Trend spotted: the social omnivore
Say wine, snacks or haute cuisine and the gourmands at online food magazine FavorFlav know where to drink, how to eat it and what to cook. This time our cheffies serve you: Trend spotted: the social omnivore
Of course you've heard of vegans and vegetarians, and probably also of flexitarians. But do you already know the term ‘social omnivores’?
For vegans and vegetarians, the line is very clear; people in the first category eat no animal products at all, and people in the second eat no meat but do consume other animal products like dairy. Flexitarians mainly try to eat less meat. And then there is another category: that of the social omnivores.
Social omnivores
Social omnivores have some things in common with flexitarians in that they alternately eat meat or not, but with social omnivores there is a very clear boundary: at home they never eat meat, but when they are ‘out’, they do. And they have various reasons for this, for example, out of concern for the planet or their own health, but it is that social aspect that is a theme.
In company, they eat everything
For many people, eating meat is still connected to a social element, and a pleasant feeling associated with it. Not only pleasant for themselves but also for the person who prepared the food, or the company. For example, a social omnivore can be very strict at home vegan but when he or she is at grandmother's house, who just made her famous meat dish, they will still eat and enjoy it. Because it brings back memories of the past, because grandma has done her best, and the love is baked into it.
Today a bean burger, tomorrow a meat burger
You can also be a fervent supporter of delicious veggie burgers at home, but when you go out with your friends for a night out, you enjoy sinking your teeth into a thick juicy hamburger. Or going to a restaurant with a cuisine that is exciting for you, like Korean or Ethiopian, and thinking: I'm going to eat (almost) everything they have to offer, bring it on! Even then, social omnivores do eat meat, so they don't miss out on a culinary adventure.
Personal choice
It may be that social omnivores do not necessarily showcase or label their lifestyle or eating pattern. As Grace Perry tells the food platform Bon Appétit: “This is my personal choice. I don't think I'm better than anyone else because I try to avoid meat as much as possible. It doesn't define my identity, and I'm certainly not trying to outdo my friends on an ethical level. What does it matter to someone if I don't eat meat at home but order something with bacon when I'm out?”
Share the message
Yet there are also advocates for making this known if it is your lifestyle. Victor Kumar, who is a professor of philosophy at Boston University, says that putting a label on it can actually help spread a message or mindset. Doing this ‘quietly’ doesn't really help if we as a society want to put a stop to the organic meat industry, he says. And what he finds beautiful about this movement of being a social omnivore: if you only eat meat at social occasions, then you can keep alive what is truly emotionally valuable about it (or can be).
