According to the latest data from Statista, four per cent of Britons are now vegan, the same percentage eat a pescetarian diet and six per cent are vegetarians.
The number of people following a plant-based diet has been rising in recent years. And, even if people are not fully committing to a lifestyle free from any animal by-products, a growing number of people in the UK are adopting a more vegan approach. So much so that a YouGov survey from the end of 2021 found that 36 per cent of respondents believe eating a vegan or plant-based diet is “an admirable thing to do.”
Food brands are embracing this ever-growing trend and producing more plant-based foods, which - at the end of the day - is good news for vegans and the vegan-curious alike.
While many may not wish to raise their child totally without any animal-derived substances, the increasing amount of product choices on the market means parents can introduce a variety of milk, snacks and even fully-prepared meals to their kids with an increasing amount of convenience, which sounds like a win-win to us.
Here is a range of great options for you and your little ones to try.
Frozen meals, ready meals and meal kits
Gousto Meal Boxes
By now, most people are familiar with meal delivery boxes and how convenient they can be, especially with busy family life. If you subscribe to Gousto, you get a delivery of all the ingredients you need to make as many meals as you need for as many people as you have in the house every week.
Included is a recipe card with simple step-by-step instructions. You can pick from vegan meals, veggie meals, quick suppers as well as hundreds of classic dinners.
Gousto has a range of options for vegans and veggie curious, offering balanced dishes for the whole family. As you cook the meal, you can omit or add things like salt, spice or other ingredients as you go - so it’s great for kids and fussy eaters. Best of all, it takes the stress out of thinking: ‘What are we eating today’ every single night for the rest of time.
Prices start from £24.99 for two meals for two people.
Buy now £24.99, Gousto
Little Freddie Grains packets
If you are a fan of microwave rice for adults, you will love these for your kids. Little Freddie offers super easy pre-cooked grains that you can whip up in an instant, which include the delicious Italian Tomato bulgar wheat, rice and lentils. It can be eaten cold or warmed up, on its own or on the side of another dish. Great to have in the cupboard for quick and easy meals.
Buy now £1.80, Sainsbury's
Vivera plant-based mince
In the vegan community, Vivera’s plant-based mince comes up over and over again. It is made from hydrated soya protein and is fortified with added iron and B12, two vitamins that are sometimes tough to get into young children and particularly those on a plant-based diet. Yummy in Bolognese or Shepherd’s Pie.
Buy now £2.60, Tesco
Dovebrook children’s meals
Dovebrook is a frozen food business for children helmed by a husband-and-wife team who ran a successful London-based vegan and vegetarian café before moving out to the Cotswolds to grow their own food.
Dovebrook’s meals are handmade in small batches in their Cotswolds kitchen - and boy can you tell. These are delicious, high-quality meals that keep even the fussiest children happy. Our tiny tasters loved the Lentil Dahl in particular. The dishes - which are also available for adults - are multi-award-winning with the Carrot and Red Onion Bhajis recently winning a Great Taste 2* gong.
The brand also has a number of sustainability measures making it a fantastic brand to spend your hard-earned cash on. Meals start at £3.50.
Buy now £3.50, Dovebrook
Lune + Wild Toddler Meal Pots
Lune + Wild makes pots of delicious, handmade baby and children’s meals created from all-organic ingredients. They also offer ready-made purees for babies who are being weaned - a lifesaver for busy people who don’t have the time to spend pureeing various vegetables. The brand also sells frozen finger foods like veggie muffins and fishcakes. The ready-made pasta sauces are particularly good too.
Buy now £3.80, Lune + Wild
Benji’s Bites Plant-based starter pack
Small business Benji’s Bites offers a fantastic frozen taster box of four products for £28 - perfect for a starter option if you want to try out your children on a vegan diet without having to commit.
For the starter pack, you pick two mains - such as Tomato and Lentil Curry or Veggie Chilli - and two sides - such as Mixed Grains, or Potato and Sweet Potato Mash. The portions are the equivalent of 12 complete meals for a one-year-old and obviously a few less for bigger kids or those with a big appetite. Our tiny tasters loved the curry in particular.
Buy now £28.00, Benji’s Bites
Snacks and milks
Plant-based Babybel
Babybels are a classic snack for kids - but like many major brands in the past few years, it has adapted and launched a plant-based range. These little cheeses are delicious and perfect to pop in a lunch box or to hand to a snackish little person when you’re on the go.
Buy now £2.15, Sainsbury's
The Collective Suckies Dairy-free
The Collective does an excellent range of yoghurts in pouches. Its non-plant-based products contain no added sugars and are made from British whole milk yoghurt with real fruit and no pips or bits.
The brand’s dairy-free alternatives are the same, but made from a combination of oat and coconut. Great for lunches on the go as the squeezy-design means don’t need a spoon.
Buy now £1.00, Ocado
Organix Herb and Tomato Gruffalo Claws
To be honest, you can’t go wrong with any of the Organix range as easy pre-prepared snacks for your children. From crisps to oat bars, little biscuits to crackers, our little one is yet to reject anything from its offering of organic snacks. These particular Claws came up top trumps.
Buy now £9.40, Amazon
Alpro Soya growing up drink
This is a great option for an alternative to cow’s milk, commonly given to children when they get past the 12-month mark. It is rich in calcium and high in plant proteins, meaning it is highly nutritious.
This is widely used by those following a plant-based diet and comes highly recommended. Of course, you can pick other vegan milk such as oat or almond, but make sure they are fortified with vitamins and aren’t sweetened.
Buy now £2.00, ASDA
Tesco Plant Chef Soft Cheese
This product also comes highly recommended - and it is easy to see why. For the price, compared to other similar products on the market, this Plant Chef Soft Cheese is delicious, creamy and not immediately obviously vegan (which is often the case with some plant-based products, especially cheeses). Well worth buying for sandwiches, pasta sauces and on crackers.
Buy now £2.00, Tesco
