51社区黑料

Incorporating more plant-based proteins could help people save on their grocery bill, but new research has found that it's not so simple when it comes to choices at the supermarket.

51社区黑料 researchers peeked into more than 87,000 grocery carts in Canada and Finland to study how much price influenced the type of protein people bought: animal-based or plant-based. Researchers discovered that while the price had to be right, having a variety of options also played a role. 

鈥淲hen prices rose, people bought less, and that was true for both animal-based and plant-based proteins. What surprised us was that price differences hit meat purchases harder than plant-based ones,鈥� says Cameron McRae, lead author of the study.

鈥淧rice has often been described as a major barrier to buying plant-based foods, but our data suggests the relationship is more complicated.鈥�

Key findings

• Used real grocery purchase data from more than shoppers in 58,000 in Canada and 29,000 shoppers in Finland
• Price differences hit meat purchases harder than plant鈥慴ased ones
• Income and education widened price gaps mainly for animal鈥慴ased foods
• Income drives plant-based choices more than education
• A larger variety of affordable plant鈥慴ased foods could help more people switch to a more climate鈥慺riendly diet

Published in Nature,  used loyalty鈥慶ard records to collect grocery purchase data from 58,000 shoppers Canada and 29,000 shoppers in Finland over two-year periods. This approach let them look at what people actually bought, not what they said they might buy or remembered buying.

Researchers tracked monthly purchases of seven plant鈥慴ased protein categories (such as legumes, beverages like soy, almond and oat milks, tofu, and other meat substitutes) and 14 animal鈥慴ased categories (including beef, pork, poultry, eggs, and dairy).  

Then, they measured how changes in price influenced each kind of purchase. 

The study found that people adjusted their meat purchases more than their plant鈥慴ased protein purchases when prices rose or fell. People with lower socioeconomic status were more price sensitive overall.  

But the gap between high鈥� and low鈥慽ncome shoppers was smaller for plant鈥慴ased products than for animal鈥慴ased ones, which indicates both pricing and product variety play important roles in who can realistically access more sustainable food options. 

Ultimately, plant-based food is climate-friendly food, and we need to give people more variety and flexibility of affordable options if we want them to eat more of it, McRae says. 

鈥淲ith meat, shoppers can usually trade down when prices are higher, choosing ground beef instead of steak, for example. If there are only two or three plant-based options on the shelf, consumers who want those products have fewer cheaper alternatives to switch to,鈥� he explains. 鈥淚f sustainability is the goal, plant-based foods can鈥檛 remain a premium option.鈥�

The study calls for more competitive pricing between animal- and plant-based proteins, which means shoppers would see similar prices for a two-litre carton of dairy milk and a plant-based alternative, for example.  

Discounts or subsidies for plant-based purchases could also help more people green up their grocery carts. In the meantime, shoppers may find instant savings simply by swapping meat protein for legumes just a couple times a week. 

鈥淥ne-to-one substitution, like plant-based cheese instead of dairy cheese, are often where grocery bills increase. Whole foods tell a very different story,鈥� McRae explains.  

鈥淚f people focus less on highly processed plant-based substitutes and more on whole foods like beans, lentils and peas, a plant-forward diet can actually be less expensive overall.鈥