Fast food restaurants failing 76% of vegetarians says new research for National Vegetarian Week

Fast food restaurants urged to do more to cater for vegetarian customers Research of just under 6,000 UK consumers from food and drink research specialists, MMR Research Worldwide, for National Vegetarian Week 2010 (May 24th – 30th), has revealed that 76 percent of vegetarians are not happy with the choice of foods available to them in fast food restaurants. Only three percent of the 357 vegetarians polled were very happy with the choice. Pubs and restaurants fair better – almost half were happy with the choice – but still with a considerable opportunity present to better satisfy the vegetarian market. “It does not come as a surprise that fast food restaurants do not score as highly with vegetarians as non-vegetarians,” says Mat Lintern, managing director of MMR Research Worldwide. “Vegetarians are more likely to choose healthy products and they are motivated by products with no artificial ingredients, that are ethical, free range, low fat and organic, and that are sustainably produced using recyclable packaging. Many of these attributes conflict with common perceptions of fast food outlets and family restaurant chains.” MMR’s research, conducted in May 2010, also highlights potential ways in which restaurants could grow sales by more strongly pursuing vegetarian diners. “Consumers tell us that the current options are poor and unappealing or non-existent,” Lintern continues. “When asked how fast food restaurants could improve, 49 percent of consumers want an improved choice of non-meat (including meat substitute) options. Just over 20 percent ask for greater flexibility in menu choices, meaning the ability to swap certain meal components for others and 18 percent want healthier options. We believe better burger style product could be a way forward because we know that over 90 percent of vegetarians regularly eat meat substitutes, as well as salad bar formats that allow diners to make their own selections. “A healthy message is very important to vegetarians and should be a prominent part of any vegetarian-targeted promotion. On the basis of these findings, we would urge fast food brands to re-evaluate new product development and conduct more research to better understand the requirements of vegetarians in order to create foods specially designed to fit their needs.” General vegetarian/vegan survey facts and figures • Amongst our sample (broadly representative of UK shoppers) we found 6.5 % were vegetarian and 0.5% were vegan • On average, women were much more likely to be vegetarian than men (8% vs 3%) • Vegetarians are more likely to be from the higher social classes (64% ABC1 amongst vegetarians vs. 56% amongst non vegetarians) • Veganism could be a growing trend: of the vegetarians we spoke to, only 19% had become vegetarian in the last 5 years. For vegans, this figure was 72% • Half of vegetarians actually cook meat for other members of their household and this figure rises to two-thirds amongst those with children • Overall, only 59% of vegetarians can be classified as “strict veggies” (i.e. eat no meat or fish) • The main foods missed by vegetarians are: bacon (35%), chicken (19%), beef / burgers / steak (11%) and sausages (5%) • The five most common reasons (unprompted) why people go vegetarian are: animal rights / cruelty / welfare (31%), dislike meat / taste of meat (20%), it is not right to kill / eat animals (16%), health reasons / healthy eating (15%), I could not eat animals / animal flesh (11%) About MMR Research Worldwide MMR Research Worldwide is a leading research partner for food, drink and personal care companies with offices in the UK and the USA. With profound expertise in sensory research, product testing, NPD and emotion-based research, MMR Research Worldwide provides innovative, creative and scientifically robust research and is a trusted advisor on all product, brand and packaging strategy decisions. As part of the MMR Group, the company’s clients have access to a variety of unique research assets including Brandphonics® -- a new emotion-based approach to identify what influences consumer choice – an in-house sensory facility and MMR Pulse, a food and drink trend-tracking information resource. The MMR Group is a privately-owned research company employing in excess of 100 people. Founded in 1989 by Professor David Thomson, the Group is headquartered in Oxfordshire, UK and has a rapidly growing business unit in New York, US. www.mmr-research.com About National Vegetarian Week National Vegetarian Week (NVW) is the annual awareness-raising campaign promoting inspirational vegetarian food and the benefits of a meat-free lifestyle. Celebrated by the Vegetarian Society since 1992, the Week is now an established event that gets bigger and better every year. This year, it runs between Monday May 24th and Sunday May 28th. Press Enquiries Claire Dumbreck, Propel Technology, Bloxham Mill, Barford Road, Bloxham, Banbury, Oxfordshire, UK, OX15 4FF. +44 (0)1295 724130 / +44 (0) 7768 773857 claire@propel-technology.com 20/5/2010 MMR RW Vegetarian Week_catering app

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