What Veganism looks like around the country

Byline By- Nitisha Nagpal

With almost 40% of the population being vegetarian, we are a step ahead then large meat consuming nations. Contradicting the balanced diet, is it good in the long run?. The abanding of meats and dairy products can lead to major changes. It’s not just about diet, its a lifestyle turnaround. Another question here is how Indian food processing industries are adapting to producing vegan products?

The term ‘Vegan diet’ or ‘Veganism’ means dumping the consumption of all sorts of animal products, all types of meats, dairy etc. In the year 1944, British woodworker Donald Watson coined the term to distinguish vegetarians who consume dairy and eggs from those who don’t.

The diet has been in the mainstreams since 2010 and looks like a train almost everyone is hopping on. One of the many reasons the diet is so popular is Social Media. Celebrities like Ariana Grande, Miley Cyrus, b-town celebs like Shahid Kapoor, Anushka Sharma are following the vegan diet since years and are constantly posting about it on their grams leading to more and more people being influenced. Another reason is obviously the health factor since so many people felt way more active and healthy after switching up their diets.

India being the number one producer of milk stands at a low production of vegan products as compared to other nations. However due to awareness, the consumption of vegan food is slowly but increasing. The hurdled are still very relevant for the Indian food processing industries. Providing various alternatives to dairy and meat is one step they are focusing on largely. Obviously it will take it’s own sweet time to win Indian audience. Even the cafe’s and the restaurants have started to include more vegan options like vegan pizza, burgers, pasta, cheese etc so that there is no compromise on the taste buds. Is India ready to follow the traditional diet again?. Does our country hold a vegan future?