Contents. Introduction. Background. Drivers. Insight. Future Directions. References. Image References.
Introduction. Businesses need to be aware of ongoing trends, as effective analysis of markets can help companies gain valuable insights into shifts in the economy, competitors, ongoing market trends, demographics, and the behaviour of their current and potential consumers. Businesses need to think innovatively in relation to current and future business trends to establish long-term marketing strategies giving them competitive advantage over the next company. If forecasters are able to understand the trends, then it will also make their prediction a lot easier and more effective. When a business has enhanced forecasting ability, it will enable them to understand the trends of today, whilst also being able to predict potential trends, therefore enabling them to overcome the tough competition that they might encounter (Cleverism. No date).
Background. As early as 500 BC, Greek philosopher Pythagoras started a similar vegetarian diet like today and promoted the benevolence among all species. However, modern vegetarianism can be traced back to 1944 when the Vegan Society was found. The word ‘vegan’ has also been around since then. Donald Watson, the founder of Vegan Society, believed that manufacturing milk-related productions was immoral behaviour and became vegetarian in the 1940s (BBC,2019). At that time, pioneers like Donald tried their best to spread the viewpoint in spite of a lot of dissenting voices. For example, Vegan News, started in 1944, was main mode of transmission since it was a time without the Internet. However, vegetarian diet habits have become mainstream culture from edge zone. According to Ploll, Petritz and Stern (nd.), motives including animal welfare and environmental protection are one of main factors that affect consumers to produce behaviour of vegans and vegetarians. Vegans refuse to eat meat, fish, poultry and other animal-related products like eggs and dairy and oppose the use of productions tested on animal and productions used martials from animals’ fur, leather and wool etc. to achieve animal welfare. UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) raised that livestock was a main reason which leaded to the most serious environmental problems nowadays (UN News, 2006).
10% 12 MILLION TONNES
60 MILLION HUNGRY PEOPLE
With the government’s reports and media propagation, more consumers are aware that environmental problems such as global warming and the shortage of natural resources can be improved by vegetarian diets. A data from LCA (2019) indicated that every 10% reduction in meat consumption would yield additional 12 million tons of grain a year which can feed 60 million hungry people per year. Moulins and Toti (2016) found decision-making process and purchasing choices were increasingly affected by moral considerations so they believed that ethic in consumption was more and more important. Therefore, consumption based on above motives can be considered as ethical consumption. The two s-curve is the process of development from Usoanimalism to Veganism, which is continues. Díaz (2017) believed the disruption between the two was dynamic. It means first-curve organization can prepare for the second curve to prolong life of companies in the long term. Second-curve companies could take profits from the first curve in the short term to ensure economic success. For vegans and vegetarians, trend has shifted to 2nd-curve now since consumers focus on not only anthropocentrism and speciesism but also animal rights (Díaz, 2017).
The two s-curve is the process of development from Usoanimalism to Veganism, which is continues. Díaz (2017) believed the disruption between the two was dynamic. It means first-curve organization can prepare for the second curve to prolong life of companies in the long term. Second-curve companies could take profits from the first curve in the short term to ensure economic success. For vegans and vegetarians, trend has shifted to 2ndcurve now since consumers focus on not only anthropocentrism and speciesism but also animal rights (Díaz, 2017).
