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Comment by jka | Hacker News Reader

As someone from the UK who has tended to eat meat a lot in the past - I do agree with your reading of culture in the UK historically.

But I also think it's remarkable how quickly public opinion in the UK has been shifting with regard to environmental concerns.

Traveling by train as opposed to air travel, reduction of single-use plastics and plastic packaging, and reduced-meat diets all feel like much more common discussion topics and lifestyle choices than they were even five years ago.

Shops and restaurants have also shifted to meet changing demands. There have been mistakes (incentives around long-life plastic shopping bags haven't worked out exactly as planned) but overall it feels like a wave of change.

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1. trends come and go.

2. we all live in our bubbles.

both meat consumption and air travel have increased YoY over the past 25 years in the UK.

and sticking with the UK, current estimates point to an almost 100% increase in air passenger numbers in the 2030s, and Heahtrow still being in the top ten busiest airports in the world.

anecdotally, my flights have increased 2x every year for the past 5 years. this year it's been 50 flights, 40 of which intercontinental (no train availability).

Good food for thought, thanks.

From a little more digging to try to break out of my bubble, here are some reading references:

Of beef, pork, lamb, poultry, and fish -- only poultry has seen any broad increase in expenditure by UK households over the past few years (and slim, at 2%); all others have decreased or remained the same[0]. I'm not claiming that's related to environmental concerns directly but it shows some changes in behaviour.

Air travel passenger numbers are certainly on the rise[1], although interestingly the number of flights ('air travel movements') appears to be somewhat more muted. Even so, greenhouse gas emissions from aviation have certainly increased a lot since the 1990s.

Brexit and the prospect of a high-spending majority UK government could both have impacts on these over the next decade, no doubt - but in what direction I'm not sure.

[0] - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/food-statistics-p...

[1] - https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/...

Perhaps, but fashions change fast. I remember the first environmentalism craze of the 90s, it didn’t last.

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