Do you know about them yet: the social omnivore is on the rise
You’ve obviously heard of vegans and vegetarians, and probably flexitarians too. But are you familiar with the term ‘social omnivores’ yet?
With vegans and vegetarians, the distinction is very clear; people in the first category eat no animal products at all, while people in the second eat no meat but do eat other animal products such as dairy. Flexitarians mainly try to eat less meat. And then there is another category: social omnivores.
Social omnivores
Social omnivores have something in common with flexitarians in that they alternate between eating meat and not eating meat, but with social omnivores there is a very clear boundary: they never eat meat at home, but they do when they are ‘out’. And they have various reasons for this, for example concern for the planet or their own health, but it is the social aspect that is key.
They eat everything in company
For many people, eating meat is still connected to a social element, and to a pleasant feeling. Not only pleasant for themselves but also for the person who prepared the food, or for the company. A social omnivore might therefore be strictly vegan at home, but when visiting their grandmother, who has just made her famous minced-meat casserole, they will still eat along and enjoy it too. Because it brings back memories of the past, because grandma has made an effort and the love has been baked into it.
A bean burger today, a meat burger tomorrow
You can also be a fervent fan of delicious veggie burgers at home, but when you go out for the evening with your friends, you can take just as much pleasure in sinking your teeth into a thick, juicy hamburger. Or you might go to a restaurant with an exciting new cuisine for you, such as Korean or Ethiopian, and think: I’m going to eat (almost) everything they have to offer here—bring it on! Social omnivores also eat meat on such occasions, so they don’t have to miss out on anything during a food adventure.
Personal choice
Social omnivores may not necessarily advertise or name their lifestyle or eating pattern. As Grace Perry tells food platform Bon Appétit: “This is my personal choice. I don’t consider myself better than anyone else because I avoid meat as much as possible. It doesn’t define my identity, and I’m certainly not trying to outdo my friends on an ethical level. Why should anyone care whether I don’t eat meat at home but simply order something with bacon when I’m out?”
Share the message
Still, there are also advocates of making it known when this is your lifestyle. Victor Kumar, a professor of philosophy at Boston University, says that putting a label on it can actually help spread a message or mindset. Doing this ‘quietly’ doesn’t really help if, as a society, we want to put a stop to the industrial meat industry, he says. And what he likes about this movement of being a social omnivore is that if you only eat meat on social occasions, you can keep alive precisely what is truly emotionally valuable about it (or could be).
Read also:
- Snackspert’s week: “Jumbo’s vegetarian frikandel roll gets a solid four stars”
- I completely lose it when a vegan comes over for dinner
- First vegan Burger King opens its doors in Lisbon
Source: Bon Appétit
