The number of Canadians eating meatless meals is rising, independent of the growth of vegetarianism. Should we be happy or disappointed?
Surfing the Internet can lead to discoveries of all sorts of new ideas. Last week I was scanning the Agriculture and Agri-food Canada (a branch of the federal government) website. I was looking for information not related to vegetarianism – but found some by accident.
It was one covert little paragraph in the “Canadian Food Trends to 2020” summary document listing the top 10 food and health trends to the year 2020.
“True vegetarians may not grow dramatically, but consumption of meatless meals will continue to increase.”
I ran a poll asking you – the reader – whether you are vegetarian or not. Almost 60% of you said you are vegetarian or vegan. But almost 20% consider themselves “pescatarian” (eat fish but no other meat), and an additional 22% are not vegetarian, but cook meatless meals for sometimes or for loved ones. Together, pescatarians and non-vegetarians make up more than a third of my readers!
I was surprised - but delighted - by these numbers. Of course I'd like to see and meet more vegetarians. I believe that becoming vegetarian is a positive move. But I also recognize what a huge achievement it is to know that Canadians are becoming mroe receptive to new food ideas, especially ones that do not revolve around meat.
We all know those "meat and potatoes" types, so I think baby steps are much better than no steps at all.
The bottom line is that not everyone can become vegetarian overnight, but those who make an effort to include more meatless meals are doing wonders for the environment, their health and their palates. So hello all you adventurous non-vegetarians! Welcome, and give yourselves a pat on the back.
