Starbucks has announced a slew of new plant-based food and drinks to draw in more curious and environment-conscious diners.
This week, just as China reopens businesses following the Covid-19 lockdown, the world’s biggest coffee chain has not only reopened most of its stores, but has also rolled out a new plant-based menu in all of its 4,200 locations across the country.
The new menu will feature vegan meals from Beyond Meat, and Omnipork- a plant-based pork alternative brand, and include Beyond Beef Pesto Pasta, Beyond Beef Spicy & Sour Wrap, Beyond Beef Lasagna, as well as an Omnipork Vietnamese-style noodle salad, and an Omnipork mushroom-sauce grain bowl.
Starbucks will also sell non-dairy lattes using oat milk from Swedish brand Oatly.
The move comes at a time when a growing number of Chinese consumers are seeking food choices based on health, environmental and ethical reasons.
“Our new menu items make it easy and enjoyable to explore new lifestyles, starting from what we eat and drink,” said Leo Tsoi, senior vice president, chief operating officer and president of Starbucks China in a statement.
“Health and wellness, including healthy eating, has been one of most important consumer trends in China,” said Derek Deng, a partner with consulting firm Bain and Company.
Plant-based protein
China’s alt meat industry has been pegged as a key target market by several international plant-based players and the launch marks an important step for Beyond Meat in that direction.
“Today we mark an important milestone as Beyond Meat launches in China, advancing our goal of increasing accessibility to plant-based protein globally,” said Beyond Meat’s founder and CEO Ethan Brown in a statement.
Other chains trialing new plant-based meat options, include KFC, which is set to add vegan chicken nuggets made by agribusiness giant Cargill to its menu in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen for three days next week.
Starbucks has also been increasingly expanding its plant-based menu across the world in a bid to capture the growing vegan market.
While Starbucks UK added the Caramel Chococado Pot and the Vegan Spiced Protein Bowl to its existing plant-based menu last month, the international coffee chain announced that it was dropping the additional fee incurred for drinks made with plant-based milks.
Share this news to support the growing trend of veganism.
Lifestyle
Vegan culture, food, beauty & more
22-year-old kinesiology student says vegan diet and exercise helped her shed 50lb
- Mohsina Dodhiya
- 16th April 2021
“I enjoy the vegan lifestyle because I have a lot of energy from eating tons of carbs, and I have less stomach issues as well.” A kinesiology student says going vegan has helped her lose weight, transformed her life, and inspired her to become a ‘personal trainer’. Sharing her weight loss journey, 22-year-old Hope Peterson …
Plant-powered mum calls for vegan options in schools across the UK
- Mohsina Dodhiya
- 13th April 2021
“More than one in a hundred people in the UK are now vegan, and the proportion is growing every year. It’s time our schools catch up and make sure all their pupils feel safe, welcome, and valued.” A vegan pupil’s mother has been campaigning to add vegan options to school menus across the UK. According …
VEGAN MEMES
NEED A LAUGH?
QUIZZES
All the quizzes you love to binge!
QUIZ: If you score 11/12 on this quiz, you’re a verified vegan food expert
- Marlon Farrugia
- 10th January 2020
How much vegan knowledge do you have stored away? Do you have to Google your way through a shopping trip, or do you have all the bad E-numbers memorised? Find out now with this quiz. Marlon Farrugia Marlon Farrugia is a freelance writer from Brighton. He has been a dedicated vegan for many years, and …
QUIZ: What is your perfect Vegan Halloween Costume?
- Marlon Farrugia
- 13th October 2019
Spook Season approaches. There will be ghosts, goblins, ghouls, and glucose. You need a costume, and you want to it to show off your personality, which means VEGAN. But what to choose? Take our quiz to find out your perfect outfit. Marlon Farrugia Marlon Farrugia is a freelance writer from Brighton. He has been a …
QUIZ: What kind of vegetable are you?
- Marlon Farrugia
- 26th September 2019
“If you were a vegetable, what kind would you be?” A question that has tormented humanity throughout the ages – until now. Read: QUIZ: If you score 19/20 on THIS quiz, you’re a Vegan God Marlon Farrugia Marlon Farrugia is a freelance writer from Brighton. He has been a dedicated vegan for many years, and …