{"id":18096,"date":"2026-02-21T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/2026\/02\/21\/double-the-meat-is-britains-love-affair-with-vegetarianism-over-food-and-beverage-industry\/"},"modified":"2026-02-21T06:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T06:00:00","slug":"double-the-meat-is-britains-love-affair-with-vegetarianism-over-food-and-beverage-industry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/2026\/02\/21\/double-the-meat-is-britains-love-affair-with-vegetarianism-over-food-and-beverage-industry\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Double the meat’: Is Britain’s love affair with vegetarianism over? | Food and Beverage Industry"},"content":{"rendered":"
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me<\/span>Vegetarianism and veganism are booming in 2021, and our menus reflect this. Restaurants and fast food chains have rapidly expanded their meatless offerings as they race to meet growing customer demand. McDonald’s has launched its first plant-based burger, joining a wave of operators embracing non-meat options.<\/p>\n

By 2026, the landscape will change noticeably. Last month, the fast food chain announced it was discontinuing most of its vegetarian products, except the McPlant burger, due to poor sales. Wagamama has removed some vegan dishes from its menu, and Domino’s has also scaled back its plant-based options. The last store of Veggie Pret, the high street sandwich chain’s standalone concept store that launched in 2016, closed in February 2024.<\/p>\n

Some industry observers say the changes reflect growing consumer skepticism about ultra-processed foods, with certain vegetarian meat alternatives facing criticism for being overly processed. Instead, the data shows that all sources of protein, especially chicken, are making a comeback. Others argue that the changes are less dramatic. In other words, rather than retreating, the sector is stabilizing after a rapid boom.<\/p>\n

Data from Lumina’s Menu Tracker shows that pubs and bars served two fewer dishes in the first three months of 2025 compared to the same period the previous year. The average main course list remained high at 54 items, but vegetarian options were described as "distinctly dwindling” as menus slanted more towards meat-centric dishes.<\/p>\n

<\/svg><\/span>Wagamama has removed many of its vegan menu options, including plant-based corn dogs.<\/span> Photo: Richard Saker\/The Guardian<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Liv Warren, insight manager at Lumina, said pubs were \u201celiminating the small portion category by cutting back on vegetarian dishes and doubling down on core, highly profitable meat dishes\u201d.<\/p>\n

A similar pattern emerged in restaurants. Traditional meat entrees have seen significant growth, with pizza and burgers on the rise. \u201cWe had vegetable dishes, but they were down a little bit,\u201d Warren said. High-protein chicken dishes were the main driver, increasing share of mains by 4.2 percentage points during the analysis period.<\/p>\n

Looking at the first half of 2025, Warren said menus are expanding in some channels, but growth is clearly driven by meat. She said pubs were explicitly reducing vegetarian dishes, focusing on \u201cchicken and protein\u201d. She added: \u201cVegetable dishes are there, but they are not driving growth… indulgences and proteins are outpacing plant-based innovation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Operators are reallocating menu space to higher-margin meat dishes, especially chicken, she said. These changes reflect ongoing cost pressures, the normalization of demand following the plant-based boom, and a shift in health messaging from \u201cmeat-free\u201d to \u201chigh-protein.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/svg><\/span>High-protein meat dishes are much more popular in restaurants and food chains.<\/span> Photo: Eugene Mymrin\/Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cMany people may not realize how algorithm-driven food trends can be,\u201d said Bia Bezamat, director of cultural insights at market research firm Kantar. \u201cTikTok is often filled with micro-trends like high protein, which skews heavily towards meat, and gut health, behind the rise of fermented foods like kefir and pickles.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rise of GLP-1 medicines also means there is a trend toward smaller, more nutrient-dense meals. So restaurants are ultimately responding to all of these different trends.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kara Buffrey, founding partner of restaurant agency Chomp, believes change is an adjustment, not a reversal. \u201cThe reduction of vegetarian options at McDonald\u2019s and Domino\u2019s and the closure of concepts like Veggie Pret and other vegan restaurants feel more like a market adjustment than a cultural reversal,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cVeganism has gone through a hype phase and brands have responded boldly to the momentum. But fast food operates on very narrow margins and is entirely demand-driven. If people don\u2019t order enough vegetable takeaways, the product won\u2019t survive.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added that pressure from rising menu prices could also impact consumer choice. \u201cI don\u2019t necessarily think vegetarianism itself is on the decline. Rather, as eating out becomes more expensive, consumers may feel they are getting more value from meat options. This seems like brands are responding pragmatically to purchasing behavior rather than making a wider ideological shift.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inflation, wage rises, National Insurance and business rates increases are all putting pressure on margins. Now, with nearly 38% of restaurants eating out less often than a year ago, citing rising costs and the need to save money, businesses are making difficult decisions about which dishes to cut back on.<\/p>\n

<\/svg><\/span>The last Veggie Pret store closed in 2024.<\/span> Photo: Christopher Thomond\/The Guardian<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Laura Hellwig, executive director of vegan charity Viva!, agreed that wider economic factors cannot be ignored. \u201cThe hospitality industry is dealing with high wages, inflation and rising costs. Across the industry, operators are cutting low-performing items from their menus.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Hellwig, consumer interest in a plant-based lifestyle remains strong and is actually growing. She cited the Good Food Institute, which published research in May last year showing that 31% of Britons were actively reducing their meat intake and 9% were following a meat-free diet. Veganuary 2026 was a record-breaking event with approximately 30 million participants worldwide, up from 25.8 million the previous year.<\/p>\n

For this reason, she rejected the idea of \u200b\u200bplant-based disruption. She also emphasized that Wagamama still offers a wide range of vegan products and that the sector is entering a period of consolidation. "That’s normal. That level of rapid growth wasn’t sustainable in the long term. Many brands jumped on the plant-based bandwagon and launched a ton of products. It’s inevitable that some of them will disappear.”<\/p>\n

What’s important is that strong performers still exist. \u201cMcPlant is still very popular. We\u2019re stubborn about what works.\u201d Cheaper high street options such as McPlant and Greggs vegan sausage rolls continue to sell strongly.<\/p>\n

\u201cMinimally processed whole foods and natural high-protein options, such as tofu, tempeh, seitan and falafel, are growing, as are functional foods that offer additional health benefits,\u201d Helllwig added.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

meVegetarianism and veganism are booming in 2021, and our menus reflect this. Restaurants and fast food chains have rapidly expanded their meatless offerings as they race to meet growing customer demand. McDonald’s has launched its first plant-based burger, joining a wave of operators embracing non-meat options. By 2026, the landscape will change noticeably. Last month, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[47244,47810,47807,5352,47805,9544,47809,47808,15090,47811,16901,47806],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18096","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business","category-dominos-pizza","category-fast-food","category-food","category-food-drink-industry","category-life-and-style","category-mcdonalds","category-retail-industry","category-society","category-ultra-processed-foods","category-veganism","category-vegetarianism"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18096","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18096"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18096\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/en_us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}