"As a new year begins, resolutions tend to be top-of-mind for many people. Social media is full of examples of people resolving to hit the gym, eat healthier, and stay on top of deadlines.

We can be sure that animal rights extremists have a few (less positive) resolutions of their own in mind to do even more to target animal agriculture this year. Looking back can help us anticipate what is up ahead, so I’d like to review some of the biggest trends in activism from 2024 and what they might tell us about the future.

The Alliance released reports from seven animal rights-related conferences in 2024, including the Humane Society of the United States’ Taking Action for Animals (TAFA) Conference, Animal Legal Defense Fund’s Animal Law Conference, and the Animal and Vegan Advocacy (AVA) Summit. Major themes from the conferences included:

• Positioning large companies (processors, integrators, restaurant/retail) as “villains” that benefit from the current food system at the expense of farmers and ranchers
• Legislative “wins” and pathways to get more “animal protection” legislation passed, beginning at the local level
• Calls for collaboration and creative ways to gain funding by aligning with other movements — especially climate
• Animal ag and meat’s alleged negative impacts on public health and nutrition

Looking ahead, based on discussions at these events, the animal agriculture community should be prepared for potential litigation targeting large companies (especially around sustainability claims), increased shareholder activism, legislative and regulatory efforts, and campaigns around nutrition, public health, and climate.

We also closely monitored legislative efforts in 2024. Animal rights groups Direct Action Everywhere (DXE) and Pro-Animal Future spent much of the last two years campaigning for four ballot measures in California and Colorado. The measures were decided on by voters in November, with only one passing. In California, DXE’s homebase of Berkeley passed a first-of-its-kind measure to ban confined animal feeding operations (CAFOs), with 60% of voters voting in favor. No facilities are directly impacted by this measure, though DXE has declared it a victory and that they hope other cities will be “inspired” by the decision. In rural Sonoma County, a similar ban was overwhelmingly defeated with 85% of voters opposing the measure. In Denver, a processing plant ban that would have impacted the largest lamb processor in the U.S. was defeated with 2/3 of voters rejecting the initiative. A fur ban that would have prevented businesses from making or selling fur products in the city also failed with 58% of voters opposing. These groups have already noted plans for the 2026 election cycle, including identifying several cities across the U.S. where we could expect to see similar measures introduced.

Shareholder proposals targeting animal agriculture were also a major trend, doubling since 2023. These efforts are being led by groups like the Humane Society of the United States and The Accountability Board. In 2024, 18 resolutions related to animal welfare, antibiotic use, and alternative proteins were voted on at shareholder annual meetings. Two additional resolutions were noted in company filings as being withdrawn before the vote. All of these resolutions failed, with an average passing rate of 15%. Three climate-focused resolutions were submitted by The Accountability Board targeting restaurant brands. Two of the resolutions passed and a third narrowly failed. According to the group, they found they were able to gain more support for their climate-related resolutions if they were “less prescriptive,” allowing the company to determine how to reach a target goal. Given the higher success rate of climate-focused proposals, we are likely to see more along those lines this year.

Lastly, animal rights groups like Free from Harm were particularly active in 2024 with industry event protests as they continue to call for a “slaughter-free plant-based food system.” In previous protests, activists have targeted USDA officials, issued calls to stop “bailing out big ag” and the “bird flu bailout,” or called out alleged “greenwashing” and “humanewashing.” They’ve also registered as media and interviewed event attendees in previous disruptions. We anticipate that this trend will continue into next year and encourage event planners to be prepared.

At the Animal Agriculture Alliance, our resolution is to do even more to monitor and flag trends in animal rights activism for you so that you can focus on the most important part of your business: getting safe, affordable and delicious animal protein out to the vast majority of the public who enjoys eating meat, poultry, dairy, eggs, and seafood."