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Despite what some critics might claim, data from diverse sources continues to demonstrate a growing worldwide interest in plant-based diets.

According to Google Trends, a tool that analyzes the relative popularity of search terms over time, the interest in “veganism” on Google has been on a worldwide upward climb since 2009. In fact, it’s more than doubled in the last six years.

“Search interest in veganism has more than doubled since July 2009 [based on global search interest in July 2009 vs. July 2015],” a Google rep confirmed to Latest Vegan News.

Interest remained relatively stable between 2005 and 2009, according to Google’s data, but has spiked significantly in the last six years.

(Anyone interested can check out the data online.)

Google Trends is a powerful gauge of public sentiment, generally used to track the zeitgeist and help researchers analyze cultural phenomenon and popular topics. Google has even utilized the tool to follow and predict the spread of the flu virus.

This new information on veganism’s popularity is in line with statistics we recently reported that show 36% of Americans are open to meatless eating, and that 400 million fewer animals were killed for food in 2014 vs. 2007.

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