A new retail trial hopes to increase shopper veg intake by placing vegetarian options alongside meat and rewarding veg purchases with loyalty points.

The project, run by Sainsbury’s and researchers from Oxford University, plans to redesign some stores to prioritise vegetables and fruit over red meat.

It is part of a £5 million Wellcome Trust programme, Our Planet, Our Health, that aims to improve health in context of profound climate change.

Sainsbury’s said a range of Local and superstores, as well as online, will be used in the trials. Recipes and leaflets will outline how shoppers can eat less meat, alongside positioning of vegetarian alternatives and vouchers to incentivise vegetarian dishes.

Judith Batchelar, director of brand at Sainsbury’s, said: “Shoppers can now choose from a much greater variety of produce than they did in the past, especially when it comes to fruit and vegetables.

“That gives them a greater opportunity to make meat-free choices, which is what we are seeing today. The question is: how can we take that further.”

Batchelar said Sainsbury’s already uses plinths at the end of aisles for inspirational food such as pasta made from vegetables. Other innovations include mixing meat and vegetarian dishes within an aisle, rather than having dedicated aisles for vegetarian foods.

“There are all sorts of things we can do, but we need to do them on a scientific basis, and that is what this project will provide,” she added.

The project comes alongside ongoing studies that link red meat consumption with both greenhouse gas production, and cancer or cardiovascular disease.

Last year, a study by the National Academy of Sciences in the US concluded that eating less meat could reduce global mortality by up to 10 per cent and cut greenhouse gas emissions by 30-70 per cent, the Guardian reported.

“The food system is responsible for more than a quarter of all greenhouse gas emissions, of which up to 80 per cent are associated with livestock production,” said researcher Marco Springmann, of Oxford University.

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