People Practicing Meatless Monday Go beyond Monday to Reduce Meat Consumption

According to a study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future, the global Meatless Monday initiative has the potential to effectively promote healthy and sustainable diets. Specifically, these researchers identified reduced dietary meat intake among subscribers of the Meatless Monday e-newsletter. 

Research has consistently shown the negative effects of high meat consumption on human and planetary health. High consumption of red and processed meat increases people’s risk for developing chronic conditions such type 2 diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease. Animal agriculture is associated with a range of  environmental impacts and crises including water pollution, climate change and biodiversity loss, among others. Meatless Monday (MM) provides one pathway for individual consumers to shift toward a more plant-based diet.  

The study, titled, “Dietary Changes Among People Practicing Meatless Monday: A Cross-Sectional Study” was made available online in Appetite on November 6, 2024. “Although Meatless Monday is a recognized global campaign, there are only a few peer-reviewed studies that assess its effectiveness on behavior change outcomes,” says Daphene Altema-Johnson, one of this study’s authors and a program officer at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future. “Our study examines whether this campaign can reduce dietary meat intake beyond one day per week.” 

The researchers administered a survey to current subscribers of the MM e-newsletter in May 2021. The survey gathered data on demographics, use of the MM resources, the impact of COVID-19 on their diet, dietary habits and changes since receiving the e-newsletter, and any barriers and facilitators that may have influenced changes to their diet. Respondents were categorized either as practicers or non-practicers of MM. The outcomes analyzed were changes in meat intake since receiving the e-newsletter and frequency of meat consumption. 

The study findings showed practicers of MM had a greater likelihood of eliminating meat for more than one day per week than non-practicers; eliminating meat completely from their diet; incorporating recipes without meat at home; and ordering more meals without meat when dining out. Greater reduced meat intake was also observed among long-time subscribers of the MM e-newsletter. “Our findings are consistent with other studies that also examine the impact of the Meatless Monday campaign and other meat reduction initiatives on lower meat consumption,” says Rebecca Ramsing, one of the authors of this study and a senior program officer at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future. “Exposure to and engagement with Meatless Monday resources like the e-newsletter can raise people’s awareness about the benefits of lower meat consumption that can ultimately impact our own health and that of the environment.” 

“Dietary Changes Among People Practicing Meatless Monday: A Cross-Sectional Study” was co-authored by Shima Shakory, Daphene Altema-Johnson, Zoé Mistrale Hendrickson, and Rebcca Ramsing and published in Appetite in January, 2025.