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August 15, 2026
Hungary Bans Wild Animals From Circuses, Closing the EU's Last Loophole

Vegan Brief August 15, 2026

Hungary bans wild circus animals, Solar Foods tops €100M funding

Hungary became the last EU country to ban wild animals from circuses, a ban taking effect January 2027.

4 top stories 28 sources read 129 articles scanned 6 sides of vegan life
Lead story Hungary Bans Wild Animals From Circuses, Closing the EU's Last Loophole Read the story

The Quick List

Hungary became the last EU country to ban wild animals from circuses, a ban taking effect January 2027 [93].
Solar Foods passed €100 million in funding as its second production facility, Factory 02, enters final design [92].
UK plant-based meat brand This launched a fact-based hub to counter meat-industry misinformation [91].
A whole-food, plant-based diet cut LDL cholesterol 17.9% more than a standard American diet in adults with genetic high cholesterol [6].
Tyson Foods will close or sell three US beef plants as history's tightest cattle shortage squeezes the industry [61].
Louis Dreyfus opened a large pea protein isolate plant in Saskatchewan built to fix the ingredient's notorious off-notes [122].
The movement today▲Alt protein funding winter▲Law & Policy▲Research & Nutrition▬Food & RecipesThe receipts →
Hungary Bans Wild Animals From Circuses, Closing the EU's Last LoopholePhoto: vegconomist
Innovation

Hungary Bans Wild Animals From Circuses, Closing the EU's Last Loophole

Read the story →
Also on the board3 more signals
Solar Foods Tops €100 Million in Funding as Its Second Factory Nears a Green LightPhoto: vegconomist
Innovation

Solar Foods Tops €100 Million in Funding as Its Second Factory Nears a Green Light

 UK's This Launches Fact-Based Hub to Fight Plant-Based Meat MisinformationPhoto: green queen
Innovation

UK's This Launches Fact-Based Hub to Fight Plant-Based Meat Misinformation

 Whole-Food, Plant-Based Diet Cuts LDL Cholesterol 17.9% in Genetic High-Cholesterol TrialWikimedia Commons / Kale
Research & Nutrition

Whole-Food, Plant-Based Diet Cuts LDL Cholesterol 17.9% in Genetic High-Cholesterol Trial

The Stories: the day’s biggest developments, in the sources’ own words

01▲Law & PolicyStory

Hungary Bans Wild Animals From Circuses, Closing the EU's Last Loophole

Hungary Bans Wild Animals From Circuses, Closing the EU's Last Loophole
Photo: vegconomist
“This ban marks a long-awaited step forward for animal welfare in Hungary. It reflects decades of work by advocates, organisations and partners who kept this issue on the public and political agenda.”
Raul Vida, animal advocate and CEO of Empathy Story · [93]
By the numbers
  • 25groups of wild animals, including elephants, big cats and bears, are banned from Hungarian circuses under the new decree [93]
  • 24 of 27EU member states already restricted circus animals before Hungary's decree made it every one [93]
WatchThe ban takes legal effect January 1, 2027; circuses can keep animals they already hold for life but can no longer train, display or breed them [93]
Fromvegconomist the vegan business magazine
02▲Alt protein funding winterStory

Solar Foods Tops €100 Million in Funding as Its Second Factory Nears a Green Light

Solar Foods Tops €100 Million in Funding as Its Second Factory Nears a Green Light
Photo: vegconomist
“During the first half of 2026, we made progress towards the final investment decision on the construction of the Factory 02 production facility.”
Rami Jokela, CEO, Solar Foods · [92]
By the numbers
  • €100m+raised by Solar Foods to fund its second factory and operations, per half-year results [92]
  • €77.8mgranted by Business Finland in June, split into a €39.6m grant and a €38.1m R&D loan, conditional on a final investment decision [92]
WatchSolar Foods intends to make its final investment decision on Factory 02 sometime in 2026 [92]
The full timeline: Alt protein funding winter →
Fromvegconomist the vegan business magazine
03▬Food & RecipesStory

UK's This Launches Fact-Based Hub to Fight Plant-Based Meat Misinformation

UK's This Launches Fact-Based Hub to Fight Plant-Based Meat Misinformation
Photo: green queen
“Food has become incredibly confusing. Every day consumers are bombarded with headlines, social media advice and conflicting opinions telling them what they should or shouldn't eat. We've created a place where people can explore the facts for themselves.”
Mark Cuddigan, CEO, This · [91]
By the numbers
  • Young UK men are three times more likely than the general population to have increased their meat intake in the past year [91]

Company claim"generate 93% fewer emissions than beef" (This, of its vegan steak and burger) [91]. This is the brand's own comparison chart, not an independently audited life-cycle assessment.

