Year in Review
2023
Year in Review
2023
Year in Review
2023
Year in Review
20232023
A Pivotal Year for Animals
Fuelled by your kindness and courage, our collective effort drove real and lasting change for farmed animals in India.
We built on last year’s momentum and persuaded more states to ban cruel gestation crates used to confine pigs. We met with key legislators and urged them to consider farmed animals in their actions. We organised our dedicated volunteers and inspired celebrities to further our cause.
Our efforts are far from over. We need to be stronger and more resilient than ever—to pave the way for a future where animals are no longer in our food system. Join us.
We inspired six state bans on extreme confinement of pigs.
We pushed government officials to ban cruel intensive confinement of mother pigs in six states: Telangana, Odisha, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Bihar, and Assam. Combined with the nine state bans we secured last year, this progress will spare an estimated 1.5 million mother pigs life in a cage so small they cannot turn around.
Now we are calling on federal authorities to prohibit the manufacture, sale, and use of cruel gestation and farrowing crates across India.
We have teamed up with influencer Farah Amber to spread this message.
We continued organising a powerful movement for animals.
We teamed up with local advocacy group Street Animal Welfare to host our first-ever volunteer event in Assam. Together we screened the acclaimed documentary Maa Ka Doodh at plant-based cafe Lush in Guwahati. The event drew more than 25 attendees.
Ahead of International Animal Rights Day, Mercy For Animals volunteers dressed as prisoners in handcuffs and shackles wore animal masks and held placards with a compelling message: All animals deserve to be free. Volunteers highlighted the five essential freedoms for animals, widely considered the gold standard and emphasised by the Supreme Court of India: freedom to express normal behaviour; freedom from thirst and hunger; freedom from fear and distress; freedom from pain, injury, or disease; and freedom from discomfort.
Mercy For Animals also had a strong presence at Asia Farm Animal Day. Several of our team members led sessions, including President Leah Garcés.
We urged legislators to protect animals.
Mercy For Animals volunteers met with Dehradun Cantonment assembly member Smt. Savita Kapoor, calling on her to address the sad issues plaguing dairy farms in her jurisdiction. We delivered a letter outlining how cows are kept in miserable conditions and subjected to cruel practices, such as administering injections of the illegal hormone oxytocin; separating calves from their mothers and tethering them in areas without proper shelter; and even starving calves, especially males, who are of no commercial value to the dairy industry.
The meeting was positive, and Smt. Kapoor emphasised that strict action should be taken. She promised to raise the matter with the right authorities so this could be corrected.
We joined forces with activists, influencers, and celebrities to raise funds, spread awareness, and foster compassion for farmed animals.
In November, Mercy For Animals India collaborated with Meat Less Meet More, India’s premier luxury plant-based networking and fundraising event planner. Led by actor and influencer Amy Aela and climate activist Shreya Godawat, Meat Less Meet More donated 25% of the event’s profits to Mercy For Animals India. The sold-out gathering drew a host of plant-based celebrities, influencers, activists, media personalities, and entrepreneurs, including Sneha Ullal, Vedhika, Namrata Sethi, Shreya Sharma, Neha Ranglani, Mala, Sonya Saamoor, Jasmine, Karanvir Sharma, Nia Sharma, Saakshi Kapoor Teckchandani, and Kuntal Joisher.
Eze Perfumes distributed vegan fragrances to guests, pledged support to Mercy For Animals India and other animal protection groups, and helped amplify the event’s message of compassion and love for animals.
We promoted respect for all beings—and our planet—on Earth Day.
We participated in the first-ever global Mercy For Animals Earth Day campaign. Over 70 acclaimed chefs and influencers from around the world joined the campaign, including the first plant-based chef from Master Chef India.
We shared delicious vegan recipes.
Throughout the year, we offered an inspiring collection of plant-based recipes. For the festival of lights, vegan author and chef Priyanka Naik and health coach Neha Ranglani shared some of their favourite Diwali foods. We also started a series featuring popular plant-based dishes from each state in India.
We opened hearts and minds to encourage kindness towards all animals.
Our pro-animal social media content was seen more than 13 million times, while our videos garnered nearly three million views.
We also promoted a message of compassion for animals at the YVCare Earth Festival in Mumbai. We shared information about the plight of pigs trapped in gestation crates and chickens confined in ‘battery’ cages. We savored vegan food and showcased the incredible power of compassionate food choices. We had the privilege of meeting passionate vegan activists who are tirelessly working to help animals and protect our beautiful planet. Collaborating with dedicated vegan influencers, such as Farah Amber and Soubhagya Sharma, we posted videos on social media that highlight the suffering of pigs in gestation crates and buffaloes and cows in dairy farms.
