7-Eleven Now Has Vegan Sausage Rolls and Chicken Sandwiches

7-Eleven just launched four new plant-based products. The convenience store chain now has vegan sausage rolls and meatless beef pies in all stores across Australia.

The to-go vegan items include a 7-Eleven No Sausage Roll, a No Chicken and Lettuce Sandwich, a No Beef Pie, and a No Egg and Lettuce Sandwich.

7-Eleven Australia’s general marketing manager, Julie Laycock, told Franchise Business that taste was an important factor in creating the products.

“We didn’t just want to have plant-based options,” she said. “[W]e wanted to make sure they were tasty products in their own right.”

Laycock said 7-Eleven will add more plant-based options in the future. She said the company is currently trialing soy milk for coffee in select stores in Victoria.

The range of plant-based menu options already includes a vegan falafel wrap and a Japanese rice ball. The latter, called the Teriyaki Mushroom Onigiri, is available in select stores.

Australians Ditch Meat

Popular Australian foods include meat-centered dishes such as roasted lamb, meat pies, barbecue, and steak. But, Australians are increasingly gravitating toward vegan options. The nation is the third fastest-growing plant-based food market in the world, according to a report from Euromonitor. Food Frontier, an Australian think tank focused on alternative protein, believes the vegan meat industry alone could boost the country’s economy by $3 billion.

A 2019 report released by Australia’s leading independent research company Roy Morgan revealed the number of Australians that are leaving meat off their plate is steadily increasing.

The report found 2.5 million Australians—or 12.1 percent of the population—eat meals that are all “or almost all” vegetarian. This number is up from 2.2 million in 2014.

A 2018 report by Roy Morgan found nearly half of the population consumes less red meat. The report also identified where in Australia non-meat eaters were most concentrated. The study found cities had higher concentrations of people who didn’t eat meat as compared to more rural areas.

In addition to 7-Eleven, Australian Domino’s, Subways, and Pizza Huts have all launched vegan menu items.