Vegetarianism Goes Mainstream
This seemingly normal burger at BlackTap NYC is actually bean based.
Photo Credit: Lisbeth Juela Tenemaza
By LISBETH JUELA TENEMAZA
Picture dinner time: a nice big plate of rice, gooey mac and cheese, and a juicy cut of sirloin steak. Yum, right? I thought so, too. It was my dinner at least once a week, and I never thought twice about it, let alone about becoming vegetarian.
The decision came shooting at me after I watched horrific animal cruelty videos. Although I became disgusted by the meat I ate, and I knew I wanted to be a vegetarian, I didn’t convert right away.
“It’s a culture thing,” said Yaire Calderon ’20. “My parents would never agree with it, even if I truly wanted to be a vegetarian. All they eat is meat.”
When I first told my mom, she completely flipped out. I remember her questioning everything. Was it because I didn’t like her cooking? Was I rejecting my culture? I found myself constantly in a battle between my morals and my family, always defending my diet.
“My friends are always very surprised when I tell them I’m pescatarian [a vegetarian who eats fish],” said Saiyan Joseph ’20. “They always ask why I don’t eat meat. After so many years, I’ve stopped telling the full story, and I just say for ethical and health reasons.”
Explaining your diet can get annoying, especially when the other person is not open to the idea. Recently though, something’s been different. Left and right, I’ve seen vegans, vegetarians, and pescatarians. It seems as time has gone on, these diets have become mainstream.
Today, there are 16 million vegans and vegetarians in the U.S. alone, which is a big difference from the 11 million a few years back. According to a Gallup poll, one in ten 18 to 29-year-olds now say they are vegan or vegetarian. Now whenever I say I’m vegetarian, people respond with “Really? Me too!”
There are also a lot more vegetarian-friendly options now, especially at popular Instagram-famous restaurants like Blacktap and The Sugar Factory. Even Burger King now has a plant-based version of the Whopper.
“Honestly, all I see now is bean patty burgers and plant lasagna,” said Juliette Burke ’20. “It’s taught me a thing or two about eating my veggies.”
In the past, going out with friends and family as a vegetarian use to be a major struggle.
“One time I was out with my aunt, who’s vegetarian, and we were going to eat at a very nice restaurant,” said Nolani Carter ’20. “When my aunt asked if anything was vegetarian, the waitress said, ‘There’s lettuce.’ I found it so rude, and also I felt bad. She didn’t eat anything. It wasn’t fair.”
Now the food industry is changing fast, with vegetarian and vegan recipes popping up everywhere.
Although more vegan and vegetarian options is a good thing for my friends and me, it may be a ploy for the fast food industry to make money off the growing vegan and vegetarian population.
“Lately I’ve seen a lot of stores start advertising new vegan stuff,” said Laura Rosas ’20. “Snapchat has an ad for the new vegetarian menu at Taco Bell every two stories.”
It makes sense they’d advertise to young people. After all, they are at the forefront of the environmental movement.
“Personally, the environmental movement is what had an impact on my diet,” said Aysegul Yumusak ’20.
I was influenced the same way. Sitting in AP Environmental Science, listening to Mrs. Kimberly Lau speak about the food industry really opened me up to what was going on beyond what we’re all used to.
Popular YouTubers like Jenna Marbles and Julien Solomita also have an influence over the increasing globalization of veganism.
“There’s an influencer effect,” said Rosas. “You see them doing it and it looks nice to try. After all, they are doing it with good reasons.”
Red meat, and meat in general, leaves a very high carbon footprint, leading to more greenhouse gas emissions. So in the long run, it’s a good thing these fast food chains are capitalizing the movement. It helps to know that there is an option with a smaller carbon footprint that anyone can try anywhere.