(A sampling of German food. (Photo: Sohu)

BERLIN, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Thirty-nine percent of Germans agree that agriculture has become "more important" as a result of the coronavirus crisis, said the official nutrition report for 2020 published by Germany's Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) on Friday.

"Coronavirus is also changing the everyday diet of Germans," said Food and Agriculture Minister Julia Kloeckner. "A new awareness of food has emerged and also of the work of those who produce it."

Especially teenagers and young adults in Germany believe that the agricultural sector has become more important since the start of the COVID-19 crisis, according to a survey conducted by the opinion research institute Forsa among 1,000 German citizens.

As a result of restaurant and canteen closures, almost a third of Germans have been preparing meals themselves during the coronavirus crisis, while almost as many have had meals with family members more frequently, according to the BMEL.

"Whether the new enthusiasm for cooking will be permanent or is merely due to the restrictions imposed by the coronavirus pandemic, we will only be able to judge later," said Kloeckner.

Assessing the general eating habits of Germans, the BMEL noted that "variety was on the plates." A large majority (70 percent) of Germans eat vegetables and fruits every day, while dairy products, such as yoghurt or cheese, are on the daily menu for 64 percent.

Meat consumption in Germany is continuing to fall slightly. Twenty-six percent of those surveyed eat meat on a daily basis. In the first survey conducted for the official nutrition report in 2015, the respective figure was 34 percent, according to the BMEL.

More than half of the Germans surveyed described themselves as so-called flexitarians -- people who eat meat but occasionally avoid meat consumption deliberately. At the same time, the number of vegetarians and vegans in Germany remained unchanged at 5 percent and 1 percent, respectively, according to the BMEL.

Almost half of those questioned have bought vegetarian or vegan alternatives to animal products at least once. According to the BMEL, 75 percent of those who bought meat-free alternatives were "curious," while nearly 50 percent also chose these products for animal welfare reasons.