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Published April 11, 2025, 2:51 p.m. ET142 Comments
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People seem to always have beef with vegans — and scientists say they’ve figured out why.
A new study published in the journal Food Quality and Preference found that your typical carnivore’s hatred of vegans might simply be due to envy.
Researchers from University of Vaasa in Finland wanted to understand why a plant-based diet and the use of meat substitutes are still so frowned upon in Europe.
“The consumption of meat and meat substitutes is a highly charged social phenomenon,” Roosa-Maaria Malila, an author of the study, said in a statement. “According to our research, consumers who prefer plant-based alternatives are perceived as socially different — and not in a good way.”
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The team asked 3,600 participants from Finland, the United Kingdom, Germany and Sweden to give their opinions of a fictional consumer, based on their grocery shopping habits.
Participants were shown three different shopping lists. All lists included the same five staple foods: pasta, bread, apple juice, carrots and bananas — but they varied based on the inclusion or exclusion of animal and plant-based protein products.
One list was for a meat eater, including items such as minced meat, cold cuts and sausages. The “flexible” list had a mix of meat and plant-based items, such as chicken rolls and vegetable sausages. The third list was heavy in meat substitutes, such as vegetable-based dumplings and vegetarian sausages.
The research found that the imaginary shoppers that preferred vegetarian foods were seen as environmentally friendly people who are competent, health-conscious and moral.
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However, participants also resented the faux fake meat eaters — bringing up feelings of fear, envy, contempt and anger.
“In our research, we found that people even wanted to act aggressively towards vegetarians or exclude them from social circles,” Malila shared.
The researchers explained that these mixed feelings reflect the “prevailing climate” of understanding the need to minimize meat consumption for environmental reasons.
“Understandably, changing one’s own consumption habits is not so simple. This can be reflected in frustration and channeled through those who are already driving change,” they wrote.
“Of course, the fear of giving up the benefits gained also causes similar feelings, even though a vegetarian diet need not really be a compromise, but the image around it may be perceived as such.”
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There’s a range of reasons why people choose not to reach for meat substitutes while grocery shopping, such as price or taste — but according to the study, the main reason seems to be a lack of social acceptability.
“Food is quite a strong part of our social identity. If and when vegetarian food evokes negative feelings, not many people want to risk being associated with it,” Malila explained.
“Belonging to a group is an evolutionary motive. We need acceptance from our fellow human beings.”
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