Eurest research finds that Veganuary works long term

The benefits of a Veganuary campaign in workplace restaurants can last way beyond January, with sales of plant-based items remaining higher even a year later, according to a study by Eurest. The research was conducted by Kantar Public and took place in 36 workplace restaurants run by the caterer in both office and industrial settings.

Across the time series, 2,255,404 meals were sold, spanning 1,838 distinct products, and the study aimed to determine whether an annual plant-based meal campaign influenced people’s meal purchases for the long term.

The results showed an increase in uptake of vegan meals during Veganuary, of between 86% and 113%, when it came to the proportion of total weekly sales, and from 23% to 79% for vegetarian meals. There was then a gradual drop in the ensuing months – but with positive impacts still around one third of the initial rise by the end of the year in the years 2020 and 2021.

Nudging behaviour beyond January
Rees Bramwell, head of nutrition and sustainability for Eurest, said: “These results are exciting because they indicate that Veganuary, and increasing the availability of plant-based options, can nudge people’s behaviour way beyond January.

“Hence 52% of our workplace menus are now plant-based, with a goal to reach 60% by the end of 2024. We have also substituted a percentage of the meat content in 12 of our best-selling dishes with plant-based protein, such as lentils, to make a healthier hybrid meal with a lower carbon footprint.”

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