Meat free as written in Open House

Going meat free

By oh  /  September 8, 2016  /  No Comments

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New figures show vegetarianism is on the rise in Australia, and New South Wales is leading the way with a 30 per cent growth in meat-free diets since 2012. Between 2012 and 2016, the number of Australian adults whose diet is all or mostly vegetarian has risen from 1.7 million people (9.7 per cent of the population) to almost 2.1 million (11.2 per cent), according to the latest figures by Roy Morgan Research.

Western Australia, saw 10.9 per cent of adults adopting a meat-free (or meat-minimal) diet and in South Australia it was 10.4 per cent, up from 8.5 per cent. Tasmania leads the nation with the highest proportion of residents who eat little or no meat, while Queensland retains the distinction of being the state least inclined towards vegetarianism.

The reasons behind the rise are varied, whether it is for health, environmental or animal-welfare reasons, the fact remains that this trend in a less meat-heavy diet looks set to continue. Many restaurants are already catering to this rising demand, from vegetarian fine diner Yellow through to Ka Pies Bakehouse’s award winning Thai vegetable curry pie and Soul Burger’s all vegan fare.

Soul Burger is an interesting one as it strikes in the meat lovers’ heartland of burgers. Owner Doctor Amit Tewari describes his brand as “giving the establishment the middle finger because we’re trying to disrupt it”. With more than 80 per cent of his customers meat eaters, Tewari is definitely proving that meat free menus don’t need to preach to the converted. See more on page 16.