The Vegetarian Society has welcomed Richard McIlwain as its chief executive.
McIlwain joins from the environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy, where he spent 11 years, including the past six as deputy chief executive.
He succeeds Lynne Elliot, who stepped down after eight years earlier this month to take a break before confirming a new role.
Before joining Keep Britain Tidy, McIlwain spent almost 13 years in various roles at the Environment Agency.
He said: “As someone who gave up eating meat around 30 years ago, I’m already invested in the charity’s work, but there is so much more to achieve.
“Despite the growing interest in plant-based eating over the past five years, vegetarians and vegans are still in a minority, and there remains a huge amount of work to do.
“We are already the go-to charity for information for all things vegetarian, but over the next decade I want us to play a more active role in shaping a country in which plant-based eating becomes the new normal.”