Recommendations regarding food and nutrition advocate for abundant consumption of plant-based foods, with special emphasis on vegetables, minimally processed grains, legumes, and fruits. Conversely, moderation in the consumption of animal-based foods, such as fish, eggs, dairy products, and meat, is recommended.
Despite these principles, we continue to have dietary habits that deviate significantly from these recommendations, with the consumption of animal products predominating over others .
Reducing meat consumption is imperative, not only for health reasons but also for sustainability. There is currently extensive scientific evidence supporting the need to change food systems towards reducing the consumption of animal products and promoting a plant-based diet .
However, culturally and socially, we have practices that perpetuate certain beliefs and conceptions about what food should be, such as the importance we give to the protein source in the dishes we plan for a menu . The focus of dishes is often on meat or fish. In any restaurant, for the vast majority of chefs, in the recipes available in books and magazines, meat and fish are invariably highlighted, leaving the plant-based component for last. It is given very little importance, sometimes not even being mentioned. It is dispensed with or treated as a mere decorative element on the plate. These practices lead us, from an early age, to construct what is the concept of a proper dish, what is correct, and what we define as the norm.
This conception is so deeply rooted in our culture that when we talk about vegetarian food, we feel the need to mimic the same concept, creating "protein substitutes" such as vegetable burgers seitan steak milk … among others, instead of looking at dishes as a whole where the combinations of grains, vegetables, and legumes result in the desired balance.
On the other hand, foods of animal origin have a very positive connotation compared to foods of plant origin, which are associated with a negative perception. While meat is socially a food with a symbolic meaning of great prestige, associated with the economic means to acquire it, plant-based foods are considered less prestigious, linked to poverty and food scarcity .
As a result of extensive experience preparing and cooking meat and fish, we are not very creative when it comes to preparing and cooking plant-based products, which are associated with longer and more laborious preparation times.
Therefore, it is necessary to change practices to change beliefs, modernizing the image and perception that these foods have among the general public, by emphasizing their benefits, investing in the development of preparation and cooking techniques, highlighting their low cost and aspects related to sustainability, generating greater convenience in the acquisition and availability of these products.
Several studies report successful strategies related to dish descriptions, observing that it's possible to modify consumers' perception of a meal through the placement of components , a more detailed description emphasizing sensory aspects, cooking methods (homemade vs. industrial), or even the font type, size, and color used for items to be promoted . Authors agree that highlighting healthier items increases consumer attention, boosting consumption.
Therefore, mindsets and prejudices regarding food need to change. Thus, with the goal of promoting consumption and highlighting vegetables and plant-based foods, why not start, in public and collective catering, with descriptions of what goes into the dishes?
In other words, instead of mentioning meat or fish first, we would prioritize vegetables and side dishes, similar to the regulations for ingredient lists on food labels, where ingredients appear in descending order of quantity.
This would give us the opportunity to innovate, looking at what we eat from a new perspective. We would give due importance to plant-based foods, essential for the health of our planet and for the health of individuals. Chefs would also have the opportunity to explore these foods in their infinite varieties, with the added benefit of making dishes much more attractive, colorful, and diverse in flavors and textures.
Here are some examples:
