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Less Meat Initiatives at Ghent University: Assessing the Support among Students and How to Increase It

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  • Benjamin De Groeve

    (Center for Persuasive Communication, Department of Communication Sciences, Ghent University, Korte Meer 7-9-11, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
    Department of General Economics, Ghent University, Tweekerkenstraat 2, 9000 Ghent, Belgium)

  • Brent Bleys

    (Department of General Economics, Ghent University, Tweekerkenstraat 2, 9000 Ghent, Belgium)

Abstract

In this study, we conducted a survey among Business Administration students at Ghent University to assess their support for six less meat initiatives (LMIs) to be implemented in student restaurants. We examined associations between the support and variables related to meat curtailment and additionally examined the effect of providing information about the climate impact of meat on the support for the LMIs. We find that the support is rather limited among the students we surveyed. Students have different appraisals of the different LMIs, which may be due to differences in intervention strength and types of meat curtailment. We found that higher environmental concern is associated with a higher support for all LMIs. Female students and students with lower meat consumption levels indicate a higher support for four of six LMIs. Simply providing information about the climate impact of meat had no remarkable effect on the support. More integrated approaches are recommended to inform students.

Suggested Citation

  • Benjamin De Groeve & Brent Bleys, 2017. "Less Meat Initiatives at Ghent University: Assessing the Support among Students and How to Increase It," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(9), pages 1-13, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:9:y:2017:i:9:p:1550-:d:110395
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Marthe Hårvik Austgulen & Silje Elisabeth Skuland & Alexander Schjøll & Frode Alfnes, 2018. "Consumer Readiness to Reduce Meat Consumption for the Purpose of Environmental Sustainability: Insights from Norway," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-24, August.
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    5. Irene C. Kamenidou & Spyridon A. Mamalis & Stavros Pavlidis & Evangelia-Zoi G. Bara, 2019. "Segmenting the Generation Z Cohort University Students Based on Sustainable Food Consumption Behavior: A Preliminary Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(3), pages 1-22, February.
    6. Yufan Jian & Irina Y. Yu & Morgan X. Yang & Kevin J. Zeng, 2020. "The Impacts of Fear and Uncertainty of COVID-19 on Environmental Concerns, Brand Trust, and Behavioral Intentions toward Green Hotels," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-14, October.
    7. Pasi Pohjolainen & Pekka Jokinen, 2020. "Meat Reduction Practices in the Context of a Social Media Grassroots Experiment Campaign," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-19, May.
    8. Claudia Valli & Małgorzata Maraj & Anna Prokop-Dorner & Chrysoula Kaloteraki & Corinna Steiner & Montserrat Rabassa & Ivan Solà & Joanna Zajac & Bradley C. Johnston & Gordon H. Guyatt & Malgorzata M. , 2022. "People’s Values and Preferences about Meat Consumption in View of the Potential Environmental Impacts of Meat: A Mixed-methods Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-25, December.
    9. Patrick Schenk & Jörg Rössel & Manuel Scholz, 2018. "Motivations and Constraints of Meat Avoidance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-19, October.
    10. Josephine Mylan, 2018. "Sustainable Consumption in Everyday Life: A Qualitative Study of UK Consumer Experiences of Meat Reduction," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-13, July.

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