[Poll] Changing your diet to mostly plant based

[FloRolf]

Hello people of LTT!

i just watched "A life on our planet" by David Attenborough, talking about how the planet has changed throughout his life.
In the end he even offers solutions to counter the drastical environmental issues we are facing, not only global warming but also mass extinction,
energy production but also food supply. So naturally one of those solutions is changing our diets to mostly plant based.

That reminded me of a survey i did on here years ago so today i wanna redo it and check if the general POV has changed or stayed roughly the same.
Unfortunately i can't recover the old results but i remember being positively overwhelmed.

So here's to a (please keep it civilized!) discussion, not only about diets but let's expand to other things you do, or we all could do,
to improve the earth's situation. maybe someone has a great tip that has a big impact on the planet but can easily be incorporated in our daily lives?

Thanks and i hope together we can all make a change and make our home sustainable again! We have only this one. 

[Bananasplit_00]

I mean i think the main reason I still eat meat is because of my own incompetence in the kitchen and lack of interest to improve. The few things I do know how to cook generally don't do well with meat substitutes from what I've tried.

 

Also haven't found much stuff I can just grab from the freezer and throw in a frying pan that doesn't have that strange meat substitute aftertaste I just can't really jam with.

 

Basically I'm lazy and bad at cooking so I still have meat.

[Red :)]

this

even then once it becomes available I would have to wait quite a significant time before the negative stigma around this goes away

[manikyath]

you forgot an option in question 2:

"i really cant be arsed".

 

i have nothing to debate about in the for/against veganism, past that i like the taste of (some types of) meat, and i *really* cant be bothered with finding tasty alternatives.

if vegan options are readily available, and a worthwhile alternative, i'd gladly try them. even if only for the fact that big strings of fat trigger nausea for me because my brain is broken like that...

 

also, i already have far more soy milk in my diet than "animal" milk, because i've got a mild lactose allergy, and they make soy milk in so many great flavours, without being wrapped up in a childish box, so i dont have to be ahsamed in buying chocolate milk

 

oh, and some advice for meat eaters that want to reduce their footprint a bit: look into asian and mexican cuisine, they often have really simple to make dishes, and use relatively small quantities of meat. asian protip: mix mashed potatoes into minced meat, it helps contain the juices better, so ends up much more savoury in the end.

[FloRolf]

6 minutes ago, Schnoz said:

I tried Impossible Burgers for the first time last year. I think I posted about it before back then, but the taste is amazing and is nearly identical to that of real beef (besides the slight coconutty hint). However, my family doesn't buy them frequently because of their considerably higher price, though I hear that the third iteration of Impossible Burgers lowered the price. With the advent of more actually good plant-based meat alternatives. I'd definitely consider going vegetarian/vegan.

yes i agree, i tried the impossible once and it was very good! However i found quite a few good products in the shelves around me that i like, but not many that fully give you the meat feel. Some alternatives aren't a 1:1 replacement but add a little taste of it's own too. You can see that as both good and bad. 
 

 

5 minutes ago, Bananasplit_00 said:

I mean i think the main reason I still eat meat is because of my own incompetence in the kitchen and lack of interest to improve. The few things I do know how to cook generally don't do well with meat substitutes from what I've tried.

 

Also haven't found much stuff I can just grab from the freezer and throw in a frying pan that doesn't have that strange meat substitute aftertaste I just can't really jam with.

 

Basically I'm lazy and bad at cooking so I still have meat.

That's actually a good point! There are many "Heat and Eat" products with meat but not so many without/with alternative meat.  It's also not as easy to grab something "on the go". I mean most burger chains for example offer a vegan burger now but only one and not a lot of variety. 

[manikyath]

1 minute ago, FloRolf said:

yes i agree, i tried the impossible once and it was very good! However i found quite a few good products in the shelves around me that i like, but not many that fully give you the meat feel. Some alternatives aren't a 1:1 replacement but add a little taste of it's own too. You can see that as both good and bad. 

question tho: why does it need to taste like meat? there's so many interesting flavours to explore in what is essentially a "white slate".. and yet we go after immitating the relatively boring taste of beef.