FromGreen Queen
04▲Research & NutritionStory

Whole-Food, Plant-Based Diet Cuts LDL Cholesterol 17.9% in Genetic High-Cholesterol Trial

Whole-Food, Plant-Based Diet Cuts LDL Cholesterol 17.9% in Genetic High-Cholesterol Trial
Wikimedia Commons / Kale
By the numbers
  • 17.9%greater drop in LDL cholesterol on a whole-food, plant-based diet versus a standard American diet, in a fully controlled crossover trial of 50 adults with genetically confirmed familial hypercholesterolemia [6]

Solid"The WFPB induced a clinically significant reduction in LDL-C relative to the SAD (-17.9%, 95% CI: -21.7%, -14.3%; P < 0.0001)" (study authors) [6]. A randomized, fully controlled crossover feeding trial with a statistically robust result; funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, though one author discloses unrelated dairy-industry consulting.

From(plant-based diet[tiab] OR vegan diet[tiab] OR vegans[tiab]) AND

Worth Knowing

Food & Recipes

  • Malk's new Whole Malk packs 12 grams of plant protein per serving, more than dairy whole milk's roughly 8 grams, and lands at Whole Foods, Target and Sprouts this month [70].
  • UmYum's dairy-free Camembert-style cheese, Monroe, is now stocked in more than 480 Sprouts stores nationwide [70].
  • Philadelphia gained two new Black-owned vegan restaurants: Cheezy Vegan's new Cafe & Comfort Food Lab and a second Vegans Are Us location [70].
  • A federal investigation opened after video showed a man kicking a fleeing sea lion at La Jolla Cove, a crime under the Marine Mammal Protection Act [67].

Research & Nutrition

  • Vegetarians had 13% lower total cancer risk, and vegans 23% lower, than non-vegetarians in a meta-analysis of prospective studies [11].
  • A vegan Mediterranean diet lowered LDL by 21.2 mg/dL and triglycerides by 27.4 mg/dL more than a traditional Mediterranean diet in a six-week trial of 22 women with fibromyalgia [3].
  • Serving "unmatched" menu names, like Falafel Burger next to Chicken Pie instead of Beef Burger, raised meat-eaters' plant-based picks from 21.2% to 30.4% [14].
  • Recreational runners and lifters showed no significant performance drop on a plant-based diet versus an omnivore diet in a four-university crossover trial [17].
  • A pulse-protein diet raised ferritin by 15.7 ng/mL, more than double a lean-pork diet's 7.0 ng/mL gain, in an eight-week trial of adults over 60 [5].

Activism & Animals

  • Within an hour of seeing a mirror for the first time, cleaner wrasse fish began testing whether the reflection was their own, and six of nine attempted to remove a mark within four hours [108].

Innovation

  • Wacker won EU approval to sell fermentation-derived, animal-free L-cysteine and L-cystine as palatability boosters in pet food [90].
  • Offbeast says its new process blends beef and plant protein into "whole cut" beef tips that 16 of 20 tasters called indistinguishable from conventional meat [79].
  • Italian adults who scored higher on openness and agreeableness were far more likely to eat plant-forward, though only 20% met the study's eco-sustainable diet threshold [96].

One Good Thing

Three decades ago, the Faaborg family raised 8,000 pigs a year on their Iowa farm. Now, with help from Mercy For Animals' Transfarmation Project, they grow specialty mushrooms in the same barns, one of seven US farms the program has helped leave factory farming behind since 2019. "What used to be a cesspool full of hog waste is now a freshwater pond where migratory birds stop by," said Transfarmation director Katherine Jernigan [69].

Vegan Curried Vegetable and Jackfruit Traybake

Recipe of the day · Vegan Food & Living

Vegan Curried Vegetable and Jackfruit Traybake

This easy vegan curried jackfruit traybake is packed with warm spices and topped with a cool minted yoghurt sauce for the ultimate midweek dinner.

45 min 4 servings 10 ingredients
See the ingredients
  • 500 g new potatoes (halved)
  • 2 peppers (chopped)
  • 1 tin (560g) jackfruit (drained and chopped)
  • 2 courgettes (chopped)
  • 1 aubergine (chopped)
  • 1 Tbsp curry powder
  • 2 Tbsp tomato purée
  • 1 Tbsp maple syrup
  • 120 ml soya yoghurt
  • 2 Tbsp mint sauce
Get the full recipe at Vegan Food & Living →
Today in vegan history Britain Licenses the Vivisector August 15, 1876 The world's first law on animal experiments gave campaigners licenses and anaesthesia instead of the ban they had been marching for. Read the day in vegan history →