Is veganism declining and should plant-based menu options stay?

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Over the past few years, veganism seems to have plateaued compared to its dramatic uptake in the early 2020s. Although the UK market has seen a shift in the uptake of veganism, it is far from declining. In 2024 it was estimated that there were 2.5 million vegans in the UK (roughly increasing by 1.1 million compared to 2023) with more than 1.8 million people participating in the month-long Veganuary challenge last year.

The charity’s survey showed that 27% still eat a fully vegan diet, but what is equally interesting is that 81% of participants say they will significantly reduce their intake of animal products in the future. It’s this group – the flexitarians – that is driving change, and therefore hospitality needs to stop asking What do vegans want? and start asking How can we make vegan food that meat-eaters wish to eat?

From veganism to a growing flexitarian market

Driven by unprecedented awareness of animal welfare, health concerns and the environment, it is estimated that more than a quarter of British people will become vegetarian in 2025 and more than half will identify as flexitarian and are the main contributors to the rise of the plant-based market. A survey conducted by OnePoll in December 2023 found that 47% of participants deliberately introduced more vegetables to their plates, citing trying to be healthier (82%), saving money (22%) and reducing their impact on the environment (25%) as the main reasons for upping their intake¹. With the rise in plant-based eating being seen across the population, the entire food sector is responding.

Retailers are displacing meat products for plant-based alternatives throughout their stores, including in the meat aisle. Plant Based News also reported that the demand for vegan food at UK quick-service restaurants increased by 56% in 2024².   Likewise, vegan food and drink purchased at UK airports rose significantly last year³ and Aldi unveiled its biggest Veganuary range yet⁴. What’s more, Harvestor and Butlins launched the GARDEN COURMENT® Sensational™ Vegan Pulled Fillet in January 2024 to cater for the growing demand for flexible plant-based menu options for customers. And IKEA launched THIS™ Isn’t Park Sausages at 19 restaurant locations across the UK.

It’s time to innovate

There are elements within food service that traditionally saw veganism as troublesome, and any dishes offered sought only to appease, but not necessarily to please. That approach will no longer fly. While veganism is still in the minority, vegans are the ones who decide where their party will eat. If there is nothing – or nothing appealing – for them on the menu, the group will simply eat elsewhere. So, for fully vegan groups, the deal-breaking vegan within the group, and for the burgeoning flexitarian market, menus must be transformed to bring the most interesting, innovative and pleasurable dishes into the mainstream.

Not either / or

It’s no longer appropriate to ask whether vegans want plant-centric dishes or dishes using meat alternatives. That’s like asking: do our omnivorous customers want meat or fish? The answer is, of course, that they want both, and increasingly those omnivorous customers are wanting plant-based dishes, too.

So, we need to stop thinking about vegan meals as a separate category and start to fully integrate these dishes across the menu. They need to be mixed with the headline acts and made with the same attention to detail. If they appeal to your meat-eating clientele, you are on the right path.

Easy wins

Conduct an audit of the menu. Can small tweaks be made so that existing dishes can become plant-based with minimal fuss and no loss of flavour? Can basics such as pastry, sauces, stocks, bread, and pasta be made vegan by default?

When it comes to increasing the number of plant-based dishes on the menu, desserts are a good place to start as many can be made vegan quite easily, and therefore be made available to all customers.

Start with these easy wins but don’t stop there. Give your chefs free rein to innovate and push beyond the comfort zone of your established menu.

Authenticity

Guests can spot an afterthought. They know that a risotto hidden at the end of the menu is unlikely to have had the same care and attention given to it as the meat-based dishes higher up. Trust and authenticity are important here, so take these dishes seriously. If you’re proud of them, promote them. If you’re not, don’t offer them.

Adding information to your menu about ingredient provenance and environmental considerations can help convince you of your integrity. Staff recommendations are influential and can be added to the menu (“This is my wife’s favourite dish”, states one Brighton menu). Educating front-of-house staff is also essential. If they don’t know whether the creamy sauce on a plate caters for veganism or not, trust will be lost. With social media hosting reviews in real-time, there is little space to get this wrong but make these changes with sincere intentions, and attention to flavour, presentation and value, and it will yield dividends.

With the focus sharpening on the climate impact of our food, and the upswell of plant-based eating driven by ecological, ethical and health reasons, food service must do its bit. If you don’t do it, someone else will … they already are!

1 Tesco, accessed 10/01/2025, <https://www.tescoplc.com/the-return-of-the-plant-based-shopper-as-fans-move-into-scratch-cooking/
2 Adam Protz, 29/12/2024, Plant Based News, accessed 10/01/2025, <https://plantbasednews.org/lifestyle/food/demand-vegan-food-uk-quick-service-restaurants/
3 Jordi Casamitjana, 19/08/2024, Vegan FTA, accessed 10/01/2025, <https://veganfta.com/2024/08/19/vegan-food-consumption-increasing-in-some-uk-airports/
4 Helen Greaves, 20/12/2024, Vegan Food and Living, accessed 10/01/2025, <https://www.veganfoodandliving.com/news/aldi-biggest-vegan-veganuary-range-2025/