CARTOON caveman Fred Flintstone would have eaten veg instead of meaty Bronto-Burgers, experts say.
Human ancestors like Bedrock’s bolshy dad frequently chowed down on carrots, parsnips, grains and nuts, studies of ancient bones, teeth and burnt plant remains have revealed.
It overturns previous theories that early man mostly lived on meat from hunting animals like woolly mammoth and bison.
Milk was rare as farming was not invented, making cave-dwellers mostly vegan — long before the dawn of tofu.
The study by Wyoming University, US, of 9,000-year-old remains in the Andes, Peru, found potatoes were a big hit too.
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Professor Randy Haas said: “Conventional wisdom holds that early humans focused on hunting.
“But our analysis shows that the diets were composed of 80 per cent plant matter and 20 per cent meat.
“The major method for preparing tubers, which were likely wild potatoes, would probably have been to roast them in underground pits.
“I suspect potatoes still make up a large portion of diets around the world today, especially when you consider the popularity of french fries.
“Our methods offer the clearest and most accurate picture of early forager diets to date.”