One plate at a time
A new report from Aarhus BSS provides ten recommendations for consumers, politicians and the food sector on how we can eat more plant-based food.
Five short-term recommendations:
- Consumers have different needs. There is a wide variety of plant-based products, which include everything from vegetables to meat substitutes to legumes. Variety is also in line with official dietary guidelines.
- Legumes are often overlooked as they are neither a major source of revenue for supermarkets nor can they become a patented product for manufacturers. Nevertheless, legumes should be given more attention and marketed more than they are now, as they are an important and tasty part of a plant-based diet. One way to do this is to give legumes a more prominent position in supermarkets.
- Canteens in schools and workplaces could align with official dietary guidelines and serve meals with smaller meat portions to help consumers eat healthier and to reduce meat consumption. Supermarkets can also contribute by encouraging reduced meat consumption.
- Consumers need support to change their habits, and joint efforts through campaigns like Veganuary can help make the transition to a plant-based diet easier.
- Plant-based products should emphasise for taste rather than their role as a “meat substitute”, “vegetarian alternative” or a “vegan” product. Flavour should also meet consumer expectations.
Five long-term recommendations:
- Long-term partnerships between sectors can promote the use of legumes and create lasting behavioural change through shared knowledge exchange and coordination of goals. For example, teaching school children how to cook with legumes in cooking classes.
- It’s important to change the agricultural and food system so that plant-based products become available at competitive prices and become a common option for consumers.
- Avoid polarisation in terms of "green" versus "non-green". Consumers are different, but societal polarisation should be avoided as it inhibits the development and change of food habits. There is a need for open dialogue between stakeholders and society at large to create new products and solutions that appeal to different consumer groups.
- Improving cooking skills and food knowledge can create a long-lasting change in eating habits, such as learning to use legumes and leftovers and cooking from scratch.
- Consumers need to learn about the impact their dietary change could have on their environmental footprint and about the importance of acting now. This can motivate consumers to change their diets.
We all know it. We should eat healthier, eat more vegetables and eat less meat. But the road from thought to action can be long. What we choose to eat depends on our own perceptions of what we consider real food, what’s simple and what we like. We're also stuck in old habits, culture and social norms.
Changing behaviour is not easy. Nevertheless, a change in behaviour is necessary.
The agriculture and food sector are responsible for approximately one-third of greenhouse gases. Changing our eating habits to a more plant-based diet is estimated to be the most influential change consumers can make to reduce CO2 emissions. Plus, it's healthy.
About 60 per cent of Danes say they have actually changed or will change their meat intake.
Professor Jessica Aschemann-Witzel, Department of Management, Aarhus BSS
"About 60 per cent of Danes say they have actually changed or will change their meat intake," adds Jessica Aschemann-Witzel, professor at the Department of Management and director of the MAPP Centre.
Jessica Aschemann-Witzel headed the PlantPro project, which has a catalogue of recommendations for what it will take to get the general Danish population to switch to more plant-based eating habits.
"If we each take small steps and change one meal at a time, for example by eating a little less meat or choosing more plant-rich options a few times a week, it’ll make a big difference to our overall emissions and can be a way forward," says Jessica Aschemann-Witzel.
The path to greener food choices
The results of the PlantPro project have just been published in the report Saving the world, one plate at a time? Accelerating a green consumer behaviour transition in the food market, which includes recommendations for policy makers, retailers and individual consumers.
The recommendations are based on a number of studies that have looked at the best places to display legumes in stores to increase sales, what it takes for people to choose vegetarian food in canteens, and whether competition can lead to lasting changes in the eating habits of Danish families. The researchers have taken a detailed look at every level, from the manufacturer to the retail sector, from institutions to the dining tables of Danish consumers.
Joint efforts for sustainability
The findings and recommendations are highly relevant given the stagnation in Danes' consumption of plant-based food in recent years. It's worth mentioning that among young males, less reported eating a meal without meat 2024 than in 2021 and consumers in general are less focused on the environment when grocery shopping. However, more consumers say they look for meals with legumes when they want to eat a meal without meat.
Bigger and broader efforts are essential. Eating greener requires more targeted marketing by retailers in combination with political action. By doing so, we can become more climate-friendly and serve as a role model for other countries.
Facts
We strive to comply with Universities Denmark’s principles for good research communication. For this reason, we provide the following information as a supplement to this article:
| Type of study: | Case studies, expert interviews, repeated representative surveys, experimental online surveys, lab experiments and real-life experiments (households, canteens and supermarkets) |
| External partners: | The project is a collaboration between the MAPP Centre at the Department of Management at Aarhus University, Department of Food Science at University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen Business School, Plantebranchen, Dansk Vegetarisk Forening, Thinktank OneThird, Simple Feast, Beyond Coffee / MicroGreens, Circular Food Technology / Agrain, Møllerup Brands / Dava Foods, Food Innovation House, Orkla, Naturli, Planteslagterne / Perfect Season, Upfield, Eachthing / Data Context, Rema1000, Fair Trees, and Nemlig.com. |
| External funding: | Innovation Fund Denmark (grant no. 0224-00044B) |
| Conflict of interests: | No partners other than the university employees (Aarhus University, University of Copenhagen and Copenhagen Business School) were involved in drawing conclusions and writing the report. |
| Other: | No |
| Link to scientific article: | |
| Contact information: | Jessica Ashemann-Witzel |