[FloRolf]

4 minutes ago, Red said:

this

even then once it becomes available I would have to wait quite a significant time before the negative stigma around this goes away

Well that sucks but it really isn't the only option avaiable (obviously can't speak for CZ). Here in germany many supermarkets offer products of other manufacturers that are good. They just aren't as popular. 
 

4 minutes ago, manikyath said:

you forgot an option in question 2:

"i really cant be arsed".

i actually had that in there first But then i though you'd actually have at least one reason to stop you or else you'd just try

[FloRolf]

Just now, manikyath said:

question tho: why does it need to taste like meat? there's so many interesting flavours to explore in what is essentially a "white slate".. and yet we go after immitating the relatively boring taste of beef.

Yeah that's what i was saying. Most people are dissapointed in vegan products because they don't taste like meat, but as you said, they don't have to. 
On the other side, tasting exactly like meat is the easiest way to change someone. As you see from the few results already, most people don't go plant based because they like the taste of meat. 

[BuckGup]

Maybe if the world wasn't so morbidly obese people would eat less requiring less animals lessening the impact on the environment. But hey it's society not my jumbo XL Pepsi Whopper Combo 

[The_russian]

1 minute ago, FloRolf said:

On the other side, tasting exactly like meat is the easiest way to change someone. 

Is it the easiest way though? I feel like when the expectation is for something to taste like meat, if the taste is at all off, the person trying is more likely to be disappointed. If there was no expectation that the taste will be the same at real meat but instead its own flavor, I think more people would be satisfied with plant-based products. 

4 minutes ago, FloRolf said:

As you see from the few results already, most people don't go plant based because they like the taste of meat. 

But that's not the only flavor they like, so why not go for a new and/or different flavor? In my opinion meat replacement products don't have to taste exactly like real meat, they just have to taste good. 

[Moonzy]

i tried the impossible burger and loved it

i wouldnt mind having it as meat substitute if the nutritional (easily absorbed nutrients) is the same and if it's cheaper

right now im gonna stick with meat/fish, until price of substitutes is right

[FloRolf]

6 minutes ago, BuckGup said:

Maybe if the world wasn't so morbidly obese people would eat less requiring less animals lessening the impact on the environment. But hey it's society not my jumbo XL Pepsi Whopper Combo 

very true, if the resources where spread more evenly we would be able to live much healthier and more sustainable.

 

 

Here you can see that in Europe around 20% of the people are obese while in North America it even goes to around 30%

Spoiler

 

meanwhile in some countries in Africa over 35% of the population is actually starving.

Spoiler

 

[The_russian]

3 minutes ago, BuckGup said:

But hey it's society not my jumbo XL *diet* Pepsi Whopper Combo 

Fixed that for you. For real though, when I used to work in fast food if someone was ordering a large order (large order as in meal for one person that was very large, not a large order for multiple people), there was a very high likelihood that the drink would be diet soda, probably more than 50%. 

[manikyath]

4 minutes ago, FloRolf said:

Yeah that's what i was saying. Most people are dissapointed in vegan products because they don't taste like meat, but as you said, they don't have to. 
On the other side, tasting exactly like meat is the easiest way to change someone. As you see from the few results already, most people don't go plant based because they like the taste of meat. 

in my (very uneducated) opinion trying to deliver a "vegan alternative" is already the wrong approach to take.

from my experience, giving people more options is the easiest way to make people change.

the people who will actively avoid non-meat options are people you arent going to convince either way, so why bother?

 

i started to explore asian and mexican cuisine because i was bored of our quite shallow western european "plate with meat, veggies, and potatoes" and it's really an overwhelming amount of recipes you can make with just about any ingredients. despite the fact a lot of my (barbarian) cooking involves excess quantities of meat, asian dishes really prove that vegetables dont have to be boring.