Drivers. Documentaries Vegan documentaries are proving to have the power to educate people, ultimately encouraging many to go vegan. To prove this, one can turn to the Independent who have reported that the CEO of the Greggs bakery, famous for selling meat filled goods, has gone vegan after watching the latest vegan documentary entitled The Game Changers (2019). This demonstrates that vegan documentaries have can have real influence on people’s perceptions of food consumption in regards to health. The fact that the CEO of a company that is renown for selling meat can admit that “avoiding meat is easy” (Independent, 2019 a), and by being vegan is potentially not aligning himself with his business, alienating himself from a large section of his customer base, this indicates that vegan documentaries have a significant amount of power. When seeking primary data which confirmed the power of vegan documentaries, as indicated by Greggs CEO, further evidence can be found: “I already understood what veganism is […], but I didn’t fully appreciate the nutritional or health benefits of a plant only diet. Having recently watched the Netflix film The Game Changers I was surprised to learn how various naturally occurring animal hormones and other chemicals present in meat, eggs and dairy products can cause inflammation of the lining of our blood vessels to cardiovascular disease. I was also interested in the athletic performance gains reported by vegan sports people. Together these benefits have motivated me to switch to a vegan diet” (Marshall, 2019). This primary data evidences that people are willing to listen and learn about what they’re consuming, and change accordingly, even if it means cutting out all animal products, which can be argued as drastic change. As well as the reported health aspects of veganism, vegan documentaries also venture into the environmental benefits. When discussing the vegan documentary entitled Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret, a Refinery 29 journalist reports on how “I’ve had friends say it completely changed their perspective and prompted their transition to veganism” (2019 a). This further evidences the power of vegan documentaries, also highlighting the different aspects of veganism that draw people into this lifestyle. Veganuary Veganuary is an organisation that encourages people to go vegan for the month of January (Veganuary, no date). This creates awareness surrounding veganism as brands and supermarkets promote the campaign as a promotional tool for their products and services - more specifically, in 2019, 500 companies promoted Veganuary and over 200 new products and menus were launched in the UK alone (Veganuary, no date), which furthers the awareness for Veganuary, and ultimately veganism itself. According to official Veganuary 2019 statistics, over a quarter of a million people partook in Veganuary, with 47% saying that they would stay vegan and 63% reporting an improvement to their health because of the lifestyle change (Veganuary, 2019).
This shows that many people are intrigued by veganism and want to attempt to incorporate it into their daily lives. When drawing on primary data to further the credibility of Veganuary, one participant said: “I did Veganuary to benefit the environment and my body from overeating during the Christmas period and by the end of the month I noticed significantly reduced bloating and clearer skin” (Park, 2019). Park goes on to explain that she would do Veganuary again because “it’s vital for the environment” (2019). This demonstrates that by adhering to the lifestyle change, participants can see the benefits which ultimately encourages them to maintain this lifestyle entirely or somewhat. Social media and celebrities As with many other things, celebrities are inspiring people to follow the vegan lifestyle (Glamour, 2019). Refinery 29 lists celebrities that have gone vegan including Miley Cyrus, Ariana Grande and Zac Efron (2019 b) which spreads awareness surrounding veganism and possibly allows individuals to be influenced by celebrities that they are fans of. As well as this, some celebrities have taken their commitment to veganism further by opening vegan eateries. Lewis Hamilton, who has been vegan since 2017, announced that he would be launching a vegan burger chain, set to open in September 2019 (Independent, 2019 b). Former Made In Chelsea stars, sisters Lucy and Tiffany Watson, have also opened a vegan restaurant named Tell Your Friends (Plant Based News, 2018). Again, this spreads awareness of veganism whilst also encouraging people to try the vegan lifestyle by offering more vegan options via restaurants choices on the high street. According to Choi and Berger “in today’s global society we do not see individuals as still being influenced by science or history; however, individuals are being influenced by global celebrities” (2010, p.314). This shows that academics are recognising the impacts that celebrities are having on many of the decisions individuals make, which, in the case of this report, is veganism. It can also be said that veganism is becoming a regular theme on many Instagram feeds, with Beyonce even reporting that she was following a vegan diet via the social media platform (Beyonce, 2018; Glamour, 2019). When discussing the importance of social media in the rise of veganism, Ed Winters, a popular vegan activist, says: “I think social media has revolutionised veganism. I don’t even know if I would be vegan if it wasn’t for social media. […] Without it we would still be out on the streets leafletting, trying to get people to watch footage, and it would be so much harder. […] most of us have been exposed to some kind of context about veganism, it’s always on our timelines, you can’t avoid it. […] it is a freedom of information sharing that we didn’t have before” (Vegan Life Magazine, 2018, p.17). This evidences the power that social media has in terms of informing people of new information about veganism, ultimately influencing people to adopt a new lifestyle, or encouraging further research.
Campaigns As well as Veganuary, there are numerous campaigns centred around veganism and its many reported benefits which encourage people to go vegan. For example, Viva! “campaigns for a vegan world” (Viva!, no date), drawing on the three strands of veganism - animal suffering, the environment and health in our to promote the vegan lifestyle (Viva!, no date). They do this through looking at the latest research, organising campaigns and providing information and support (Viva!, no date). Actor Martin Shaw explains his feelings towards Viva!: “Viva! is absolutely vital. Through commitment and dedication it is helping to change society” (Viva!, no date). The Vegan Society, another organisation centred around promoting the vegan lifestyle, sets it’s aims out very clearly: “What do we want? Simple: a world where humans do not exploit non-human animals” (Vegan Society, no date). They aim to achieve the goal of ensuring an understanding of animal suffering and environmental damage “through peaceful and factual dialogue with individuals, organisations and businesses” (Vegan Society, no date). This demonstrates that there are many sources of information out there which are fuelling the rise of this lifestyle, ultimately resulting in more and more people decided to be vegan.
