Meat-free meals in the out-of-home market increased by 23.1% year-on-year, ahead of spend growth for meat, fish and poultry meals, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB).
The spend on meat-free meals outside of the home totalled £3.7 billion in the year ending January 22, 2023, according to figures from Kantar.
The demand for meat-free meals edged ahead of spend growth for meat, fish and poultry, which saw an increase of 17.3% year-on-year.
However, retail insight manager at AHDB, Rebecca Gladman, said the number of individuals consuming meals free of meat has seen a plateau, which she links to inflation.
“The proportion of households buying into meat-free in the past year was 70.6%,” she said.
“It’s key to remember that these meat-free meals incorporate dishes that just don’t include meat, but are still everyday meals (such as cheese sandwiches).
“Despite this, the penetration for meat, fish and poultry is still much higher, at 90.6%.”
Gladman said, when it comes to the top dishes consumed, most are still meat, fish and poultry-driven, with 97% of burgers being meat or poultry-based.
“Nearly nine in ten Asian-cuisine meals include meat, fish or poultry, while 80% of Indian-cuisine meals had meat, fish or poultry,” she said.
“In addition, repeat rates for meat-free are much lower, at 40%, than the 96% seen for meat, fish and poultry. This highlights how consumers find meat, fish and poultry to be a reliable option when out of home.”
