Study finds social environment plays key role in helping people cut meat consumption

People trying to reduce their meat consumption were more successful when they lived with others who also avoided meat, according to new research from Brighton and Sussex Medical School (BSMS) and Meat Free Monday that highlighted the importance of social environments alongside individual motivation.

• Researchers found that living in a household without regular meat-eaters was associated with achieving more meat-free days overall.
• Longer engagement with the Meat Free Monday campaign and perceiving fewer barriers to eating less meat were among the strongest predictors of success.
• The study also found that around 10% of participants had a mismatch between their dietary identity and their eating behavior.

The study, published in the journal Appetite, examined the experiences of people taking part in the Meat Free Monday campaign over a one-month period to better understand what helped participants successfully reduce their meat intake.

Researchers led by Professor Richard de Visser, Professor of Health Psychology in the Department of Primary Care and Public Health at BSMS, found that dietary change was shaped by a combination of personal beliefs, identity, campaign engagement and the people participants lived with.

The prospective study included 594 participants at the outset, with 334 completing the one-month follow-up. Researchers excluded people who were already vegetarian or vegan, instead focusing on individuals actively trying to reduce their meat consumption.

Rather than identifying a single factor behind successful behavior change, the researchers found four characteristics consistently predicted both more meat-free Mondays and a greater number of meat-free days overall. Participants were more successful if they identified with a less meat-oriented dietary identity, perceived fewer barriers to eating meat-free meals, expected reducing meat consumption to be less difficult, and had engaged with Meat Free Monday for longer.

The study also found that participants who viewed the support provided by Meat Free Monday more positively were more likely to complete meat-free Mondays, while those living in households without meat-eaters recorded more meat-free days across the week.

Professor de Visser said: "Eating habits do not develop in isolation. Our findings show that the people around us can have an important influence on our ability to make dietary changes. This suggests there is real value in creating supportive communities that make it easier for people to adopt and maintain healthier and more sustainable diets."

The findings build on earlier collaborative research between BSMS and Meat Free Monday, which had already shown that participants achieved greater reductions in meat consumption when they remained involved with the campaign for longer and made greater use of its online resources.

The latest work expanded that understanding by examining both individual and social influences on dietary change. While many public health initiatives encourage people to make healthier choices through education and personal motivation, the researchers suggested those approaches may overlook the role of everyday social interactions.

The paper drew on established models of health behavior, including the Health Belief Model, the COM-B model and socio-ecological approaches, all of which recognize that people's decisions are influenced by both individual beliefs and the environments in which they live.

Researchers noted that eating is typically a shared activity, meaning household dynamics can either support or undermine efforts to reduce meat consumption. Previous studies have similarly shown that people often find it more difficult to change their diets when those around them continue eating meat.

The study also highlighted an interesting gap between how some participants described themselves and how they actually ate. Around one in 10 participants displayed a mismatch between their dietary identity and their reported eating habits. The researchers suggested that, for some people, adopting a dietary identity may reflect the behavior they aspire to rather than their current eating pattern.

Meat Free Monday, launched in 2009, encourages people to avoid meat at least one day each week, choosing Monday as a familiar point for making positive lifestyle changes. According to the researchers, the campaign has around 50,000 registered email subscribers and provides participants with recipes, educational resources, newsletters and online support designed to help reduce meat consumption.

The authors concluded that successful efforts to encourage lower meat consumption should consider both individual and social influences rather than focusing solely on personal motivation. They suggested campaigns could become more effective by helping participants overcome practical barriers while also fostering supportive social networks and communities that normalize meat-free eating.