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Insights In terms of demographics, it could be suggested that age range of vegans is 18 - 49 year olds. Whilst this appears a wide age range, it can be split into two groups. The 18-29 age range are more likely to be environmentally conscious millennials, given the current political environment, whilst 30-49 may be vegan based on health choices. When considering health choices, one can consider the correlation between socioeconomic status, education and physical health (The Vegan Society, 2016), and the the effect on veganism. `Increased education allows for education in health and the environment, and thus could alter the values of a consumer. As a result, it can be suggested that those with a higher level of education are more likely to be vegan. It is also interesting to note that in a Vegan Society survey, 63 percent who identified as vegan were female, while only 37 percent were male (Lockwood, 2018). Embracing the vegan trend has created a gain in growth of the trend. Interest could be suggested by the increase in ‘vegan’ themed products, such as books. “Waterstones have 3,545 book titles with the word ‘vegan’ in them available for sale (as of October 2019) compared to 944 in August 2018.” (The Vegan Society, 2019). The influx in vegan books is a direct correlation to the rise of veganism, and shows willingness from the public to move towards veganism. Notably, ⅓ of the British public has reduced or stopped their meat consumption, demonstrating the development of the trend (Vegan Society.
18-29yrs
1/3 BRITS REDUCE/CUT MEAT
30-49yrs
Demographics. DISPOSABLE INCOME
EDUCATED
63% FEMALE*
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ENVIRONMENT CONSCIOUS
TREND CONSCIOUS
Psychographics.
HEALTH CONSCIOUS
Future Directions. The future of Veganism as a macro-trend is positively predictable as Veganism provides the answer to many issues we are faced with today. Theories surrounding the futures of this trend imply sustainability, climate change, positive health impacts and profitable activity. If everybody adopted a vegan-diet, food related emissions would drop by 70% by 2050, with this, a saving of £440 billion would also occur (Allen, 2019). In terms of health, there would be 8.1 million less deaths worldwide, and savings of up to £100 billion on healthcare would be saved (Allen, 2019), not only this, but, a “Vegan diet can prevent or reverse, heart disease, certain types of cancer, obesity and Type-2 diabetes” (COK, 2019). wFor the future of Veganism, it is predicted that this trend will be considered normal, and that parents will typically raise their children on a plant-based diet, this is due to the evolving market, which is now for everyone. Veganism has also came to the forefront in the last decade, as social media has brought it to the attention of mainstream consumer, allowing a concept of normality to surround it, and this will only increase over the next decade (Vegan Life, 2018). The development of Vegan product design, from the fashion industry such as the likes of Suzanne Lee and her BioCouture, to, food supply and design of packaging, to plant-based hotel suites, have allowed a vast market to also access the trend, as Veganism appears in all sectors and the future of this trend will appear in many more design sectors (Pownall, 2019). Overall, social-media influencers will continue and increase, plant-based festivals will continue and increase, chain supermarkets will continue and increase supply, sustainable Vegan products and design continue will increase, activism and campaigning will continue and increase until change occurs (Hancox, 2018). The implementation of the trend has already occurred, now, the need for change has been accepted and will just continue to progress.
