Thanksgiving is Thursday, Nov. 28, and a new study shows that a considerable portion of the US population would at least give some thought to eating bird-free on the holiday.
A new study from market research firm Dynata of more than 1,000 Americans across a variety of age groups found that 28.6 percent of them would consider having a meat-free Thanksgiving, while 13.9 percent were unsure and 57.5 percent said no. That’s 42.5 percent that would at least give it some thought.
The study found that younger Americans are the most likely to consider a meat-free Thanksgiving and the least likely to rule it out.
- Americans ages 25 to 34 are the most likely to consider a meat-free Thanksgiving (45%), and least likely to rule it out (39.7%). Directly behind them are Americans ages 18 to 24 — 43% of which are willing to consider a meat-free Thanksgiving and only 39.9% of which would rule it out.
Americans’ willingness to consider a meat-free Thanksgiving declines with age.
- While 29% of Americans ages 35 to 44 would consider a meat-free Thanksgiving, not even 17% of Americans ages 55 to 64 would consider going without turkey on Turkey Day. These number decrease even further among Americans over the age of 65 — only 14.4% of whom would consider a meat-free Thanksgiving.
Personal health is the most influential factor in Americans’ decision to consider eating more meat-free meals.
- Nearly 60% of Americans claimed that personal health was most likely to influence their decision. Other options included animal welfare (13.7%), weight loss (13.7%), the environment (12.2%) and “other” (3.5%). Personal health becomes even more influential with age.
This research is based on responses from 1,050 adult respondents across six age groups and across all 50 states. The research report was conducted on behalf of plant-based meat company Meatless Farm.
