Vegan Life

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Number of Portuguese vegetarians rose 400% in past decade

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In the past 10 years, the number of vegetarians in Portugal has quadruplicated to 120,000 or 1.2 percent of the population Associacao Vegetariana Portuguesa (AVP) revealed in a statement sent to The Portugal News, that number is currently estimated at 120,000, with at least half or 60,000 of these being "strict vegetarian" or vegan, meaning they consume no animal products.

The numbers are based on a survey by Nielson and promoted by Centro Vegetariano which undertook 2,000 random interviews. They also found that meat and fish consumption is reduced overall. According to the AVP, "this survey clearly shows that plant-based diets are a fast growing tendency in Portugal and that the vegan lifestyle is increasingly popular amongst the young population". The majority of these plant-based eaters are female or young people aged between 25 and 34 years old, Portugal News reported.

The recently approved law by Portuguese parliament last spring, which stipulates that all public canteens in Portugal (e.g. schools, universities, prisons, hospitals) must provide a food option that is free from animal products, has further helped to promote this lifestyle choice.

Concurrent with this change in law, and a driver behind this trend is a growing concern for environmental and animal welfare. As well, helping the movement to gain prominence is the fact that some important public officials have embraced this lifestyle.

"This is more than a trend, it's a shift in society. The progressive increase in the number of vegetarians in Portugal and all over Europe is a reflection of the way societies are evolving today, to face some major civilisational challenges", said Nuno Alvim, spokesperson for the Associacao Vegetariana Portuguesa.