The beginning of a new year is a great time to set goals for the next 12 months, and it’s also a time to reflect on the past year. When it comes to food trends, 2016 offered a promising shift in health and sustainability initiatives.
Nation’s Restaurant News predicted 2016 to be the “year of the vegetable” with vegetables taking up more real estate on our plates. Foodservice Director reported flexitarian menus “are becoming firmly entrenched” in school food service, with “42 percent of school food services intending to offer more vegetarian options in the next two years, and 14 percent plan(ning) to put more vegan items on the menu within that time frame.”
The shift towards incorporating more plant-based foods can also be seen in other segments of the food industry. SeaWorld Parks announced in September its commitment to responsible food sourcing and increasing plant-based menu options in its parks across the country, serving the more than 23 million customers who visit SeaWorld parks each year. Even NASA is preparing for the plant-based revolution. In preparation for traveling to Mars, NASA contractors have reported that the astronauts who eventually make the journey will be fueling themselves with plant-based meals.
The animal agriculture industry is recognizing this opportunity, as well. In 2015, Meatingplace, a meat industry trade magazine, teamed up with Midan marketing to study “Protein and the Plate,” and found a demand for meatless protein options. The study revealed that 70 percent of people who eat meat substitute a non-meat protein in a meal at least once a week and 22 percent say they’re doing it more often than a year ago. In 2016, Meatingplace advised those in the meat industry to “redefine themselves as makers and distributors of protein products,” instead of only animal-derived, meat-based products. Companies are listening. Danone purchased WhiteWave Foods, a maker of plant-based milks, for a whopping $10.4 billion. Similarly, Tyson Foods Inc. recently made headlines for investing in Beyond Meat, maker of the meatless Beyond Burger. The increased demand for plant-based proteins will continue to be a top culinary and consumer focus for 2017, according to reporting from Mintel.
As a registered dietician, I’m grateful for this trend since eating more plant-based meals is proven to be better for our health. Increasing plant-based foods in our diets doesn’t need to take an all or nothing approach either. An easy way to do this is by practicing the three R’s: “reducing” or “replacing” consumption of animal products and “refining” our diets by choosing products from sources using higher animal welfare standards.
The American Heart Association recommends routinely choosing meals rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, legumes and whole grains, concluding that “a pro-vegetarian diet – one that has a higher proportion of plant-based foods compared to animal-based foods is linked to lower risks of dying from heart disease and stroke.”
The Journal of the American Medical Association released a comprehensive study in August finding that “substitution of plant protein for animal protein, especially that from processed red meat, was associated with lower mortality, suggesting the importance of protein source.” Choosing more plant-based foods is also recommended by the American Institute for Cancer Research, American Cancer Society and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
In addition to the numerous health benefits, eating plant-based even once a week is one of the most environmentally friendly actions we can take. Evidence suggests the current American diet leads to increased greenhouse gas emissions, land use, deforestation, water use and energy use. The United Nations has advised reducing our consumption of meat if we want to avoid continued global warming. In fact, a Carnegie Mellon study concluded that if each person ate meat-free one day a week, it would be equivalent to driving 1,000 miles less per year. Research from Oxford Martin School published in March found “transitioning toward more plant-based diets could reduce global mortality by 6–10 percent and food-related greenhouse gas emissions by 29–70 percent, with the economic benefits to be 1–31 trillion US dollars.”
As compassionate people who care about animal welfare, many of us are also concerned about the way in which animals are treated in industrial agriculture. Ninety-nine percent of animals raised for food come from factory farms, where animals often live their entire lives without stepping foot outside until their day of slaughter.
The good news is that more people than ever are making the choice to eat more plant-based foods. This year, we have a tremendous opportunity to improve our lives and the lives of many others by making the choice to eat more plant-strong meals.
Fuente: New Press
