on the resource hub linked below, and there is also a comparative report for those interested in similarities and differences between the countries. These results provide indications of how advocates may be able to focus their messaging to educate the public where needed and be as effective as possible.
Going Vegan Or Vegetarian: Motivations & Influences (December 2021)
Data Collection, Longitudinal, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Descriptive Statistics, USA, Canada
This is the second report from Faunalytics’ ambitious six-month longitudinal study of people just starting new veg*n diets. In this report, we investigated motivational factors related to veg*nism: general motivations (e.g., animal protection, health, environmental concern), specific influences (e.g., watching a documentary, talking to an animal advocacy group), sources of motivation (self-driven or external), and speciesism. The results indicate which of these factors are related to success and which aren’t. We also provide recommendations for advocates who want to use the results to inform how they support new vegans and vegetarians on their journey.
Growing A Community: How To Support Farmed Animal Protection In China (August 2021)
Data Collection, Qualitative, Private Data, China
In partnership and consultation with members of the farmed animal protection community in China, we conducted semi-structured interviews about the current situation and its challenges. These subject matter experts gave their opinions on where the best opportunities to protect farmed animals exist, and how to support the work that is being done.
Going Vegan Or Vegetarian: Many Paths To One Goal (June 2021)
Data Collection, Longitudinal, Quantitative, Qualitative, Inferential Statistics, Descriptive Statistics, USA, Canada
This is the first report from Faunalytics’ most ambitious study yet: a six-month longitudinal study of people just starting new veg*n diets. In this report, we examine the characteristics of people who are making this change, how they transition to veg*nism, and three ways of looking at success: distance from goal levels of animal product consumption, felt success, and maintenance vs. abandonment of the diet.
What Does 15 Years Of Wildlife Trade Data Tell Us? (May 2021)
Public Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Population Data, USA
The global trade in wildlife is a huge problem — and it’s an issue that even has its own category in the Faunalytics Research Library. The aim of this analysis was to examine United States wildlife and wildlife product imports, with a focus specifically on the scope and breadth of the legal trade. While the illegal trade is important and rightfully gets a lot of attention, we can only get a picture of it through the data of what enforcement agencies are able to catch — the rest is extrapolation and estimates. To conduct our analysis, we reviewed 15 years (2000-2014) of data from the Law Enforcement Management Information System (LEMIS), originally collected by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), cleaned, standardized, and stored in an R package called lemis by EcoHealth Alliance. You can find more information about this dataset here.
Twitter Trends: #CageFree, #Vegan, #AnimalRights, and More! (January 2021)
Analysis Only, Private Data, Population Data, Quantitative, Qualitative, Global
Faunalytics collected and analyzed a year’s worth of tweets using Twitter’s API, from February 2019 through March 2020. This analysis includes an examination of how keyword use varied over the course of the year for keywords related to plant-based diets, cultured meat, animal welfare, and intensive agriculture, effective animal advocacy, and other topics. We also examined the positivity or negativity of tweets using each of the keywords.
The dataset includes the text of millions of tweets, along with Twitter handles, number of favorites, number of retweets, and date/time of publication. Due to the terms of use for Twitter’s API, we cannot make this dataset publicly available. However, if you are a researcher who would like to conduct your own analyses, please contact the Research Director with details.
Due to the terms of use for Twitter’s API, we cannot make this dataset publicly available. If you are a researcher who would like to conduct your own analyses, please contact the Research Director with details.
U.S. Beliefs About Chickens And Fish & Their Relation To Animal-Positive Behaviors (November 2020)
Data Collection, Quantitative, Qualitative, Inferential Statistics, Descriptive Statistics, USA
This study is the first in our line of research looking at small-bodied animals. We began by asking U.S. advocates and members of the general public what beliefs people hold about these animals. From there, we collected information on how prevalent each key belief was and how each was associated with animal-positive behaviors like signing a welfare petition and taking a diet pledge to reduce consumption. The study results will help advocates to know where to focus their messaging in order to be as effective as possible!
Report | Data & Materials
A Farm Sanctuary Tour’s Effects On Intentions And Diet Change (October 2020)
Data Collection, Private Data, Quantitative, Qualitative, Descriptive Statistics, Inferential Statistics, USA
In this project, we partnered with Farm Sanctuary to look at the impact of sanctuary tours on participants. We specifically investigated changes in attitudes, diets, and behaviors in both in-person interviews and surveys. The findings help place well-run sanctuaries in the animal advocacy movement.
Animal Product Impact Scales (September 2020)
Public Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Descriptive Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
Using publicly available data, we estimated which forms of animal products cause the most death and suffering. For instance, how do chicken nuggets compare to omelets and scrambled eggs? Fish filets to bacon? The analysis brings together information about the frequency of daily consumption with calculations of the number of animals who are directly and indirectly affected by each product. We have produced a set of ordered lists of the products with the greatest potential impact if they could be replaced with excellent plant-based or cultivated alternatives.
