UK-based recipe box provider Gousto has released its 2024 Food Trends report, which reveals that the company’s sales of meatless meals have doubled in the past four years. Additionally, Gousto told Wales Online that 23% of meal orders were plant-based in 2023, with this figure even higher in some areas.
The highest proportion of plant-based meals was ordered in the following towns and cities:
- London – 32.5%
- Harrow – 31%
- Brighton – 30%
- Bristol – 28.2%
- Cambridge – 27.3%
- Edinburgh – 26.8%
- Watford – 26.3%
- Oxford – 26.3%
- Truro – 26.1%
- Southall – 25.9%.
“Flexitarianism and the rise of plant-based meals have been some of the most important food trends of 2023,” says the Food Trends report.
Plant-based meal kits
Recipe kits rose in popularity during the pandemic, with Mindful Chef reporting a huge 345% increase in vegan meal orders in 2020. The same year saw the launch of Grubby, which claimed to be the UK’s first fully plant-based meal kit brand. Additionally, Gousto partnered with Meatless Farm in 2020 to help meet the growing demand for meat-free meals.
According to ProVeg International, consumers are increasingly turning towards convenience foods, meaning that the market for meal kits continues to expand. Most plant-based meals are bought by flexitarians rather than vegetarians or vegans, so catering to this audience will be key. The top priorities of flexitarians are taste, health, and convenience, followed by cost and freshness.
“It’s great to see our customers eating more plant-based meals and being more conscious about upping the fruit and veg in their diet,” Jordan Moore, Senior Food Development Manager at Gousto, told Wales Online. “2023 has continued the growing trend which has seen the number of people ordering our vegetarian and plant-based meals double over the last four years.”
