The new organic: fast food companies increase vegan offerings

For decades, a vegan diet was considered to be the life choice of fringe-dwellers and flower children. Dairy-free cheese was only found in health food stores and lentil burgers were rarer than pasture-raised hen’s teeth.

But now Australia is the third-fastest growing vegan market in the world, with sales of packaged vegan food predicted to reach $215 million by 2020, up from $136 million, according to research company Euromonitor International.

The country also had the highest global percentage of Google searches for the word "vegan" in 2018.

Hungry Jack's launched a vegan breakfast muffin on January 29 following the success of its new vegan cheeseburger featuring two vegan patties (made from corn, capsicum and carrot), vegan cheese and vegan mayonnaise.

Dominos unveiled its Vegan Summer BBQ Pizza on January 20 which uses a cheese substitute made from plant oils and starches. It is the fourth pizza in Dominos’ vegan range which launched 12 months ago to an “unprecedented demand” which saw all dairy-free cheese stock exhausted within a week.

“It was initially added to the menu for a limited time only, but due to its popularity we decided to make vegan cheese a permanent item,” said Dominos’ chief executive for Australia and New Zealand, Nick Knight.

Streets threw a glamorous launch party in Bondi last week for its new dairy-free Magnum which uses coconut oil and pea protein instead of milk-based products. It is sold as an “ice confection” as the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code dictates a product must contain at least 10 per cent dairy fat to be labelled ice-cream. Other new dairy-free ice-cream alternatives are available from Cornetto, Weis and Halo Top.

Yet there is an unexpected downside, with some junk food options less healthy than their non-vegan equivalents.

“The word ‘vegan’ has a health halo effect where consumers may perceive a food as being healthy when it’s actually not,” said dietician Daisy Coyle. “This can lead to overconsumption.”

Dr Rohan Miller, a senior lecturer at The University of Sydney Business School, said vegan is the new food fad and has taken over from "organic".

While many people choose to eat vegan foods for ethical and environmental reasons, Dr Miller believes the rise in plant-based eating is largely driven by an urbane population looking to manage its health and weight.

“I’m not sure people want to become full-time vegans, but they certainly want the option to eat a couple of meals a week that are plant-based,” he said.

“A plant-based diet that includes fruit, vegetables, whole grains and legumes is really healthy,” said Ms Coyle. “It’s very different to what we can call a vegan diet which essentially just means excluding animal products. The floor is open to eat whatever you want such as junk food like pizza, burgers and hot dogs.”

Ms Coyle said there is little nutritional difference between Magnum’s dairy-free offering and Dominos vegan pizza compared to their non-vegan versions.

“When it comes to Hungry Jacks’ burger, however, there’s a big difference because the meat is replaced with a vegan patty,” she said.

Hungry Jacks’ vegan cheeseburger uses two patties, making it closer in serving size to the Double Whopper than the fast food company’s standard cheeseburger, Ms Coyle said.

“It has less kilojoules and fat than the Double Whopper but almost twice the carbohydrates and 60 per cent more salt. The vegan cheeseburger’s 1490 milligrams of sodium is a massive amount - around 70 per cent of the recommended daily intake.”

Vegan fast-food chain Lord of Fries, which has 22 stores in Australia and New Zealand, began offering the Bill Gates-backed Beyond Burger last year. The Beyond Burger took seven years to develop so it looks and tastes like real meat and the pea-based pattie is designed to “bleed” beetroot juice when cooked.

The Beyond Burger’s popularity led Lord of the Fries to also launch the Beyond Sausage for the first time in Australia last week.

According to its US manufacturers, the Beyond Sausage aims to “look, sizzle and satisfy just like a regular pork sausage”. The assembly of pea, fava bean and rice proteins is an “incredible innovation” said Lord of the Fries co-founder Mark Koronczyk.

Five of Sydney’s best vegan takeaway spots

Funky Pies

2/144-148 Glenayr Ave, Bondi Beach

What the eco-friendly pies lack in meat, they make up for in flavour with Indian spices and Thai-style sauces.

Gigi’s Pizzeria

379 King Street, Newtown

After almost a decade slinging some of Sydney’s best Naples-style pizza, Gigi’s removed all animal products from its menu in 2015. The queue for a weekend table only became longer.

Golden Lotus

343 King Street, Newtown

100 per cent vegan Vietnamese cuisine featuring one of the finest plant-based phos in the West.

Soul Burger

49 Perouse Road, Randwick

Plant-based versions of fried chicken, fish and beef burgers enhanced with delicious relish and pesto. Also at Glebe, Newtown and Parramatta.

Verd

Shop C, 13 The Corso, Manly

Bright and colourful bowls featuring tempeh, fresh vegetables and Iggy’s sourdough croutons. Also at Barangaroo and Surry Hills.

Five of Melbourne's best vegan takeaway spots

Boys & Girls

382a Brunswick Street, Fitzroy

Silken coconut soft-serve topped with crack-ready chocolate and zero guilt about the dairy industry.

Weirdoughs

241 Flinders Lane, Melbourne

Pastry cooked with macadamia, cashew and coconut oil means Weirdough's entire bakery range is vegan.

Northcote Fish & Chips

341 High Street, Northcote

A Brit-style fish and chipper with a menu that's 50 per cent faux fish.

Red Sparrow

406 Smith Street, Collingwood

Everyone is doing vegan pizza, but Red Sparrow came early to the game and brought a party with them.

Tahina

223 High Street, Northcote

Known for its falafel pitas, but the spiced carrot "sausage" in a charcoal bun with pickled cabbage and tahini mustard gives them post-drink range.