this post was submitted on 24 Dec 2025
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I wonder partially how much of that is cost induced vs environmentally conscious. My wife and I are mostly vegetarian and it was price motivated. It's just cheaper.
I think one has to do a fair amount of cooking for a plant-based diet to be cheaper, given how heavily subsidized by taxpayer dollars animal products are. Plant-based fast food and prepared foods aren't cheaper than their omnivore comparators. Idk how much 'Gen Z' cook at home, but I'd guess home-cooking is trending downward across generations. I think we'll hit widespread affordability-related change in people's meal consumption habits and diet eventually, but we're not there yet
Although the article talks specifically about Americans, I wouldn't be surprised if the figures for Western Europe show even more vegans. Home cooking is the standard, meat isn't subsidized and eating less or no meat at all can save double digit percentages on your grocery bill. I'm barely eating meat myself because of the price. I only use it when it adds a lot to a dish or to get the vitamins only found in animal products.
On the other hand, meal prepping with vegetables is way easier, stuff does spoil slower and is more forgiven for uneven cooking when you cook jn bigger batches. And many vegan meal prel recipes are "cook rice, throw all the stuff into the pan, success"