Resource Hub | Blog Post | Total Consumption Impact Lists | Per-Serving Impact Lists | Data & Materials
The State Of Animal Advocacy In The U.S. and Canada: Experiences & Turnover (July 2020)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Descriptive Statistics, Inferential Statistics, USA, Canada
In this study, Faunalytics investigated the important question of why some animal advocates stay engaged with the movement long-term while others leave the movement or move from one organization to another. This question is complex and multi-faceted, but very important. Some of the key factors measured in this survey were satisfaction with leadership, burnout, satisfaction with job resources, harassment, and discrimination.
Animal Advocacy In The U.S. & Canada: Advocate Origins
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Descriptive Statistics, Inferential Statistics, USA, Canada
Understanding how advocates become involved in the movement is important for bringing in new advocates and encouraging movement growth. This analysis provides detail about two additional questions assessing advocates’ origins in the movement: what brought them on board and which cause area they initially worked in.
COVID-19 & Animals: Faunalytics Poll Results (April 2020)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Poll, Descriptive Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
This project was designed to quickly gather information for animal welfare organizations in light of the current outbreak of COVID-19 (also referred to as the novel coronavirus). We designed, ran, and published the study over a two-week period. Topics covered by the poll include animal-related beliefs and understanding of COVID-19, intentions to change diet or donation behavior because of the pandemic, support for relevant legislative changes, and reaction to an argument outlining the link between animal agriculture and disease. The results point to a need for more public education about the animal origins of the COVID-19 outbreak.
“Reduce” Or “Go Veg”? Effects On Meal Choice (February 2020)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, Canada
In this campus-based randomized controlled trial, we found that advocating for meat reduction led to more meatless meal purchases than advocating for vegetarianism, because so many more people were willing to try reduction. The results point to a need to use strong, well-designed pledges and support people in maintaining the commitments they make.
The Rise Of Veg, The Fall Of Meat: A Restaurant Case Study (February 2020)
Private Data, Quantitative, Case Study, Descriptive Statistics, Canada
In this analysis, we looked at patterns of veg and meat orders from a campus café over the past five years, finding an encouraging upward trend. While it wouldn’t be accurate for us to extrapolate the results from this case study out to all restaurants in all contexts, the results seem to dovetail with what we see happening on a larger scale. They also suggest avenues for how to deliberately shift consumer choice toward more veg options.
Increasing Donations Through Appeal Types, Exposure, And Donor Characteristics (November 2019) 
Donation Research Program
Donation Research Program
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
Often, being an effective advocate means helping as many animals as possible, but evidence is mixed about whether this is the most effective way to solicit donations. Psychological research has found that people are often more willing to give to an “identifiable victim,” which suggests that a single individual who represents the cause, like Hope the Pig, may encourage more donations than a statistic about the number of individuals suffering. At the same time, the type of people who are willing to donate to farmed animals may differ in their motivations from those who donate to other causes, like companion animals.
In this study, we tested the impact of a donation appeal for farmed vs. companion animals using a single individual versus statistics about total suffering. The results include a comparison of those appeals as well as data about overall levels of donation to farmed and companion animals, and the types of donors who support them.
Faunalytics’ Animal Tracker: Animal-Related Attitudes and Behavior (2008 – 2019)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Repeated Cross-Sectional, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
In 2019 Faunalytics completed the 12th and final year of the animal protection movement’s only repeated cross-sectional study of opinions and behavior about animal issues. The Animal Tracker covered a wide range of animal topics and provides detailed demographic information for a representative sample of U.S. adults.
Report & Resource Hub | Data & Materials | Graphing Tool
Animal Tracker Capstone Analysis
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, USA
The final analysis of the Animal Tracker segmented respondents into categories–Advocates, Allies, Adversaries, and Neutrals–then looked at the patterns for each of those categories. Who are the animal advocates?
Impact of Corporate Commitments on Consumer Attitudes: A Qualitative Study (May 2019)
Public Data, Faunalytics Dataset, Qualitative, Text Analysis
The primary goal of corporate lobbying for welfare reform is to improve the lives of large numbers of animals at once. Early campaigns have been successful, but the continued success of this movement relies on momentum and corporations’ perceptions that the changes will improve their bottom line. It is important for advocates to understand the public reaction to successful campaigns in order to anticipate barriers and benefits to future actions.
This study’s results provide good news for corporations and the advocates who work with them.
Who are the Vegetarians? (April 2019/June 2018)
Public Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Population Estimates, USA
This two-part report examined the characteristics of self-described vegetarians in the U.S. using publicly available data from the CDC’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Part 1 examines their demographic characteristics, and Part 2 considers why some self-described “vegetarians” actually eat meat.
