Early Attempts to Stop Eating Meat: Prevalence, Predictors and Outcomes Among UK Youth

Authors

  • Luke McGuire Orcid
    Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
  • Fatma Sabet Orcid
    Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
  • Luciana Torquati Orcid
    Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
  • Natalia Lawrence Orcid
    Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom

Abstract

Efforts to reduce meat consumption amongst adults have had mixed success. Recent research has pointed to children as one group who may have more morally inclusive attitudes towards non-human animals, yet less is known regarding their efforts to abstain from meat consumption. Using a retrospective survey with a sample of emerging adults in the UK (pre-screen study n = 1063, M age = 22.5, main study n = 461, M Age = 22.2), this study documents that approximately half of participants reported having thought about stopping eating meat while they were growing up (i.e., before they finished secondary school). In turn, half of these participants did stop for a period ranging from days to permanent abstinence. Parental support was a strong predictor of being able to stop eating meat. Most participants started eating meat again, largely for reasons of taste and convenience. Together these findings point to youth as a leveraging point for greater uptake of plant-based food options, although current pragmatic and structural barriers limit youth efforts to do so.