Vegetarians in Germany

Abstract

Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel, this article examines (1) the prevalence of vegetarians in Germany, (2) their social profile, and (3) dynamic features of a vegetarian diet and short-term effects on subjective health. As in many other Western countries, the prevalence of vegetarians and vegans in Germany is on an upward trend. In the period 2016–2020, about 7 percent of the Germans declared themselves as vegetarians (including vegans). The probability of being a vegetarian is higher among women, younger people, the better educated, those living in single households, residents of urban areas, and those who support the green political party. We observe considerable temporal stability of individual dietary patterns – mainly due to a dominant group of continuous non-vegetarians (almost 90 percent). We also test a special variant of the health-benefit hypothesis of a vegetarian diet. We find no support of this hypothesis when looking at short-term effects on individuals’ overall assessment of their personal health.