Plant-based eating has spread across Ghent, Belgium, since the city introduced its Thursday Veggie Day in 2009, according to The Guardian. Residents are encouraged to skip meat and fish that day. "Ghent is the best town in Belgium for plant-based food," said Vanessa Debruyne of the nonprofit ProVeg Belgium.

On Thursdays, schools, nurseries, care homes and many work canteens serve meat-free menus, The Guardian reported. The idea came from a grassroots push for climate action, Debruyne said. "The magic happened when politicians actually listened," she said.

School cooks have also turned burgers, sausages and meatballs into hybrids. They cut at least half the meat and add lentils or beans, The Guardian reported. Ghent has cut the carbon footprint of its school meals by 38% since 2018. In 2021, the Flemish government set a goal to shift protein eaten from 60% animal to 60% plant by 2030. Ghent has already reached it, The Guardian reported.

Restaurants have followed. At the De Vooruit arts center cafe, oat milk is the default, and about 90% of customers now take it, kitchen coordinator Tom De Vleesschauwer said. At Knol & Kool, a vegan restaurant and shop, 85% of customers are not vegetarian, The Guardian reported.

Visitors can also eat at the city's "social restaurants," where all are welcome, including tourists. At Parnassus, set in a former church, a two-course meal costs 16 euros at full price. Residents on some benefits pay less. On Thursdays, both main dishes are meat-free.

Debruyne credited a mix of public pressure and policy. "Twelve years ago, 13% of the population described themselves as flexitarians. This year, a whopping 83% did," she said, according to The Guardian. "It's a silent revolution."

What we know: Ghent has had a meat-free Thursday since 2009, and plant-based food is now common in its schools and restaurants.
What we don't: Which survey the flexitarian figures come from. Only The Guardian has reported this so far; NewsHabit hasn't seen independent confirmation.