21 Percent of Americans Plan to Ditch Meat This Year, Study Shows

Twenty-one percent of Americans plan to replace all animal-based meat with vegan options within the next year, according to data from consumer insight company Numerator’s InfoScout OmniPanel, which tracks more than 450,000 Americans. This number doesn’t include the 11 percent who reported they already don’t eat animals. Overall, 80 percent of American shoppers intend to replace some or all meat, with 36 percent saying they will replace a “small portion” and 23 percent saying they will replace a significant portion. These rates are slightly higher than last year, when Numerator found that half of meat-eaters ate more plant-based meat alternatives and nearly 40 percent ate less animal meat. Of those who have tried vegan alternatives, 62 percent say they were very or extremely satisfied, 83 percent say they would recommend them to someone else, and 81 percent say they would try other types of plant-based meat, according to Numerator. The market insight company also found that consumers are reaching for more plant-based dairy alternatives than previous years, with 47 percent of shoppers consuming more dairy alternatives compared to last year.