A YouGov poll commissioned by the delivery service Deliveroo in December 2022 in France shows that up to 26% of French consumers say they are ready to try the vegan diet for a month. The study, which involved 1030 people aged 18 and over, showed the evolution of the vegan diet in France, as in 2019 the same poll was conducted and only 12% of participants said to be willing to try a vegan diet.
Most of the questioned said they had already tried vegan alternatives and liked them, compared to only just about a quarter who said so in 2019. Delivery orders of plant-based food increased by 28% between 2021 and 2022, and 38% of the polled in this study had recently ordered a plant-based dish on Deliveroo. This trend has also been detected in other countries. According to Deliveroo, plant-based food orders have had a large growth spike in Hong Kong since the pandemic hit.
The study also shows that 40% of 18-24-year-olds are ready to try a vegan diet, and 36% of the 25-34-year-olds, too. When asked about the reasons, 51% responded they would go vegan for the animals and 41% for the environment. Health was a major factor too for 19% of the participants. However, 28% said they avoid veganism because it causes nutritional deficiencies, showing that there is a great need for education in France regarding the nutritional value of the vegan diet. Compared with other western European countries, France seems to have been dragging its feet in the growth of the vegan movement, perhaps caused by the almost obsessive use of animal products in traditional French cuisine, but historically there is also a vegan tradition in the country, centred in noticeable vegan anarchist communities—with prominent figures such as Louis Rimbault.
