Meat, Meat Eating and Vegetarianism - Reasons for reduced meat-eating

Reasons for reduced meat-eating

The images that have just been described are the traditional symbols associated with meat and meat-eating. They are important because they form part of the foundation from which modern attitudes have developed. This section takes those images a step further and looks at some of the present day attitudes to meat-eating and provides some of the reasons for reduced meat-eating.

1960s and 70s

In the 1960s and 70s vegetarianism was commonly associated with separatist cult movements. Many vegetarians lived in communes and there was strong emphasis on meditation and spiritual well-being. According to Sims (1978), at that time vegetarianism in the United States of America was strongly oriented towards ethics, but Dwyer et al (1974) reported that health concerns were in fact a more common reason for being vegetarian (Table 4). Within the health reasons it was thought that foregoing meat led to positive improvement in outlook and intellectual function, such as a calmer outlook, less grogginess and fresher clearer approaches to mental tasks. Few subjects stopped eating meat because they thought it was actually hazardous to their physical health. They were aware of, and mentioned, issues such as hormones, chemical residues, saturated fat and bacterial contamination of meat, but they were not the primary health concern.

Table 4 - Why are you Vegetarian? Answers given by 100 American vegetarians in 1971/72

Reason	%
Health	35
Ethical	25
Metaphysical	14
Ecology and oneness with nature	8
Food preferences	8
Economics	3
Religious	2
Political beliefs	2
Curiosity	1
Miscellaneous	2
	Total 100

(Dwyer et al, 1974)

Those who gave an ethical reason for being vegetarian felt that being vegetarian helped to express their philosophy of non-violence or non-injury to animals. Others believed that the dignity of life and respect for animals should lead humans to eat non-animal foods.

Metaphysical reasons revolved around the belief that consumption of a vegetarian diet was a means of achieving a more appropriate balance with oneself. This outlook was more common amongst vegetarians living in communes than in vegetarians not affiliated with a group, and, the group-affiliated vegetarians were particularly concerned about the environment and the wastefulness of eating meat, but not about over-population.

Political beliefs centred around using diet as a means of protest against meat processing, agribusiness and factory farming.

1980s and 90s

Anti-meat attitudes during the 1980s and 90s evolved from those of the 1960s and 70s. The main changes have been the explosive increase in the number of reduced meat-eaters in Westernised societies, the move away from meditation and metaphysical concerns and towards ethics, animal welfare, health, body image and the increasing reliance on easy to prepare foods. As the demand for reduced meat-eating increased during the late 1980s vegetarianism and meatless foods became commercialised. For example, by 1991, 90% of the pubs in the United Kingdom catered for vegetarians. The market opportunities have been big as can be seen from the following abridged list of items that were available in a United Kingdom supermarket in 1996, and were labelled as "suitable for vegetarians".

Agnolotti with mushrooms.
Bean burgers.
Broccoli and garlic potatobakes.
Broccoli mornay.
Broccoli in tomato and cream sauce.
Cauliflower cheese.
Cheese and broccoli quiche.
Cheese and onion rolls (in pastry).
Cheese ravioli.
Cheese and tomato pizza.
Country vegetable flan.
Creamy potato gratin.
Falafel mildly spiced chick pea cutlet.
Fresh vegetable pizza.
Garlic dressed spaghetti.
Gobi aloo saag.
Indian selection: onion bhajis, vegetable pakora, vegetable samosa.
Italian style aubergine parmigiana.
Leek and mushroom bake.
Leek and mushroom crispbakes.
Margherita cheese and tomato pizza.
Medaglioni with cheese and herbs.
Nut cutlets.
Olive oil dressed gemelli.
Onion bhajia.
Paglia e fieno.
Pappardelle with sundried tomatoes and herbs.
Pasta reale duetto cappelletti cheese and sundried tomatoes.
Quorn tikka masala with rice.
Ricotta and spinach cannelloni.
Tagliatelle with garlic and herbs.
Tofu soya bean curd.
Tomato and cheese pizza.
Tortelloni with garlic and herbs.
Vegetable chilli con carne with rice.
Vegetable crispbakes.
Vegetable curry.
Vegetable Indian meal.
Vegetable lasagne.
Vegetable pasta bake.
Vegetable paté with herbs.
Vegetable pizza.
Vegetable quiche.
Vegetable samosa.
Vegetarian sausages.
Vegetable spring rolls.

These products were attractively presented with pictures of the cooked product on the packaging. They were easy and quick to prepare and they appealed to people who wanted something that was ready-to-cook, light and tasty to eat.

The reasons for reduced meat-eating during the 1980s and 90s are summarised in Table 5, and they are described in more detail in later sections. Although vegetarianism began to lose its links with spiritual and metaphysical outlooks during the 1980s, it has been suggested that for some vegetarians it was an alternative to joining an orthodox church or religion. The church was not satisfying everyones spiritual needs, and, according to John Gummer the United Kingdom Minister of Agriculture during the early 1990s, food was becoming a "religion substitute" which enabled some people to make themselves feel more moral by the diet they chose. This probably explains the growing focus on animal welfare. Few people had direct experience or exposure to farming or slaughtering methods. They had perceptions of what they were like, and they reacted by taking a moral stance through the foods they chose not to eat rather than advocating practical changes in the way animals were reared and killed. The move away from the metaphysical and towards concerns about animal welfare may not be permanent, and no doubt the emphasis could veer-off in another direction in the future.

