Projects in Eastern and Southern Africa are using ProVeg grant funding to improve meals and shift mindsets
Part 1 of a three-part series on grantees supported by the ProVeg Grants program
Across the world, small organizations are finding practical ways to shift eating habits in their communities. Some focus on public education, others work through schools or policy, and in many cases, change starts with a single plate of food.
This article is the first in a three-part series exploring the work of organizations supported by the ProVeg Grants program. Since 2019, the program has awarded more than 900 grants across over 90 countries, funding projects that reduce the consumption of animal-based products and promote sustainable food systems.
The examples below focus on three African initiatives, in Uganda, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe. Two work directly with schools to increase access to plant-based meals and reshape food education. The third helps people across Africa discover affordable, culturally grounded ways to eat more plant-based meals, wherever they cook.
Uganda Vegan Society: scaling up the Vegan Lunch Campaign
The Uganda Vegan Society is helping schools adopt plant-based meals by combining food provision with community education. Its Vegan Lunch Campaign focuses on serving balanced, affordable meals to pupils while encouraging conscious food choices linked to broader environmental and ethical concerns.
Support from the ProVeg Grants program has enabled the team to expand their reach and access expert guidance. By addressing both nutrition and awareness, they are creating a replicable model that aligns with the values of younger generations and responds to practical school needs.
AWENET (Tanzania): From meatless days to mass outreach
The Animal Welfare and Environment Network for Tanzania (AWENET) runs school-based campaigns that highlight the environmental and health benefits of plant-based eating. They have helped schools implement Meatless Mondays and Fridays, and have introduced targeted messaging for pupils and teachers.
AWENET’s Vegan School Lunches Outreach Program aims to reach 12,000 students this year, and involves catering staff and community stakeholders. ProVeg’s support has helped scale this outreach and bring structure to the program, which now combines meal changes with sustained education efforts at schools.
African Vegan on a Budget: Chef Cola’s continent-wide vision
Zimbabwean chef and educator Nicola Kagoro, also known as Chef Cola, uses her culinary background to promote practical, affordable plant-based living. Her African Vegan on a Budget program offers workshops and digital content that teach people to cook with local ingredients and rethink traditional meals through a plant-based lens.
With ProVeg support, the program has extended beyond Zimbabwe and now reaches audiences across the continent. Chef Cola challenges the idea that plant-based eating is costly or ‘foreign’ to African culture. Her work makes plant-based eating culturally familiar and financially realistic for a wide range of households and institutions.
Shifting school food from the ground up
Each of these organizations is increasing access to plant-based food in contexts where affordability, tradition, and nutrition all play a central role. Whether through direct work with schools or broader public education, they are supporting practical shifts in how food is prepared, understood, and shared. The ProVeg Grants program helps make this possible by supporting local leaders who are driving scalable change in their communities.
Support the movement
These groundbreaking initiatives in Africa started with a single grant – this is the power and impact of the ProVeg Grants program. We find and fund the most effective and high-impact initiatives around the world that are reshaping food systems.
Every contribution you make goes directly towards funding initiatives like this and empowering global changemakers. You can help transform the most promising projects and ideas into tangible progress anywhere in the world. Your support is the key that makes this happen.
Simon Middleton
Senior Writer
