Eat Flexitarian Day Date in the current year: June 10, 2024

Flexitarianism (“flexible vegetarianism”), also known as flexitarism, is a semi-vegetarian diet that is centered on plant-based foods with limited consumption of meat or fish. There is no firm consensus on how infrequently one has to eat meat and fish in order to be considered a flexitarian: some people who consider themselves flexitarian eat meat one or several days a week, while others consume it only when they feel like it, which may not be too often.

Some people use the terms “flexitarian” or “semi-vegetarian” interchangeably, while others define flexitarianism as eating very little meat and semi-vegetarianism as eschewing red meat. In some parts of the world, a semi-vegetarian/flexitarian diet is the default diet for much of the population for religions reasons and/or because people cannot afford to buy meat.

There are several specific semi-vegetarian diets that can be considered a type of flexitarianism, although not all people who follow them describe themselves as flexitarian. For example, pescetarianism is an otherwise vegetarian diet that incorporates fish and seafood. Pollotarianism is an otherwise vegetarian diet incorporating different forms of poultry as the only source of meat. The planetary health diet has heavy restrictions on the consumption of meat and dairy in order to lessen the environmental impact of the meat and dairy industries.

People can adopt a flexitarian diet for a variety of reasons including health consciousness and weight control, religious restrictions, animal welfare, and environmental consciousness. Flexitarians who make a conscious effort to reduce meat consumption for environmental reasons are sometimes referred to as demitarians.

Eat Flexitarian Day was launched in 2022 by the plant-based meat producer Planterra Foods and its food brand OZO to celebrate flexitarians, promote the flexitarian lifestyle, and encourage people who want to consume less meat to substitute it with delicious plant-based protein. Sadly, Planterra Foods closed down several months after the inaugural celebration of Eat Flexitarian Day, but the holiday lives on.

The best way to celebrate Eat Flexitarian Day is to give flexitarianism a try. Since it’s a lifestyle choice rather than a strict diet, you can move toward adopting it at any pace, as long as you are comfortable. For example, if you’re used to eating meat every day, start with introducing meat-free days. Mondays and Fridays are the most popular days because of the Meatless Monday campaign and the Friday fast in Christianity, respectively.

Once you get used to eating less meat and more plant-based foods, limit your meat consumption to three days a week. The final stage of transitioning to flexitarianism is when your diet is mostly plant-based, but there is wiggle room for the occasional meaty indulgence. Voila – you’ve transitioned to a simple, healthy, affordable and environmentally friendly diet that allows you to enjoy your favorite animal foods every once in a while.