The People Who Support Animal Causes: Descriptive Results (February 2019)
Donation Research Program
Donation Research Program
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
With a representative U.S. sample of more than 1,000 donors to animal causes, this study provides an in-depth look at who donates, as well as detailed information about how and why they prefer to do so. Advocacy groups can use the results to shape their donation appeals and methods. The results also inform future research comparing different approaches to increasing donations to animal causes.
Donor Segmentation: The People Who Donate To Non-Companion Animals
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, USA
In this analysis, we considered two subgroups of animal-cause donors: donors to non-companion animal causes and companion-animal-exclusive donors. This analysis is important because animal causes receive less than 3% of all charitable contributions and the vast majority of animal-causes donors support companion animal charities, as shown in our top-line report with this dataset (above).
Which Groups Are Least Likely To Support Animal Causes (And Which Causes Do They Support Instead)?
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, USA
The animal protection movement differs from the population at large in a number of ways, and this lack of diversity could pose problems. This report examines which groups are underrepresented among donors, and provides insight into their donation priorities by looking at the other causes they tend to support.
People Who Support Animal Causes: Who Gives More?
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, USA
This report follows on from the first by simultaneously considering all the factors that predict donations and other important outcomes, to see which are the strongest predictors. In other words, which characteristics of animal-cause donors predict who gives the most, what other support they give, and under what circumstances?
Labeling Plant-Based Meat Alternatives to Appeal to Meat Consumers (January 2019)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
This study examined existing and novel names for plant-based meat alternatives. It provides data about U.S. meat consumers’ relative preferences for the different labels, and whether demographics play a significant role. These findings can be used by advocates and manufacturers to increase the appeal of plant-based options and target their appeals more effectively.
Associations Between Consumption Of Meats And Animal Product Alternatives
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
In this analysis, we look in detail at different dietary habits and how the consumption of animal product alternatives and conventional meats are related.
Animal-Focused Reanalysis Of A Donor Dataset (November 2018)
Donation Research Program
Donation Research Program
Private Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
About 1% of all charitable giving goes to animal-related causes, which needs to change for advocates to have the resources they need. Faunalytics reanalyzed a dataset provided by the Blackbaud Institute and Edge Research to get a detailed profile of people who donate to animal causes. The results are insightful and have helped us in planning more research on this important topic.
Pork or Pig? Beef or Cow? Using Standard Euphemisms vs. Explicit Language (November 2018)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, USA
In two randomized controlled trials (RCTs) Faunalytics tested whether referring to meat by the animal it came from would have an immediate effect on attitudes or reported consumption. To our surprise, the answer was no!
Global Animal Slaughter Statistics And Charts (October 2018)
Public Data, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, Global
This series of statistics and charts explores more than 50 years of animal slaughter trends. The data were pulled from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.
Attitudes toward Farmed Animals in BRIC Countries (September 2018)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA, Brazil, Russia, India, China
We completed a multi-national “BRIC” study to compare attitudes and behavior regarding farmed animals and veg*nism across five different countries (including the U.S.). The BRIC countries – Brazil, Russia, India, and China — are rapidly increasing their consumption of animal products, yet there is little research for these countries. The research revealed that most BRIC residents favor better farmed animal welfare laws, and much more!
Naturalness Concerns And Clean Meat Acceptance (August 2018)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
Faunalytics completed a randomized controlled trial to find ways of describing “clean” meat (from cells, not animals) that could address naturalness concerns and increase acceptance. We found that 66% of people were willing to try clean meat, 46% were willing to buy clean meat regularly, and 53% were willing to eat clean meat as a replacement for conventional meat!
Report | Data & Materials | Other Resources
How Much Will Consumers Pay For Clean Meat?
Faunalytics Dataset, Analysis Only, Quantitative, Nationally Representative Population Estimates, USA
Faunalytics’ original study of clean meat acceptance included a measure of how much consumers would pay. This analysis provides more detail about those amounts.
How Does Video Outreach Impact Pork Consumption? (February 2018)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Experiment/RCT, Inferential Statistics, USA
In partnership with Animal Equality, Faunalytics conducted a randomized controlled trial in a realistic animal advocacy context. The results showed that Animal Equality’s pig-focused videos had a significant impact on pork consumption compared to a no-video control condition. In addition to the full report, we also published a post about lessons learned from this large-scale field study to help others who want to undertake similar research.
Study of Current and Former Vegetarians and Vegans (December 2014)
Data Collection, Faunalytics Dataset, Quantitative, Inferential Statistics, Population Estimates, USA
This comprehensive study examined key factors in current and former vegetarians’ and vegans’ decisions to adopt (and sometimes give up) their diets. Results were drawn from a representative sample of more than 11,000 adults in the U.S. and showed that approximately 4 in 5 vegetarians resume eating meat at some point.
