The Herman Trend Alert

May 29, 2019

Vegetable Butchers Reflect Growing Trend

In the past, we have talked about the rise of vegetarianism throughout the world. In 2010 a study estimated that there were 76.45 million vegetarians in the world---about 21.8 percent of the world's population. More recently, in 2018, the British research firm Ipsos published their study estimating approximately 25 percent of the population is vegetarian or eats a mostly vegetarian diet.

A new occupation to serve the growing numbers

The appearance of this new position of "Vegetable Butcher." Though it may sound impossible because we most often think of butchers for meat and poultry, the arrival of this new category of cuisine preparation, "vegetable butchery" means to us that more consumers are looking for creative ways to eat their veggies.

What vegetable butchers do

While Oprah is busy touting "riced cauliflower," folks who chop, julienne, spiralize, and create special cuts of broccoli, brussels sprouts, beets are growing in prominence at stores like Harrods of London. In fact, the department store has an entire team of vegetable specialists. Plus, this move makes a lot of sense because the BBC reported that "a quarter of Brits reported foregoing meat and fish at dinner."

Concept spreading to The New World

Though meat butchers may take offense, the Harrods team retain their titles. The movement is really worldwide. In the United States, a restaurant called Showfish, a haven for locavores* in the Hamptons will feature a vegetable butcher in its high-end kitchen. Additionally, the pop-up Vegetable Butcher is making the rounds in Florida's Daytona Beach, teaching people the benefits of a tasty plant-based diet.

One of Harrods' vegetable butchers, a resource for customers

Harrods' vegetable butcher, Jasmin Makishi serves as a valuable resource for the store's customers, making recommendations and helping people turn in-season produce into completed meals. Like the work of a traditional butcher, Makishi's artistry occurs behind a glass counter. The vegetable artist believes she adds "theater and experience" to the world of vegetables.

What's next for vegetables?

There are many vegetables that are local only to far-away regions of the world. In the future, those rarely seen veggies will be available around the globe to affluent people who have the resources to afford them. We will also discover that cutting vegetables in different ways will result in different tastes than we have experienced in the past.

What young consumers want

Surveys by Global Fashion Agenda, an international platform of professionals trying to encourage the industry to turn sustainable, and the Boston Consulting Group show that the percentage of fashion companies for whom sustainability targets are a "guiding principle" in most decisions has gone up from 34 percent in 2017 to 52 percent in 2018. According to Bloomberg, in 2019 Gen Z now eclipses the Millennial generation (Gen Y) at 32 percent of the population. Additionally, the younger generations are dedicated to supporting social responsibility. We have already seen consumers voting for sustainability in other product areas. Thus, we expect consumer demand for sustainable fashion to grow and grow quickly.

                               * Locavores are people who eat only locally sourced food.

Special thanks to The Robb Report for raising our consciousness to this important topic.