Dive Brief:
- Oxford University scientists are experimenting with incentives to motivate shoppers to choose more environmentally-friendly vegetarian items at the grocery store, according to Food and Wine.
- A number of Sainsbury supermarkets in Britain will see a reorganization of their aisles to see if meat eaters will buy more produce items and vegetarian versions of popular food products if they are placed next to the original versions.
- According to The Guardian, previous research has revealed that reduced meat consumption could help lower greenhouse gas emissions by 30-70% worldwide and cut the global mortality rate by 6-10%.
Dive Insight:
Oxford researchers seem to believe the only thing stopping meat-focused eaters from buying more vegetables is their placement in the grocery store. However, many studies on sales trends suggest that store positioning may not be the reason for disinterest in vegetable-based products.
In 2015, the Produce for Better Health Foundation commissioned a study by the NPD Group that found there’s been a decrease in fruit and vegetable consumption in recent years — tied mostly to fewer vegetables as dinner side dishes and less fruit juice at breakfast.
Even after the Journal of the American Medical Association published a study that found a vegetarian diet appears to prolong life by a few years, numerous surveys conducted after the fact showed this news wasn’t going to change the mind of most meat eaters.
While the Oxford experiment may seem like a good marketing move for Sainsbury’s, grocery analysts have long championed placing produce at the front of the store so shoppers walk by bountiful displays upon entering. Because of this, even if the experiment is met with positive results, its unlikely that grocery stores will be eager to alter their formats.