 

on that note.. i encourage everyone to grow their own tea. it's like decorating your house, but more functional.

6 minutes ago, The_russian said:

Fixed that for you. For real though, when I used to work in fast food if someone was ordering a large order (large order as in meal for one person that was very large, not a large order for multiple people), there was a very high likelihood that the drink would be diet soda, probably more than 50%. 

"i drink diet soda, so i can eat regular cake"

probably the most brilliant comedy quote to come out of american comedy in recent years.

[TetraSky]

Considering where I live we need to import veggies and fruits during cold seasons and the local ones cost waaaaay too much since they need to be grown in a greenhouse for 4~6 months a year... I'll stick to my meat, which is available all year around due to local production.

 

Add to that the cost of "meat alternatives", which are actually more expensive, for less, than actual meat... And the fact that I 

genuinely dislike the taste and texture of soy, beans and most other plant base protein... (I'm fine with nuts, but that would be such a sad f'ing life...)

 

I would be open to lab grown meat, though. If it was affordable, same price and same quantity as regular meat.

 

There exist ways to reduce CO2 emission of cows, simply by changing their diet, for example. But that's up to the people rearing them and if they care enough. Us customers can't do much, since we never know where the meat is from and thus can't "cancel" them for refusing to make the switch.

[Triggeravus]

In countries like India where they've developed vegetarian cuisine over hundreds of years, the food tastes way better.  Western idea of vegetarianism is cold salad and imitation meat.  Fuck that.

[CerealExperimentsLain]

4 hours ago, Schnoz said:

I tried Impossible Burgers for the first time last year. I think I posted about it before back then, but the taste is amazing and is nearly identical to that of real beef (besides the slight coconutty hint). However, my family doesn't buy them frequently because of their considerably higher price, though I hear that the third iteration of Impossible Burgers lowered the price. With the advent of more actually good plant-based meat alternatives. I'd definitely consider going vegetarian/vegan.

This is my issue, cost.  I have nothing against meat substitutes if they taste good, but if meat is cheaper then I'm getting meat.  I'll readily buy margarine for most of my needs because it tastes nearly the same, works nearly the same in all applications, and costs less.

I don't care what the burger or nugget is made of, I care how it tastes and what it costs.  Hopefully developments in meat alternatives will continue until they're cheaper than meats.

[CerealExperimentsLain]

3 hours ago, Triggeravus said:

In countries like India where they've developed vegetarian cuisine over hundreds of years, the food tastes way better.  Western idea of vegetarianism is cold salad and imitation meat.  Fuck that.

I'll have you know that Oreo's are vegan.

[Ripred]

Now let's vote for the carnivore diet

[whm1974]

14 minutes ago, gabrielcarvfer said:

Only true if you ignore soups, stews, pastas, mousses, ratatouille, jams, frittatas, couscous, raw veggies and fruits, etc.

I thought his Statement was rather Odd. Good Grief he never heard of Lent?

[whm1974]

29 minutes ago, CerealExperimentsLain said:

I'll have you know that Oreo's are vegan.

You do know that Oreo's used to have Lard don't you?

[CerealExperimentsLain]

Just now, whm1974 said:

You do know that Oreo's used to have Lard don't you?

Past tense.

[Andreas Lilja]

Meat tastes too good.

 

 

Wouldn't mind casual vegetarianism but veganism is too much. Dairy

 

[Arika]

5 hours ago, Schnoz said:

I tried Impossible Burgers for the first time last year. I think I posted about it before back then, but the taste is amazing and is nearly identical to that of real beef (besides the slight coconutty hint). However, my family doesn't buy them frequently because of their considerably higher price

This.

 

in Australia, you can get 10 beef patties for $10.

or you can get 2 beyond burger patties for $11 (which is our version of the impossible burger)

[Dylanc1500]

Question 2 ought to have an option for, "I raise my own livestock". My family has ran cattle and other livestock for generations (dairy and beef cattle, ducks, chickens, horses (not for eating), etc).