6.2% of young people in the Basque Country aged between 15 and 29 declare themselves to be vegetarian or vegan. Specifically, 5.6% of young people are vegetarian and only 0.6% are vegan.
The percentage of vegans or vegetarians is slightly higher among young women than among young men (7.9% and 4.8% respectively) and is also slightly higher among those aged 20-24 (8.3%).
According to place of residence, the percentage of young people who are vegan or vegetarian is higher among those who are currently living in another autonomous community (10.7%) and, within the territories of the Basque Country, it is slightly higher in Gipuzkoa (8.8%) than in Alava or Bizkaia.
Young vegans and vegetarians claim to follow behaviours linked to environmental care and sustainable consumption to a greater extent than non-vegans. In fact, when talking about sustainable consumption, the need to limit meat consumption is often mentioned, due to the impact that industrial livestock farming and large-scale farms have on the environment (water pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation for the production of animal feed, etc., as well as animal abuse).
These data come from a survey carried out by the Basque Youth Observatory between 6 and 30 November 2023. A total of 1,701 young people born or resident in the Basque Country took part in the survey.
