REVIEW article

Front. Sociol.

Sec. Sociology of Stratification

Volume 10 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fsoc.2025.1547663

Meat Consumption Among Different Social Groups and Specific Options For Reducing It: A Literature Review of Empirical Research

Provisionally accepted
  • University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

The overconsumption of meat, and the connected overproduction of meat, contribute significantly to climate change, deforestation, biodiversity loss, and public health risks. There is a need to reduce global meat consumption. On average, high-and middle-income countries have the highest levels of meat consumption. However, within individual societies, social groups and classes differ in their food habits and ability to engage in sustainable nutritional habits. This literature review provides information on how socio-economic characteristics, social status, norms, and structural context shape meat consumption, and what interventions can effectively reduce specific social groups' meat consumption. Empirical studies published between 2019 and 2024 were researched and screened, adopting the PRISMA approach. The findings highlight critical variations in meat consumption by gender, age, social status, social norms, and context effects. Effective interventions include tailored approaches such as price incentives, normative messaging, and increasing the accessibility of plant-based options. The discussion underscores the importance of policymakers and stakeholders applying targeted and status-sensitive strategies to support sustainable dietary shifts and to address social inequalities.

Keywords: Consumption behaviour, sustainable nutrition, social groups, social status, Social Class

Received: 18 Dec 2024; Accepted: 28 Apr 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Wiesli. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Thea Xenia Wiesli, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria

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