Veganuary…is it still a thing?

I woke up this morning and started thinking about our next bakes for the new year ahead. Now that Christmas is over and we are almost back at school (therefore a regular routine may finally be resumed), I start to think about more exciting baking prospects. Rather than just baking easy, popular products to fill the counter, which is something that usually happens during the holidays when I have less time on my hands, I start to think of a few more tantalising, eyebrow-raising options.

As we are a shop that prides itself on catering to a variety of diets, Veganuary is always a little on my mind in January. We do relatively well in our variety of vegan friendly bakes, having at least 5 options on the menu at any one time, and as recently as last year, those options were extended even further with a few changes to our savoury offer. We offer four different dairy-alternative milks (coconut, almond, soya and oat), as well as having such things as dairy-free butter, vegan-friendly marshmallows, dairy-free hot chocolate flakes, and when we can get it, dairy-free squirty cream, however sometimes this proves elusive.

However, I started to wonder if Veganuary was even still a thing. It felt big and new a few years ago, but with vegan diets becoming more mainstream, and supermarkets producing more vegan friendly options, I wondered if it’s a campaign that has had its day and ultimately done its job.

On their website, the charity Veganuary, who began the official month of going plant-based over a decade ago says this:

“Veganuary is a non-profit organisation that encourages people worldwide to try vegan for January and beyond. Millions of people have taken part in our one-month vegan pledge since 2014, and in 2025 alone more than 1,480 new vegan products and menu options were launched for Veganuary globally.

Throughout the year, Veganuary encourages and supports people and businesses alike to move to a plant-based diet as a way of protecting the environment, preventing animal suffering, and improving the health of millions of people.”

Now, as a coffee shop, we are not vegan, and we have never claimed to be so. We use eggs and butter in our baking, sell dairy-based food and drinks, we even sell some meat-based products from the butchers down the road. However, these products are bought from local providers and wherever possible, we make sure that these animal-derived products are sourced from decent companies. That’s just the way we roll. Personally, I eat meat, cheese, eggs and drink milk-based coffee. I am aware of where my food comes from and I think that, for myself at least, that is enough.

I am not here to preach about the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle, or judge anyone for choosing a specific diet. I am here to make great tasting cakes, providing for the widest possible audience.

So, regardless of whether Veganuary is still a thing, for me its just fun to get involved and try something new. Purely from a business point-of-view, highlighting our vegan options during January in particular is great, because more people seem to be aware of Veganuary, even if they don’t follow it. Some people may eye-roll and say it's just a fad, and for many that’s exactly what it is, but that’s ok.

For me, vegan baking is about being accessible. Some people may not be vegan, but they may be allergic to eggs, or dairy products, some people may just like vegetarian food more than meat. Some people may be trying a vegan diet to get healthier or to help with weight loss (although I will say that none of our bakes, vegan or otherwise, can be called healthy or help with weigh loss in any way!). Whatever someone’s choice for following a vegan diet, we just want to be there and ultimately be able to provide for them, because in the end, that’s what gets us a sale and keeps us in business.

On a side note – great tasting cake is just that, no matter how it’s made, and I would like to think that for the majority, if not all, of our bakes, you wouldn’t know if it was vegan or not, unless you asked. After all, chips and crisps are vegan, and they are the tastiest things ever!

If you need more convincing, why not pop by the shop this month (or any month to be honest) and give one of our plant-based bakes a try!