The demand for plant-based dishes in company restaurants is growing yearly as workplace services provider Sodexo Ireland marks Veganuary 2023 with food data results from 43 of its client sites in Ireland. Approximately 21,600 vegetarian or vegan meals were bought on those sites between January and November 22, representing a thriving 8.5% of sales, up from 5% in 2021.
Vegetarian and vegan dishes purchased on client sites in Northern Ireland remained steady at 6% of sales for both years.
Sodexo offers vegan and vegetarian main courses, grab and go snacks and sandwiches throughout the year. The survey showed that demand for plant-based food options is greatest during the summer months, but December also has a strong showing.
Sodexo has long been committed to providing more vegan and vegetarian meal options to suit the changing demands of its customers. As part of its Social Impact Pledge, the organisation is focused on increasing the uptake of sustainable meal options by promoting and raising awareness of sustainable plant-based choices to its clients. The organisation continues to develop and expand its plant-based meal options to enable its customers to make more sustainable food choices.
Vegan options offered by Sodexo include lentil celeriac chestnut pie, potato mixed bean chilli, tofu summer tart, Southern Indian vegan chickpea curry, vegan mushroom burger, vegan chicken nuggets, aubergine masala and many more.
Claire Atkins-Morris, Director of Corporate Responsibility at Sodexo, said: “Whether people are vegan, vegetarian, or just want to try something new, it's great to see that more and more customers are trying plant-based meals across our sites. This really demonstrates a shift in consumer awareness, a wider range of options and a marketplace responding.
“We are a proud supporter of Veganuary, and our community of chefs are encouraging more customers to try our plant-based meals by developing delicious vegan and vegetarian recipes that show the variety of meal options people have at our client sites. As part of our Net Zero commitment, we have set ourselves the goal of increasing the number of plant-based meals and recipes our clients choose from to 33% by 2025.”
Toni Vernelli, Head of Communication & Marketing at Veganuary added: “We're delighted to see Sodexo reporting an increase in sales of vegan and vegetarian meals across their UK and Ireland client sites. Veganuary is here to support anyone who wants to try being vegan, but it makes our job a lot simpler when organisations like Sodexo are offering delicious, nutritious, and easily accessible options.”
Sodexo Ireland Sodexo Ireland is part of the global Sodexo Group, a world leader in delivering services that improve the quality of life to clients in business and industry, education, financial, pharma and healthcare. These include food services, infrastructure build, facilities and estate management, optimising the workplace experience, wellness experiences, personal and homecare services.