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Image credit: Photo by Valeria Boltneva

We’ve been on our vegan challenge for a good 4 weeks now, with just a couple of days to go. Numbers signing up have almost doubled year on year since its UK inception 5 years ago, and over 250,000 people have signed up online this year. With this massive spike in interest, it’s no wonder many companies have brought out new vegan options and ranges, to cater to a growing number of plant-based customers. Marks and Spencer brought out a full range on January 2nd, presumably to tie in with Veganuary, from ready meals to snacks, with pricing ranging on average from £3 – 3.50. Their range also uses recyclable trays, foil trays and cardboard boxes in an effort to reduce plastic waste. Supermarkets such as Tesco and Sainsbury’s have expanded their meat and dairy-free ranges, most coffee chains have multiple dairy-free milk alternatives available, and of course, we all heard about the Greggs vegan sausage roll thanks to a certain unnamed (because we don’t want to give him more of the attention that he desperately craves) man.

This morning, I finally got my hands on one of these illusive snacks (as I hadn’t yet had time for breakfast, and even after 3 weeks you have to get there early before they sell out)! I was very pleasantly surprised about the quality of the pastry itself, as I’d heard a couple of mixed reviews, but personally thought it was delicious. The sausage part is made from Quorn and was equally as tasty as the outer layer. I shared (a small amount) with colleagues in the office, and we all agreed it was maybe even nicer than the meaty original (and I honestly use to be a big fan), as it was much less greasy, but just enough that it still felt like a high street classic. I guess my only complaint would be that there wasn’t slightly more of it, however for £1 it was a fairly reasonable sized portion, and next time I’ll just have to get 2!

It is thought that 2019 will be the year that the vegan diet truly goes mainstream, making it easier and easier to still find tasty dishes wherever you’re dining. As has been reported multiple times, a drastic reduction in our global meat and dairy intake will be required if we are going to have a hope of tackling manmade climate change in time. Animal agriculture is taking a serious toll on the health of our planet and its environment, so even if you’re not ready to give up meat and dairy entirely, perhaps consider replacing some of your standard meals with these plant-based alternatives. If you’d like to read a little more on this subject, and haven’t read it already, my colleague Georgia wrote a very informative review of a podcast on this subject matter if you’d like to read more, you can do that here.

Good luck with the rest of your Veganuary, and we hope you get to try some of these delicious treats!