What do you eat if you don't eat meat?

The word 'vegetarian' came into use in English in the 1840's, but vegetarians have been around for quite awhile. The first prominent vegetarian was the Greek philosopher Pythagoras, who lived between 490 and 430BC.

How many vegetarians are there? Less than 1% of the global population is vegetarian by choice. Many more people than that eat meat rarely but only because it is not available or is too expensive.

Vegetarianism is more popular in the U.S., where high-quality vegetable protein is available and affordable. A 2008 Harris Interactive poll found that about 1 million American adults are strictly vegan (that's about .5% of the adult population). 3.2% of the adult American population identifies themselves as completely vegetarian. And another 10% say their diet is mostly vegetarian.

India is the country with the highest proportion of vegetarianism, where it is tied to culture and the Hindu religion. In India, strict vegetarians make up between 20 and 42% of the population, and fewer than 30% of the population regularly eat meat.

Here are some links for anyone writing their argument outline on vegetarianism.

Wikipedia, "Ethics of Eating Meat" and "Environmental Vegetarianism"

The Vegetarian Resource Group (a national coalition)

The EarthSave report on vegetarianism and global warming

The Food Ethics Council (an organization that works on issues of food security and social justice)