The vegetarian diet has been a popular diet choice for what feels like a long period of time now; however, over recent years we have seen the introduction of veganism which is becoming one of the most popular diet preferences chosen by people across the world.
For people who don’t want to consume meat, whether it’s for health or ethical reasons, the vegetarian diet has always been the go to. For many people though their diet choice isn’t based on not wanting to consume meat, but for a wider reason. The vegan diet removes any animal products from not just the foods you eat, but from the clothing you wear and products you use.
Plant-based diets are now on the rise with people wanting to reduce their carbon footprint and help the environment as a whole. The vegetarian diet is still a popular diet choice; however more and more awareness is surrounding veganism and the ethical reasons behind it.
Through detailed research carried out by OWYN, we are able to see how much attention both vegetarian and veganism have attracted in each US state, over the past 5 years. The research discovered shows not how many people are following each diet preference, but the amount of people searching the two terms online.
Vegetarianism: How popular has it become?
The vegetarian diet has been around for a longer period of time compared to veganism, but is it still a popular diet choice?
Looking at each state and how many people are searching the term “vegetarianism”, West Virginia is the clear winner with an increase of 200%. Other states still showing an interest in this popular diet choice are New Mexico (160%), Kansas (140%) and Nebraska (100%).
Although the states we’ve mentioned have all shown an increase in the number of searches, not all US states share the same interest. Montana is at the bottom of the scale with a decrease of -43%, as well as Rhode Island (-41%) and Iowa (-31%) showing a decrease in searches.
Veganism: How popular has it become?
It’s more than likely you’ve heard of veganism or plant-based diets, as it’s a preference which is increasing in popularity.
The state of Alabama seems to have a huge interest in veganism, with an increase of 500% for the search term. Other states at the top of the scale are South Dakota (333%), Oregon (329%) and Wyoming (269%).
Compared to vegetarianism, veganism has only one state where there has been a decrease in searches and that comes from North Dakota with -29%. Other states at the lower end of the scale are New Hampshire (21%), Missouri (87%) and West Virginia (91%).
Comparing the amount of searches for both vegetarianism and veganism by state shows how popular the vegetarian diet is and how popular the vegan diet is becoming.
It’s clear to see that veganism is winning the race in popularity and the attention it’s attracting. With these figures in mind, how popular do you think both preferences will be in 5 years from now?
Let us know your thoughts on social, using #VeggieVsVegan.