The Daily Star's FREE newsletter is spectacular! Sign up today for the best stories straight to your inbox Sign up today! Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

An incredible 12% now strictly follow vegetarian or vegan diets, rising to a massive 20% of those aged 20-24.

Millions more are also “flexitarians”, meaning they cut back heavily on the amount of meat they munch.

Health and environmental reasons are the main factors behind the move, said a report by researcher Mintel.

But a raft of celebs have long backed the trend for various reasons.

Beatle Sir Paul McCartney, 72, was converted by his late wife Linda in 1975, and has been an animals rights supporter all his life.

Last year the Live and Let Die hitmaker even banned meat from the menu on his Canadian tour rider - a list of requests or demands that a performer sets as criteria for performance.

Other celeb veggies include Amanda Holden, 43, miserable singer Morrissery, 55, and fashion designer Vivienne Westwood, 73.

Morrissey, who once compared eating meat to paedophilia, recently brought out a T-shirt with the slogan “Be Kind to Animals or I’ll Kill You”.

Even evil Nazi butcherer Adolf Hitler was not a meat eater.

Mintel’s report said the veggie uptake led to a booming £625 million-a-year market for meat-free products in 2013.

It is expected to top £657 million this year.

Laura Jones, food science analyst for Mintel said: “As World Vegetarian Day arrives, our research highlights just how much of an impact vegetarianism has had on the UK food and drink market.”

Mintel thinks 12%t of all new food and drink products launched in Britain this year carry a “suitable for vegetarians” label compared to just six per cent in 2009.

That includes chocolate and sweets, which now avoid using animal-based ingredients.

Laura Jones said: “Among chocolate and sugar confectionery products there is increasingly demand for vegetarian ingredients, reflected by the increasing use of both vegetarian and vegan claims on new product launches.”