Everyone loves a burger. Hero of the BBQ, fast food favourite and source of culinary creativity for even the most sophisticated of chefs, the burger is undoubtedly the world's ultimate fun food.

However, growing awareness of the devastating impact animal agriculture is having on the planet is making the beef burger increasingly feel like a guilty pleasure.

Of course, non-meat versions like the veggie burger have been around for a while. Targeting primarily vegetarians and/or vegans, traditional vegetarian burgers offer a good meat-free alternative but make little attempt to mimic the beef burger taste.

Now, a new generation of plant-based burgers like those made by The Vegetarian Butcher aim to create a like-for-like 'meat' experience which will satisfy die-hard carnivores looking to cut back on animal-based meat for health or environmental reasons - ideally without losing out on taste.

Once a minority, these flexitarians are becoming a growing force as consumers. Research in the UK has shown that one in three meat eaters (34%) reduced their meat consumption following a flexitarian approach in 2018, up from 28% in 2017. And with ING forecasting meat and dairy alternatives to be worth €7.5 billion in the EU and UK in 2025, (up from €4.4 billion in 2019), it's a trend that seems set to grow.

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Unilever plc published this content on 29 March 2021 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 30 March 2021 08:30:07 UTC.