More than 800,000 people cut back on eating animal products for at least a month last year, contributing to a steep fall in sales of red meat, research shows.

Those moving towards a vegan diet for the first time consumed 3.6 million fewer animals in the first six months of 2019 in the United Kingdom, according to analysis by the charity Veganuary of research it commissioned from the consultancy Kantar.

Sales of red meat fell more by value than any other category in supermarkets last year, down by £185 million, according to separate research by Nielsen. Beef sales declined by 4 per cent and pork by 6.4 per cent. By contrast, sales of meat-free alternatives rose by 18 per cent to £405 million, the highest