Selling vegan? Don't talk about the climate – this factor is more important

The study, conducted by Toronto-based consultancy GlobeScan, surveyed over 30,000 people across 31 markets. It found that concerns over the carbon footprint of eating meat had declined significantly as a motivating factor relative to other factors compared to five years ago, with health concerns now the biggest factor by far.

Just 14 percent of people surveyed listed environmental concerns as the reason people chose to reduce their meat consumption, below the treatment of animals and financial considerations, which represented 15 percent and 17 percent, respectively. Way out in front was health considerations, which were the driving factor for 41 percent of the survey’s respondents.

The survey’s results echo those of similar studies released early this year. Anecdotally, it’s also hard not to see a link between such surveys and the purported ‘vegan’ backlash observed over previous years - particularly in the US - where myriad reports have emerged of people turning away from plant-based foods after a boom period during Covid.

So what can impact companies – particularly those producing plant-based meat alternatives – take from such results?