Pizza Hut UK has introduced three vegan Beyond Meat pizzas. However, all of them feature dairy cheese.

Pizza Hut UK has launched three plant-based Beyond Meat toppings and a mouthwatering side to menus across its Delivery Hut locations nationwide.

The options are: Beyond Italian Style Sausage Supreme, Beyond Three-Meat Three Cheese, Beyond Beef Sizzler and Beyond Italian Style Sausage Tear & Share Topper.

According to the chain, the partnership is part of a global strategic expansion and a move in response to ‘growing demand for permanent plant-based menu items’ in the UK.

‘The UK loves Beyond Meat pizzas’

Amelia Riba, Chief Brand Officer at Pizza Hut said: “Last year we were the first pizza chain to bring Beyond Meat toppings to the UK, and we’re delighted to introduce them across the country this year.

“We are proud to always bring delicious new innovations right to our customers, and by partnering with Beyond Meat we are offering more flexitarian and meat-free options without sacrificing any flavour.

“With this delicious new range on our permanent menu from today, we are responding directly to feedback from customers – the UK loves Beyond Meat pizzas!” 

Not suitable for vegans

While the toppings are plant-based, the pizzas use dairy cheese and Pizza Hut has not clarified whether the pizzas will be customizable.

Food account vegan food UK in a post to Instagram shared the new Beyond Meat range menu, which clearly mentioned that the recently introduced items are ‘not suitable for vegans’.

The news sparked criticism with one user stating: “They’ve really ballsed this up. I’m not ordering a pizza with no cheese when you can order a pizza with cheese in most other places.”

“None of them suitable for vegans? That’s a bit crap,” commented another.

“What’s the point launching vegan pizzas without vegan cheese?” added a third.

‘Increase accessibility to plant-based meat’

Flexitarianism, where people eat mostly a vegetarian diet but occasionally meat, poultry and fish, is growing exponentially.

According to a new Euromonitor report, flexitarian consumers now make up 42% of the market and mostly include a younger consumer base, including Gen-Z and millennial consumers.

This growing market is what is pushing large companies towards diversification and release of products catering to the flexitarian palette.

Pizza Hut is also aiming to encourage this group but introducing menu items that ‘offer the same, juicy meaty taste of the classic flavours pizza fans know and crave, but with the nutritional and environmental wins that come with plant-based protein’. 

Deanna Jurgens is the Chief Growth Officer at Beyond Meat. She said: “We’re thrilled to partner with Pizza Hut to increase accessibility to plant-based meat options and bring delicious Beyond Meat toppings to consumers across the UK.

“We know meat-eaters and vegetarians alike are increasingly looking for more plant-based options, and we want to enable them to continue to Eat What They Love™, like delicious pizzas, without compromising on taste, a balanced lifestyle or the environment.”

• Read: Impossible Foods to launch new vegan chicken nuggets this fall

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Mohsina Dodhiya

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