Executive summary: Stanford’s Humane & Sustainable Food Lab completed four major research projects in 2024 investigating interventions to reduce factory farming, finding mixed results for portion control and media influence while highlighting the ongoing challenge of meaningfully reducing meat consumption.
Key points:
Key experimental findings: 25% smaller serving spoons reduced meat consumption by 18% in one setting but 50% smaller spoons had no effect in another; documentary films increased interest in plant-based food but not actual consumption.
Meta-analysis revealed no well-validated approaches for reducing meat/animal product consumption, though reducing red/processed meat seems easier but problematic due to the “small-body problem.”
New projects focus on testing plant-based meat alternatives’ effectiveness, including a controlled restaurant menu experiment (TACOS) and analysis of real restaurant sales data.
Real-world impact achieved through partnerships with Stanford dining services, Vegan Outreach, and other organizations to implement evidence-based interventions.
Lab faces $225,000/year funding gap and seeks donors who value farmed animal welfare and academic research into cost-effective interventions.
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Executive summary: Stanford’s Humane & Sustainable Food Lab completed four major research projects in 2024 investigating interventions to reduce factory farming, finding mixed results for portion control and media influence while highlighting the ongoing challenge of meaningfully reducing meat consumption.
Key points:
Key experimental findings: 25% smaller serving spoons reduced meat consumption by 18% in one setting but 50% smaller spoons had no effect in another; documentary films increased interest in plant-based food but not actual consumption.
Meta-analysis revealed no well-validated approaches for reducing meat/animal product consumption, though reducing red/processed meat seems easier but problematic due to the “small-body problem.”
New projects focus on testing plant-based meat alternatives’ effectiveness, including a controlled restaurant menu experiment (TACOS) and analysis of real restaurant sales data.
Real-world impact achieved through partnerships with Stanford dining services, Vegan Outreach, and other organizations to implement evidence-based interventions.
Lab faces $225,000/year funding gap and seeks donors who value farmed animal welfare and academic research into cost-effective interventions.
This comment was auto-generated by the EA Forum Team. Feel free to point out issues with this summary by replying to the comment, and contact us if you have feedback.