References. Allen, P. 2019. What would happen if everyone went vegan?. [Online]. [Accessed 19.11.2019]. Available here: https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/what-would-world-look-ifeveryone-went-vegan BBC 2019. Vegan Society founder Donald Watson Honored with Blue Plaque. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-southyorkshire-50351484 Cleverism. No date. Business Trend Awareness. [Accessed 20th Novemberr 2019]. Available from: https://www.cleverism.com/skills-and-tools/business-trend-awareness/ COK, 2019. Why The Future is Vegan. [Online]. [Accessed 20.11.2019]. Available here: https://cok.net/7-signs-future-is-vegan/ DĂaz E. 2017. The second-curve model: a promising framework for ethical consumption? Veganism as a case study. The 21st Century Consumer: Vulnerable, Responsible, Transparent? ; Proceedings of the International Conference on Consumer Research (ICCR) 2016. Pp 235-244 Hancox, D. 2018. The unstoppable rise of veganism: how a fringe movement went mainstream. [Online]. [Accessed 11.11.2019]. Available here: https://www.theguardian.com/ lifeandstyle/2018/apr/01/vegans-are-coming-millennials-health-climate-change-animal-welfare LCA 2019. Last Chance for Animals. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.lcanimal.org/index.php/campaigns/other-issues/veganism Lockwood,A. 2018. Why arent more men Vegan?. Plant Based News. Moulins J. L. and Toti J. F. 2016. How to Measure Ethical Consumption Behaviours? RIMHE Management & Human Enterprise. 4(21), pp. 45-66 Petritz H. Ploll U. and Stern T. [No date]. Civil society, culture and social movements. Diffusion of Vegetarian and Vegan Diets as Social Innovations: Motive Dynamics and Impacts on Environmental- and Animal-Conscious Behavior. Unpublished. Pownall, A. 2019. Vegan design products will become as popular as vegan food, say designers. [Online]. [Accessed 29.11.2019]. Available here: https://www.dezeen.com/2019/02/12/ vegan-design-popular-feature/ The Vegan Society. 2019. Statistics. [Online]. Accessed 17 December 2019. Available at: https://www.vegansociety.com/news/media/statistics The Vegan Society. 2016. Unpacking privilege in vegan education efforts. [Online]. Accessed 17 December 2019. Available at: https://www.vegansociety.com/whats-new/blog/ unpacking-privilege-vegan-education-efforts
UN News 2016. Rearing cattle produces more greenhouse gases than driving cars, UN report warns. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://news.un.org/en/ story/2006/11/201222-rearing-cattle-produces-more-greenhouse-gases-driving-cars-un-report-warns Vegan Life Magazine. 2018. Vegan Trend Will Continue Growing, According to Food Expert. Volume 1: Issue 41. Page: 10. Beyonce. 2019. Beyonce’s profile. 44 days until Coachella!! Vegan Time!! Click the link in my bio to join me! [Instagram]. [Accessed 6 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.instagram.com/beyonce/?hl=en Choi, CJ. and Berger, R. 2010. Ethics of Celebrities and Their Increasing Influence in 21st Century Society. Journal of Business Ethics. 91(3), pp.313–318 Glamour. 2019. Vegan celebrities who are inspiring us to adopt a plant-based diet. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.glamourmagazine.co.uk/gallery/celebrities-who-are-vegan Independent. 2019 a. Greggs boss ‘going vegan’ after watching Netflix documentary about damage done by meat. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.independent.co.uk/ news/uk/home-news/greggs-vegan-netflix-gamechangers-roger-whiteside-meat-sausage-roll-a9205366. html Independent. 2019 b. LEWIS HAMILTON TO LAUNCH VEGAN BURGER CHAIN IN LONDON. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-anddrink/lewis-hamilton-vegan-burger-chain-plant-based-meat-free-london-a9084921.html Marshall, A. 2019. Interview with M. Abell. 29 November, Leeds Park, R. 2019. Interview with M. Abell. 6 December, Leeds Plant Based News. 2018. Vegan Stars Lucy And Tiffany Watson Open Plant-Based Restaurant. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.plantbasednews.org/news/vegan-stars-lucytiffany-watson-open-plant-based-restaurant Refinery 29. 2019 a. Can Netflix’s Vegan Documentaries Convince Me To Quit Meat? [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/netflix-vegan-documentaries Refinery 29. 2019 b. 9 Celebrities Who’ve Gone Vegan, From Miley Cyrus to Ariana Grande. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.refinery29.com/en-gb/vegan-celebrities#slide-4 The Vegan Society. no date. Our vision and mission. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.vegansociety.com/society/strategy/our-vision-and-mission Vegan Life Magazine. 2018. Interview with Ed Winters. 1(41), pp.17-19 Veganuary. 2019. VEGANUARY 2019: THE RESULTS ARE IN! [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://uk.veganuary.com/blog/veganuary-2019-the-results-are-in/ Veganuary. no date. What We Do. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https:// uk.veganuary.com/about Viva! no date. About Us. [Online]. [Accessed 1 December 2019]. Available from: https://www.viva.org. uk/about-us
Image references. Figure 1: Díaz E. 2017. The second-curve model: a promising framework for ethical consumption? Veganism as a case study. The 21st Century Consumer: Vulnerable, Responsible, Transparent? ; Proceedings of the International Conference on Consumer Research (ICCR) 2016. Pp. 240