Reducing meat consumption in the USA: a nationally representative survey of attitudes and behaviours - PubMed (original) (raw)
Reducing meat consumption in the USA: a nationally representative survey of attitudes and behaviours
Roni A Neff et al. Public Health Nutr. 2018 Jul.
Abstract
Objective: Excess meat consumption, particularly of red and processed meats, is associated with nutritional and environmental health harms. While only a small portion of the population is vegetarian, surveys suggest many Americans may be reducing their meat consumption. To inform education campaigns, more information is needed about attitudes, perceptions, behaviours and foods eaten in meatless meals.
Design: A web-based survey administered in April 2015 assessed meat reduction behaviours, attitudes, what respondents ate in meatless meals and sociodemographic characteristics.
Setting: Nationally representative, web-based survey in the USA.
Subjects: US adults (n 1112) selected from GfK Knowledgeworks' 50 000-member online panel. Survey weights were used to assure representativeness.
Results: Two-thirds reported reducing meat consumption in at least one category over three years, with reductions of red and processed meat most frequent. The most common reasons for reduction were cost and health; environment and animal welfare lagged. Non-meat reducers commonly agreed with statements suggesting that meat was healthy and 'belonged' in the diet. Vegetables were most often consumed 'always' in meatless meals, but cheese/dairy was also common. Reported meat reduction was most common among those aged 45-59 years and among those with lower incomes.
Conclusions: The public and environmental health benefits of reducing meat consumption create a need for campaigns to raise awareness and contribute to motivation for change. These findings provide rich information to guide intervention development, both for the USA and other high-income countries that consume meat in high quantities.
Keywords: Dietary attitudes; Dietary behaviours; Meat consumption; Meat reduction.
Figures
Fig. 1
Reasons for meat reduction by income (
, <$US 40 000; 
, ≥$US 40 000; 
, overall) in a nationally representative adult sample: USA, 2015. Figure depicts the stratified results for percentage indicating each item was a reason for meat reduction, by income. P values reflect χ2 for cross-tabulation: *P<0·05, **P<0·01, ***P<0·001
Fig. 2
Non-meat reducers’ agreement with statements reflecting possible reasons for non-reduction by gender (, female; , male; , total) in a nationally representative adult sample: USA, 2015. Figure depicts stratified results for percentage who ‘agree’ plus ‘strongly agree’ by gender. P values reflect cross-tabulation comparison across all response options: *P<0·05, **P<0·01, ***P<0·001
Fig. 3
Reported frequency of foods eaten in non-meat meals, for (a) non-meat reducers and (b) meat reducers (
, often; , always), in a nationally representative adult sample: USA, 2015. Figure depicts stratified percentage of ‘often’ and ‘always’ responses to the question ‘For meals without meat, how often do you eat _____’, by meat reduction behaviour
Fig. 4
Approaches to reducing meat consumption (, <$US 40 000; , ≥$US 40 000) in a nationally representative adult sample: USA, 2015. Figure depicts the stratified results for percentage indicating each item was an approach to reducing meat reduction, by income
References
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2015) FAOSTAT data, Food Balance Sheets. http://www.fao.org/faostat/en/#data (accessed September 2017).
- US Department of Health and Human Services & US Department of Agriculture (2015) 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 8th ed. Washington, DC: DHHS and USDA; available at http://www.cnpp.usda.gov/2015-2020-dietary-guidelines-americans
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