How Many People Order Vegetarian Meals When Eating
Out?
To gauge the demand for meatless meals in restaurants, The Vegetarian Resource Group conducted a poll to find out how often customers were ordering vegetarian. We were surprised by the results.
Though our previous polls indicate about one percent of the country is vegetarian (no meat, fish, or fowl), about five times as many people say that when eating out, they always order a dish without meat, fish or fowl (5.5%). And over half of the population (57%) sometimes, often, or always orders a vegetarian item. (See total of 1, 2, and 3 in poll results table.)
These statistics certainly give restaurant owners and foodservice managers something to think about. There is an exploding demand for meatless meals.
However, to make life complicated, 39% say they never order a dish without meat, fish, or fowl. Almost the same amount of Americans have sometimes ordered a vegetarian meal.
This means there are many tastes to which foodservice staff must cater. It's not as easy as offering one item for everybody. But if a vegetarian item tastes good, about half the population will eat it. So food companies and restaurants should keep working on those veggie entrees.
Poll Results
When you eat out, do you...
| Total | Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Sometimes order a dish without meat, fish, or fowl | 40.8% | 37% | 45% |
| 2. Often order a dish without meat, fish, or fowl | 11.7% | 10% | 14% |
| 3. Always order a dish without meat, fish, or fowl | 5.5% | 5% | 6% |
| 4. Never order a dish without meat, fish or fowl | 38.9% | 45% | 33% |
The poll of 1,181 adults nationwide was conducted in March 1999 by Zogby International. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3.12%. Error margins are higher for subgroups.
When you eat out, do you Always order a dish without
meat, fish or fowl?
| Total | 5.5% | Eastern United States | 8.0% | |
| Full time student | 4.6% | South | 3.9% | |
| Income below $15,000 | 8.0% | Central/Great Lakes | 5.9% | |
| Income over $75,000 | 4.4% | West | 4.3% | |
| White | 5.5% | 18-29 years of ag | 11.7% | |
| Afro-American | 4.5% | 30-49 years of age | 5.2% | |
| Asian | 26.4% |
VRG Aids New York State Office for the Aging
The VRG recently provided the New York State Office for the Aging with 750 copies of our publication, Meatless Menu Alternatives for Your Senior Clients. The publication was used as a handout to accompany a teleconference on Nutrition Research and the Elderly. During this teleconference, information on healthy menu planning including meatless menu alternatives was presented, and one of the menus in the VRG publication was highlighted.
The teleconference was broadcast throughout New York State in two parts
and aired this past May 12 and June 3. The intended audience was individuals
involved in the Elderly Nutrition Program, including agency on aging directors,
nutrition coordinators and nutritionists, advisory council members, nutrition
providers, site managers, local legislators, and others who have a role
in setting program direction.
Excerpts from the Sept/Oct Issue
The Vegetarian Journal published here is not the complete issue, but these are excerpts from the published magazine. Anyone wanting to see everything should subscribe to the magazine.
This article was converted to HTML by Jeanie Freeman
|
||||
| Last Updated August 30, 2000 |
Graphic design by |  |
||
| The contents of this web site, as with all The Vegetarian Resource Group publications, is not intended to provide personal medical advice. Medical advice should be obtained from a qualified health professional. Any pages on this site may be reproduced for non-commercial use if left intact and with credit given to The Vegetarian Resource Group. Web site questions or comments? Please email vrg@vrg.org. |
||||
