Americans reveal how they feel about the meatless protein trend at fast food restaurants

A growing number of fast-food chains in the U.S. have begun offering meatless or plant-based options on their menu. Research from Piplsay delves into consumers' acceptance of and excitement around this food trend.

During the past few years, the meatless and plant-based phenomenon has gone from being a highly speculative curiosity to an in-demand food item, available not just in grocery stores but also dished out over the counters of popular fast-food chains across the country. From burgers and sandwiches to tacos and pizzas, a range of meatless alternatives is available to customers today—many of whom are choosing them for health, environmental or ethical reasons. Given this new shift toward a vegetarian or vegan diet, how keen are Americans on this new trend? Piplsay polled 30,700 people nationwide to get some insights.

Of those surveyed, 71% are aware of the meatless and plant-based options that are available at fast food establishments, and 54% of those say they have tried it. Breaking it down further, 21% are meat eaters who have tried it once or twice; 18% are meat eaters that have tried it several times; 8% are vegans or vegetarians that have tried it several times; and 7% are vegans/vegetarians who have tried it once or twice.

Of the 46% of respondents who have not tried the meatless options, 24% say they just have not tried it yet, and 22% say they are not interested in trying it. Of those who have tried these alternative meat options, 70% rate their experience as good, 18% say not so good and 12% say not good at all.

Plant-based dairy market to expand

According to “Plant-Based Dairy Market,” a report from Fact.MR, global sales of plant-based dairy products are expected to grow 11% until 2031, with an estimated market value of $32 billion. Increased preference for naturally sourced food products is majorly spurring demand.

With the growing adoption of a vegan diet, the dairy alternatives market has witnessed a significant growth in recent years. Historically, from 2016 to 2020, consumption of plant-based dairy flourished at a CAGR of around 9%, reaching a valuation of $11 billion. Furthermore, rising awareness about the health benefits associated with plant-based foods has boosted the demand for dairy alternative products worldwide.

Developed regions such as North America and Europe will dominate the global plant-based dairy market share, with a combined figure of 53% in 2021. The importance of plant-based dairy was further highlighted with the onset of COVID-19, as consumers increasingly shifted toward consumption of non-animal based food products.  

Other takeaways from the report include:

• Almond milk remained the top selling category in 2020, clocking a value of $6.5 billion

• Two out of five sales of plant-based dairy products occur via online retail platforms

• Organic plant-based dairy products sales to surge at 13% CAGR

• Organic dairy sales in China topped $1 billion in 2020, with a forecast to expand at nearly 14% CAGR