Los Angeles is the second-best city in the United States for vegans and vegetarians, according to a study released Tuesday.
WalletHub compared the 100 largest U.S. cities across 17 key indicators, including cost of groceries, the share of restaurants serving meatless options and the number of salad shops per capita.
Researchers found that Los Angeles residents eat this type of food 187% more often than the U.S. average, and the city has the second-highest number of affordable restaurants with vegan and vegetarian options that have at least 4.5 stars on Yelp.
LA also has plenty of places to buy fresh produce for making vegetarian or vegan food at home. It has the fifth-most farmers markets, ninth-most organic farms, 38th-most community gardens and 16th-most vegetable nurseries and gardening shops per capita, WalletHub said.
It also hosts vegetarian and vegan festivals, such as Vegandale Festival and Vegan Street Fair.
Portland, Oregon, was ranked No. 1. The study found it has the third-largest number of affordable restaurants with vegetarian or vegan options that have at least 4.5 stars on Yelp, and the city also has a very high number of organic farms, community gardens, farmers markets and vegetable nurseries per capita.
San Francisco, which ranked fourth behind Austin, Texas, ranked first for diversity and accessibility and vegan lifestyle, but only 100th for affordability. Los Angeles ranked 34th for affordability, but fourth for vegetarian lifestyle.
San Diego ranked eighth on the list of 100 U.S. cities.
According to the study, around 5% of U.S. adults are vegetarian or vegan, which works out to 13.3 million people.
“While vegetarians and vegans are still a relatively small share of the population, businesses are recognizing their impact on their market. Just look at businesses like McDonald’s and Burger King incorporating Beyond Meat and Impossible burgers into their menus, for example,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said. “With meat prices rising significantly faster than vegetable prices, too, we may see a lot more people taking a foray into a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle in the near future.”
The study can be found at wallethub.com/edu/best-cities-for-vegans-vegetarians/39706.