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| US President Donald Trump will "pardon" turkeys Bread and Butter (seen here) before Thanksgiving, but some Americans do not eat turkey at all on the holiday, preferring to embrace plant-based diets (AFP Photo/SAUL LOEB) |
Chicago (AFP) - When Elysabeth Alfano hosts a Thanksgiving dinner for 12 next week at her home in Los Angeles, the menu will be traditional -- with a few key changes that were all but impossible just a decade ago.
For
dessert, she'll have the staples that feature on nearly every American dinner
table -- pumpkin and apple pie. And the huge number of vegetable side dishes
are not unusual.
But the
"turkey" -- the centerpiece of the meal -- will be a vegan-stuffed
breast made of chickpeas, wheat gluten, tomato paste, mushroom broth,
seasonings and red wine.
Her main
dish reflects a shift in eating habits in the United States: there are an
increasing number of Americans choosing a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle. But
they're calling it something else.
While still
only around three percent of Americans identify as vegan and six percent
identify as vegetarians, more and more offerings are being marketed as
"plant-based" -- a term which food industry watchers say is more
palatable to all.
"Veganism
is often linked with some sort of deprivation," explains Michael Robbins,
spokesman for the three-year-old Plant Based Foods Association, which
represents more than 100 companies including food giants like the Campbell Soup
Company.
 |
Pumpkin
pies are part of a traditional Thanksgiving meal, but some Americans
are
changing up their menus to accommodate their plant-based diets (AFP
Photo/
Olivier DOULIERY)
|
"Plant-based
is generally associated with the general benefits of eating plants" and
"has been shown in research to have a greater acceptance to a broader set
of consumers," he told AFP.
Indeed,
nothing is more mainstream in America than fast food, and the giants are all in
-- Burger King is serving meatless Impossible Whoppers, and McDonald's is
test-marketing its plant-based burger.
"Just
as the horse and buggy gave way to the car and the typewriter gave way to the
computer, we are seeing more and more people go plant-based," says Alfano,
a chef, coach and lifestyle expert.
"In
the first half of 2019, 248 million plant-based burgers were sold, 95 percent
of which were bought by meat-eaters. The meat-eaters are the largest segment
incorporating plant-based."
Diet vs
lifestyle
For decades
in America, veganism has been linked to a way of life that transcends food
choices.
Practitioners
often don't only refuse to consume any animal-based products -- they also don't
wear clothes made from animal products like wool or leather.
 |
Eating
vegetarian or vegan has become a lot easier in the United States
in recent
years (AFP Photo/Olivier DOULIERY)
|
Devotees of
plant-based diets are generally all about the food, but they are happy to
embrace the ethical debate as well, within reason.
Chicago-based
artist Tammy Kohl grew up on a dairy farm in Wisconsin but has gradually
shifted her diet, which has been completely plant-based for a year.
"To
keep weight off by taking dairy out of my diet made sense. I did vegan cleanses
and felt great and that inspired me," said Kohl, who added that
anti-animal cruelty efforts made cutting out meat easier.
But she
noted: "I still wear leather. If you own leather, you might as well wear
it."
Holiday
options
Jean
Johnson, a sales consultant from Colorado, converted to a plant-based diet for
health reasons and shies away from the term "vegan," which she says
conjures up an image to which she does not subscribe.
On
Thanksgiving, she says she'll stick to eating vegetable side dishes at a
friend's home -- and isn't all that worried if she happens to inadvertently
consume animal products.
"I'm
not so OCD about it where you can't put any butter in the mashed potatoes --
it's such a small portion," Johnson said.
 |
Tofu may
feature on some Thanksgiving menus in the United States
(AFP Photo/Olivier
DOULIERY)
|
Alfano, who
splits her time between Los Angeles and Chicago, went completely vegan in 2016.
Her
Thanksgiving plans are proof positive that the stigma which once surrounded
non-carnivores, especially on traditional American holidays, is slowly fading
away.
"What
we have now that we didn't have 10 years ago is good taste. We have convenience
and we have price," she says.
Kohl said
she will celebrate the holiday with some relatives who raise beef cattle -- a
profession that hardly aligns with her veganism. But another family member is a
vegetarian, and everyone gets along.
"I
usually bring my own plate and very quietly fill it up," Kohl said.
"I'm not one of those preachy vegans."
Fad or trend here to stay?
Johnson
believes that her plant-based diet helped her beat cancer, and she identifies another
benefit of plant-based diets these days -- she has seen her grocery bills
plummet.
 |
Different
takes on plant-based burgers are even being offered at the nation's
largest
fast food chains such as Burger King (AFP Photo/ERIC BARADAT)
|
"Meat
and dairy, that's not cheap stuff, whereas rice and beans, lentils and potatoes
are cheap,” Johnson said.
Alfano
agreed, saying it would also help Americans save money if healthier eating
meant they could stop taking certain medications such as those to control
cholesterol.
"It's
really expensive to be sick. If you can get off the pills, you'll really be
saving money," she said.
Of course,
meat producers are hardly on board for all this, but they're not really worried
either.
Hillary
Makens, director of media relations for the National Cattlemen's Beef
Association, said vegans and vegetarians constitute a tiny portion of the US
market, and her industry has bigger concerns.
"The
beef industry has been competing against other proteins for a long time. When
you think of chicken, pork, beans, peanut butter, all types of protein, it's
not really a new thing." Makens said.
However,
consumer research company Mintel said the number of new US food and drink
products that mentioned "plant-based" grew 268 percent between 2012
and 2018.
Additionally,
in a May 2019 report, Mintel said 38 percent of US consumers report trying to
incorporate more plant-based items into their diet.
"Rarely
in life do you ever get a triple winner -- where one thing positively effects
your health, positively effects your wallet, positively effects the environment
and the planet," Alfano says.
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