Written by Kre'Adiv House

There’s no doubt that fast food is having a real moment.

Burgers. Crab cakes. Ice Cream. Almost every day there is a new plant-based version of a familiar favourite hitting both shelves and drive-through lanes and creating major waves in the marketplace.

Where vegan products were once scarce, there’s now a plant-based version of every product imaginable. More than simply being available, these products are in demand: in 2018, the global vegan food sector topped out at $3.3 billion and is expected to reach that mark in the US alone by 2024. In Canada, a Neilsen survey found that 43 percent of Canadians are actively trying to incorporate more plant-based foods into their diets.

Even traditionally meat-based food producers, such as Maple Leaf Food Co. are recognizing the opportunity and expanding their product reach by adding plant-based options to their offerings.

Despite concerns about formulations, environmental stresses created during processing and shipping, and the amounts of sodium and fats in meat substitutes, the growth of plant-based fast-food options is a boon for both animal welfare, and for the economy.

Glenn Whitehead, owner of three plant-based restaurants in London, Plant Matter Kitchen, Plant Matter Bistro, and Plant Matter Cafe, says that it doesn’t matter if the recent vegan trend isn’t aligned with a healthy plant-based lifestyle; anything that makes vegan food options more readily available and pushes the vegan conversation forward into mainstream media and into the daily diets of the general public is a trend in the right direction.

Like all diets, veganism is a spectrum, he notes, and offers a variety of options ranging from healthy to unhealthy. To say that veganism should be a purely healthy diet effectively limits its reach and restricts the scope of options. Not every vegan is going to choose to eat healthy every single day. To have more vegan options available—healthy or not—ensures that making the vegan choice is easy, and more importantly, encourages opportunities for, vegetarians, flexitarians, and carnivores alike to either consider, or better yet, make a plant-based food choice anytime they grab a burger at A&W or a breakfast sandwich at Tim Hortons.

For many people, however, the inclusion of vegan options at traditionally meat-focused establishments doesn’t serve to further the vegan conversation, but rather serves to support fiscally motivatived businesses to benefit from a growing sector of the market. To truly align with vegan ethos and move away from performative veganism, fast-food restaurants would have to drastically increase their meat-free, dairy-free and egg-free menu items across all menus.

But whether you fall on the side of vegan fast food being a positive or a negative, there’s no denying that the growing number of plant-based options in a traditional food environment makes products available in food spaces where vegan options didn’t previously exist.

Having plant-based fast food options readily available is an opportunity that wasn’t possible as recently as last year. While vegetarian options were available at a few fast-food chains, it was challenging to find vegan-friendly options.

It’s the scarcity of vegan resources locally that was the reason restaurateur Whitehead traveled to Toronto to find plant-based fine dining and to source other vegan food options. After attending VegFest, he recognized the groundswell that the vegan movement was experiencing and knew that the time was perfect to bring more plant-based options to London.

He wasn’t alone in his assessment that the plant-based sector was ripe for growth: as of 2019, there are more vegan restaurants and fast-food choice in London than ever before. As Whitehead was opening Plant Matter Kitchen, plant-based and vegan options began to appear at almost every fast-food restaurant including Harvey’s, A&W, Burger King, and Tim Hortons. Although not yet in Canada, even McDonald’s added a vegan burger to its lineup in Germany, along with other vegan options in India, Israel, and Chicago.

While Whitehead’s restaurants serve a wide range of plant-based food options, they also include fast-food favourite Beyond Burger and the Beyond Sausage on their menus as a way to include as many diners as possible, whether it’s a carnivore trying a plant-based burger for the first time, or a pre-vegan beginning to eliminate dairy, offering options that appeal to everyone is part of the ultimate philosophy and mission to further the plant-based conversation.

Whether in a vegan restaurant or at a fast-food drive-through, the more people who hear the vegan message and the more voices that engage in the conversation of achieving a sustainable and cruelty-free food marketplace continues the trend in the right direction.

Increased options, availability, and accessibility of vegan food choices throughout the marketplace is a major win, no matter how healthy—or unhealthy—they may be.