The study, which surveyed 2,000 parents of school-aged children, found that three in four (73%) parents are likely to encourage their children to eat vegetarian meals at school, provided the quality is high. More than a quarter (28%) want their child to eat meat-free at least twice a week.
Nutritional value (58%), taste and appeal (57%), variety (52%) and use of quality ingredients (49%) are the most important factors for parents when considering school meals. Only 7% of parents consider it a priority for a school meal to contain meat.
The research found that 63% of parents are satisfied with the overall quality of school meals. Almost one quarter (24%) of parents are still concerned about the low quality of ingredients when it comes to vegetarian options. Four fifths (80%) of parents say it is important that vegetarian school meals are offered in familiar formats children already enjoy.
Almost two thirds (63%) of parents say they would have greater confidence in the quality of vegetarian school meals if they featured ingredients from a trusted brand, with a quarter (24%) stating they would be much more confident in the offering.
Rebecca Fairbairn, marketing and strategy director at Linda McCartney Foods, said: “The growing interest in plant-based diets presents an opportunity for school caterers. However, for meat-free options to succeed, children need to genuinely enjoy them and parents need to be confident that they're made with tasty, nutritional and high quality ingredients.
“By providing familiar formats from trusted heritage brands like Linda McCartney Foods, schools can remove barriers to entry and deliver inclusive menus that parents and students fully support.”