How plant-based diets and ‘impossible’ meat substitutes ruled the conversation in 2019, as we enter World Vegan Month

Nov 1 , 2019

As we enter World Vegan Month, there is plenty for healthy and sustainable eaters to celebrate in Hong Kong, and beyond.

With Impossible and Beyond Meat now available in Burger King and KFC, and with Hong Kong restaurants Bedu, Uma Nota, Dragon I and Tsui Wah all adopting Green Monday, there is plenty for vegan and vegetarian eaters to celebrate in the city, and beyond

November 1 marks the beginning of World Vegan Month, and with worthy celebrations well underway recognising how far the movement has come since this time last year, it’s high time for a look back at the remarkable rise of vegan food in 2019.

Impossible and Beyond Meat probably need no introduction – these plant-based meat substitutes are making their way into the mainstream (you can even find them at Burger King and KFC now) and this resounding success has proven that veganism is on its way to even greater days – UBS has projected that the plant-based meat market will be worth as much as US$85 billion by 2030.

But aside from the commercial awareness of vegan alternatives, there is also a very real demand for products that gear towards a healthier diet. In the United States alone, DuPont Nutrition & Health found that 52 per cent of consumers are eating more plant-based foods, with 60 per cent of the study’s subjects responding yes to a question about the possibility of switching permanently to a plant-based diet.

The meat-free men: Beyond Meat’s founder and CEO Ethan Brown, and Impossible Foods’ founder and CEO Patrick O Brown

How Hong Kong (finally) embraced veganism

In Hong Kong, the vanguard is no doubt led by the indefatigable David Yeung, founder and CEO of Green Monday, who also proved naysayers wrong when there was initial disbelief in the positive response to plant-based movements in the city. Apart from expanding the company’s grocery arm Green Common, Yeung is also the progenitor of the now ubiquitous Omnipork, which has allowed many Chinese cuisines to be emulated in a very convincing way.

Bringing in Beyond Meat and various other brands such as Oatly and Califia, Green Monday has made going plant-based relatively effortless in this city. Of course, true to his restless nature, Yeung has further spread the Green Monday movement to Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore.

David Yeung, co-founder and co-chief executive officer of Green Monday, at the Kind Kitchen restaurant in Hong Kong. Photo: Bloomberg

Sonalie Figueiras, the founder of media platform Green Queen, is also pushing the envelope with her exciting monthly United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) #PlantBased Dinner Series, collaborating with restaurants around Hong Kong. Aside from putting the chefs to the test to come up with different kinds of plant-based dishes, the monthly events also support the UN’s SDG goals and each feature a talk from a local NGO representative addressing the chosen subject of the night.

Hong Kong restaurants including Bedu, Uma Nota, Dragon I and the Tsui Wah chain have all adopted the Green Monday movement – which champions sticking to plant-based foods for one day a week – so next time someone asks a vegan here in the city where we go out to eat, there is no need to fret!

Conscious chic