46% of Europeans say they have reduced their meat intake, according to a survey lead by ProVeg International. The study asked over 7,500 people in ten European countries (Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Spain, and the UK) about their attitudes towards plant-based foods and their current food consumption patterns.

This study, published by the Wellcome Trust-funded Livestock, Environment and People (LEAP) programme at Oxford, finds that average meat consumption per person in the UK has fallen from 103.7 g per day in 2008 to 86.3 g per day in 2019 (a 17% decrease). This encompasses a decrease in red meat consumption (13.7 g/day), a decrease in processed meat consumption (7.0 g/day) and an increase in white meat consumption (3.2 g/day).

This paper finds that consumption of ultra-processed foods - as defined by the NOVA food classification system - has risen from 53.5% to 57.0% of calorie intake among adults in the United States, over the time period 2001 to 2018. Consumption of minimally processed foods has fallen from 32.7% to 27.4% of caloric intake over the same period. It also assesses these trends by social factors including age, sex, ethnicity, education and income.

This book - which has been revised and updated since its first publication in 2016 - explores how large firms exert control over the food system, how initiatives such as microbreweries and seed saving networks are opposing these power dynamics, and how Big Data and automation might shape the food system.

This paper, co-authored by TABLE’s Ken Giller, looks at trends in farming systems and land ownership to explore who the farmers of the future might be, with a focus on the future of smallholder farming. 

This report from UK NGO Eating Better finds that 80% of UK public sector caterers surveyed  - including schools, healthcare and universities - have committed to reducing meat content in their menus, with 83% increasing the amount of beans and pulses they offer. 60% have been using more meat replacement products, 60% said they were using less pork and processed meat, and 56% said they were reducing or removing meat-based dishes from the menu cycle. Over 20% of caterers say they are using more chicken in their dishes. The changes are attributed primarily to concerns about climate, health, nature and animal welfare. 

This paper, co-authored by Table member Sofie Errendal, uses a survey of people from Loma Linda, California and Copenhagen, Denmark to investigate why people follow plant-based diets, with the aim of informing the strategy of future initiatives to promote sustainable healthy diets.  

In this paper, FCRN member Gesa Biermann uses a survey of German consumers to explore the different meanings and expectations attached to eating at home and eating in restaurants. The study shows that meat-eating is more common in restaurants than at home, for example 59% of flexitarian respondents ate more meat at a restaurant than at home. This is attributed to perceptions of eating meat in restaurants being an opportunity to treat oneself and celebrate special occasions. The paper suggests that to encourage plant-based eating in restaurants, the meaning of plant-based foods must become more aligned with notions of “the good life” (for example, relating to ideas about hospitality, generosity and pleasure).

According to this report by UK NGO Eating Better, the proportion of UK supermarket ready meals that is plant-based has increased significantly, from 3% in 2018 to 16% in March 2020, with another 9% being vegetarian but not wholly plant-based. Morrisons, Asda and Aldi doubled the size of their meat free range in the last two years.