Reducing meat intake has clear and undisputed benefits for climate, public health and animal welfare. However, this is challenging. Eating meat is deeply embedded in people's diets, embedded in cultural values, meanings and shared conventions that contribute to what is considered healthy, delicious or sustainable food. For many people, it is literally hard to imagine a predominantly plant-based diet becoming the norm. New narratives that respect the historical, cultural, economic, health and social values surrounding human nutrition and the role of meat in particular can facilitate this transition.

The focus of this project is on important stories around food and eating, with the aim of proposing new stories and learning from past and present examples. Ultimately, this can contribute to new societal norms and ways of (thinking about) eating meat, and thus to healthy, sustainable food for human society and the planet as a whole.

Project team: 

Wilma Waterlander, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Public Health and Occupational Medicine