Chris Packham

Chris Packham is a British naturalist, presenter, photographer and author. He is best known for co-hosting The Really Wild Show between 1986 and 1995, and Springwatch, Autumnwatch and Winterwatch since 2009.

Chris was a vegetarian for thirty years before trying Veganuary in 2019 and then going vegan.

Chris is a much-needed mainstream voice for the animals and speaks out loudly against wildlife crimes including fox hunting, the badger cull and the persecution of hen harriers on grouse moors.

I haven’t actually eaten meat for 30 years, although I occasionally ate fish and felt bad about it. Two years ago, I visited a modern British dairy farm where the cows were kept in very clean conditions, indoors, all year round. I hated it. So I switched to oat milk, and last year gave up eating cheese.¹Packham, C. 2019. I did Veganuary, and now I’m staying vegan. Here’s what I’ve learned so far. The Guardian. Available: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/feb/03/veganuary-vegan-food-farming [Accessed 13 August 2021].

I continue to have concerns about animal welfare and transportation. I don’t see any difference between the way I should treat my dog – who I love and whose wellbeing I’m preoccupied with – and a pig, who is just as intelligent and important as Scratchy, but is kept in a concrete pen where it can’t turn around.²Packham, C. 2018. Chris Packham: Here’s why I’m going vegan. The Big Issue. Available: https://www.bigissue.com/latest/food/chris-packham-heres-why-im-going-vegan/ [Accessed 13 August 2021].

I am aware how eating meat impacts negatively on the environment. It costs so much more in terms of the world’s resources, including water, to produce meat than vegetable food. Producing meat is very expensive environmentally. As our population grows and becomes burdensome, we will have to put the farmed part of our planet to more effective and efficient use – and that means growing vegetable food.

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