SURVEY: Almost half of Brits feel hypocritical for loving animals and yet eating them

A survey commissioned by Future Normal and The Vegan Society has found that almost half of Brits who eat meat feel hypocritical for loving animals while eating others.

When asked how strongly they agree with the statement ‘it’s hypocritical that we eat some animals, such as pigs, while loving others, such as dogs, and keeping them as pets’ – 47.8% of respondents either slightly or strongly agreed, with the figures reaching 33.2% and 14.6% respectively.

Respondents were also questioned whether they ever feel guilty about eating meat. Similarly, 40.3% of respondents expressed guilt to either some or a great extent, highlighting how the dietary behaviour of meat-eaters and animal lovers in Great Britain is often in contradiction with their own values.

The survey of 1000 meat-eating adults in Great Britain, conducted by the Attest consumer research platform, indicates that as vegan sales boom, there is an increasing level of doubt and guilt among the omnivorous population about what they’re consuming.

These results come as the Future Normal initiative, which encourages people to reconsider their relationship with other animals, continues to gain momentum. The campaign is aimed at those who define themselves as animal lovers but are yet to make the connection between their core beliefs and the animal products they purchase and consume. The Future Normal website contains ‘lightbulb moments’ of numerous vegans who have made the connection that so many animal lovers have the potential to achieve.

With over 85% of survey respondents classifying themselves as ‘animal lovers’ in some shape or form, it is evident that there is a groundswell of untapped hearts and minds to be won over to a compassionate, vegan way of life.

‘Why is one animal a friend but the other food?’ is a pertinent question that has been asked by vegans for decades. Now, it appears, an increasing number of meat-eaters are beginning to ask themselves that very question.

Matt Turner, spokesperson for Future Normal, said:
“This survey quite clearly shows that a near majority of meat-eaters in our country are acutely aware of the guilt and hypocrisy they feel when they consume animals. We consider ourselves a nation of animal lovers, yet the behaviour of many often contradicts that very statement.

If we’re open to making changes in our lives, the Future Normal is a place we can create. Being vegan simply means living in line with the ethics that so many of us already hold in our hearts.

What we eat is the single most effective way in which someone can protest the exploitation of animals everywhere – three times a day, when you sit down to a meal, you are making a powerful stance against animal abuse.”