Tesco has revealed an increase in plant-based food products, attributing Veganuary to the cause.
The Big 4 grocer has celebrated a Veganuary sales boom with its new plant-based meal deal and increased demand for no and low alcohol amid Dry January.
Other popular plant-based foods purchased at Tesco this month were chilled dairy alternative milk drink which went up by more than 100%.
Vegan pasta and vegetable soups went up by almost 140% and both vegan cooked meat alternatives and chilled desserts increased by 40%.
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“In the last year we have concentrated on making the best quality plant-based food even more accessible for shoppers by lowering prices,” Tesco head of plant-based food innovation Derek Sarno.
“The Wicked Kitchen Meal Deal, which is an amazing offer for folks that want to try plant-based for the first time, launched this Veganuary and is testament to that.”
The news comes amid the largest Veganuary to date, with 34% of Britons interested in trying a plant-based diet.
In addition to Veganuary, Dry January saw record demand for Tesco’s low and no alcohol beer and a strong demand for sparkling wine.
Sales for low and no alcohol beer and cider rose by nearly 30% compared to last year, and demand for sparkling wine rocketed by over 40%.
The retailer’s most popular non-alcoholic product was Nozeco Spumante Alcohol Free which saw demand rise by over 200% compared to last year.
“Interestingly, this year it was low and no beer and cider which saw the highest demand – a reversal on Dry January 2021 when wine and spirit alternatives were the most popular,” Tesco category buying manager for beer and cider Marianne Aitken said.
“Those high sales were encouraged by the huge popularity of Lucky Saint craft lager and also the exclusive listing of Corona Cero at our stores.”
The rise in sales come as Tesco announced it has removed nearly 1.5 billion pieces of plastic from packaging in a bid to maintain sustainability efforts.
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