Table 5 - Summary of the reasons for reduced meat consumption during the 1980s and 90s

Animal Welfare	Moral reasons associated with the view that modern animal production is ethically unacceptable. By reducing consumption of specific or all meats, or by eating trusted welfare-friendly products only, the individual is divorcing him/herself from those production systems. It is usually a personal expression of rejection rather than a way of trying to change farming systems or society.
Environment	Moral concern that certain features of animal production harm the environment and have undesirable ecological consequences. The individual's conscience is quelled by abstaining from a particular meat or from all meat, and this has an element of long-term self-interest.
Health	Concern about ones own health. This has three features; firstly, avoiding the consumption of products which are normal ingredients in meat but are viewed as harmful (such as cholesterol and saturated fats). Secondly, avoiding the consumption of unnatural ingredients which could be hazardous (such as hormones, antibiotics, coccidiostats, pathogens). The third perception is cutting out meat with a view to avoiding specific health problems where the causal agent may not be clearly understood (cancer, hypertension). The decision to reduce meat consumption for health reasons is made out of self-interest or concern for the health of the family.
Social priorities	Some people reduce their meat consumption to conform or adapt to the lifestyle or standards of friends, relations or other influential people. One's own body image is an important example.
Displeasure with meat	This takes several forms. Total abstention from meat can be due to revulsion at the sight of meat and in particular any associated blood or blood-like drip. Some people find the sticky texture of meat abhorrent, whilst others dislike the taste and elastic mouth-feel of meat when they eat it.
Metaphysical	The individual abstains from certain meats for spiritual, religious, doctrinal or ethnic reasons. Eating meat is believed to impart negative effects, for example it arouses animal instincts in humans including greater aggression.
Expense	Poorer communities and households abstain from certain meats because of their cost.
Inconvenience or inappropriate presentation	Some meats may not be presented in a way which fits into "light", informal meals. Some meats may be avoided because they are presented in a form which is inappropriate for the take-away trade or are difficult to cook quickly at home.

Semivegetarianism and reduced meat eating

The full vegetarian is a morally motivated individual who sees the health gains of being vegetarian as a bonus. There is a sense that the health gains are a symbolic reward for moral rectitude. Modern semivegetarianism is a diluted form of vegetarianism. The semivegetarian is also morally charged. In fact the primary concern amongst Australian semivegetarian women with eating meat is animal cruelty (Table 6). The negative sensory features of meat are an important additional deterrent, and, about one third of teenage semivegetarian and vegetarian women were reduced meat eaters principally because they thought that meat was fattening.

Table 6 - Main concerns about eating meat amongst Australian adolescent women who were either vegetarian or non-vegetarian

	Proportion of the Subjects (%)
	Full and semivegetarian	Non-vegetarian
Animal cruelty	61	37
Sensory (bloody, smell etc)	44	5
Redmeat is fattening	30	13
Meat is harmful to the environment	25	13
Meat eating is unhealthy	19	3

(Worsley and Skrzypiec, 1996a)

It might be thought that the present trend toward reduced meat-eating reflects a desire to live a long and healthy life. However, the evidence suggests that only 19% of full and semivegetarian adolescent women viewed meat-eating as unhealthy, and this outlook existed in only 3% of non-vegetarians.

It is well recognised that semivegetarianism is strongest amongst females (Table 7). In a survey which compared the sexes according to marital status it was found that twice as many married females were semivegetarian compared with males and three times as many single females were semivegetarian. Amongst the males, vegetarianism tended to be more common than semivegetarianism in single men, whereas semivegetarianism was preferred to vegetarianism amongst single females.

Table 7 - Self classified eating habits in British adults according to sex and marital status

	% of People
	Meat Eaters	Semivegetarian	Vegetarian
Male married	35	22	17
Male single	13	9	22
Female married	40	40	48
Female single	12	29	13
Total	100	100	100

(Richardson et al, 1993)

As vegetarian foods are being more commercialised, they are becoming more attractive and popular in their own right. In 1990, a survey of 11 to 15 year olds in the United Kingdom that was sponsored by Barclays Bank showed that in 14% of the sample the favourite food was vegetarian. It is difficult to say whether this will grow. It may be that adolescent semivegetarianism or full vegetarianism is a phase which individuals grow through and that the recent swing towards reduced meat-eating will stabilise. In some individuals, however, it may persist into adulthood and their offspring will be brought-up as reduced meat eaters. Undoubtedly, there is a familial basis to vegetarianism. For example in a study on one hundred Americans who had vegetarian leanings, it was shown that 63% claimed that they would raise, or were already raising, their children on the same vegetarian regime (Dwyer et al, 1974).

Although vegetarian eating should theoretically be cheaper than non-vegetarian eating, because it cuts out one of the most expensive items in a meal, vegetarian substitute foods are relatively expensive. For example, the cost of vegetarian frozen mince in a United Kingdom supermarket in September 1996 was twice the price for frozen minced beef. Similarly, vegetarian Lincolnshire sausages were 1.82 times the price. Vegetarian cheese on the other hand was either 15% cheaper or 25% dearer, depending on cheese type.

Contact for Enquiries

Rural Affairs Coordinator
Sector Performance Policy
MAF Policy
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry
PO Box 2526
Wellington
NEW ZEALAND

Phone: +64 4 894 0675
Fax: +64 4 4 894 0745
Contact this person