The popular high street bakery chain, Greggs, has an ever-increasing vegan menu. This is due to the rising demand for vegan lunches and snacks and is no doubt helped by the fact the Greggs CEO, Roger Whiteside, has himself converted to a vegan diet.
If you’re wondering what’s vegan at Greggs? Then take a look at this list of all the vegan menu items you can order at Greggs.
I will update this list as new vegan-friendly items are added to Greggs menu, as they are every few months.
Vegan labelling at Greggs
In addition to the official Greggs vegan range, you should know that there are some ‘accidentally vegan’ items at Greggs. These are not certified as vegan or labelled as such, but they do not contain any animal-derived ingredients.
Everyone has their own view of what’s acceptable to eat. But if you’re okay with eating things that are not prepared in a dedicated vegan environment, you’re vegetarian or flexitarian, then you’ll want to consider these too.
Suggested read: Is food that ‘may contain milk’ vegan?
To be clear, I’ve mentioned below each item whether it’s part of Greggs official vegan menu, or if it’s just considered vegan-friendly based on the ingredients.
Vegan bacon roll
New for Autumn 2021, Greggs has introduced a plant-based bacon roll, giving another tasty breakfast option to hungry vegans across the UK. This new vegan breakfast item is served at Greggs nationwide until 11 am each day.
Vegan sausage breakfast roll
Greggs vegan sausage bap is made with two vegan Quorn sausages, a corn top roll and your choice of ketchup or HP sauce. Customers can also get the vegan sausage butty as a breakfast meal deal with a hot drink.
Can we combine the vegan bacon and vegan sausage into a single roll though? The good news is yes you can! You can also ask for extra sausage or extra bacon if you wish.
Hash browns
Another relatively new addition to the Greggs vegan breakfast menu is this delightful duo of hash browns. Greggs hash browns are vegan-friendly – made from crispy shredded potatoes and no animal ingredients.
Vegan sausage, bean and cheeze melt
When lunchtime rolls around, you won’t find a better vegan option at Greggs than this delicious vegan sausage, bean and ‘cheeze’ melt. It features pieces of Quorn vegan sausage, baked beans and two types of vegan cheese, encased in golden puff pastry.
One reviewer commented that the pasty ‘has cheese so realistic that I panicked’. This is certainly one to try on your next visit to Greggs!
Vegan ham and cheeze baguette
Another addition to the Greggs vegan menu for 2021 is the vegan ham and cheese baguette which is now available at all Greggs shops.
Greggs’ vegan baguette is made with vegan Quorn ham and mature Cheddar flavour slices. No salad though. You might have thought vegans would like a bit of salad on their baguette, I know I would!
Vegan sausage roll
Greggs vegan sausage roll debuted in January 2019, marking a turning point for the availability of vegan fast food in the UK. The humble vegan sausage roll contributed to a 13.5% increase in annual sales for Greggs and a £300 bonus payment for each member of staff.
Greggs vegan sausage roll prompted a host of copycats including Cafe Nero, Morrisons and Marks and Spencer. However, the original and best vegan sausage roll is Greggs one which has 96 layers of vegan puff pastry.
Suggested read: Are vegan sausage rolls healthy?
If you’re worried that your sausage roll seems a little too meaty, there’s an easy way to tell that you have the vegan version – Greggs vegan sausage rolls have small horizontal stripes in the pastry, whereas the meat versions have large, diagonal stripes.
Southern-fried potato wedges
What better accompaniment to a vegan sausage roll or a vegan steak bake than some crispy Southern-fried potato wedges?
Greggs potato wedges are freshly prepared and only available in stores that feature the ‘Hot to Go’ counter. This is about a quarter of Greggs 2,000 shops in the UK. There’s a choice of vegan dips for your wedges, including Heinz ketchup and barbecue sauce.
Greggs pizza dips – Garlic & Herb, Hot Sauce and Smoky BBQ Dip are all suitable for vegans.
If you’re thinking of ordering Greggs baked beans to go with your wedges, vegans should be aware that there’s a possible cross-contamination with milk, although they are vegan by ingredient.
Glazed ring doughnut
The favourite dessert of vegans visiting Greggs is the glazed ring doughnut. Topped with fondant icing, this yummy doughnut is 100% vegan with no animal ingredients.
Vegans should be aware that Greggs offer several different doughnuts, and it’s just this glazed ring doughnut that’s on the official Greggs vegan menu for now.
Jam Doughnut
While Greggs jam doughnuts aren’t on the official vegan menu, they don’t actually contain any animal ingredients.
There’s a chance that your jam doughnut could have touched milk and egg products during production. But if you’re okay with that then you could consider the jam doughnut to be vegan-friendly.
You’ll definitely want the plain jam doughnut though, as the pink jammie doughnut with icing on top contains milk.
Sugar Strand Doughnut
Another doughnut option for those who don’t mind cross-contamination is Greggs’ sugar strand doughnut. It doesn’t contain any animal ingredients in the recipe.
Belgian bun
Unline the items above, Greggs Belgian buns are not on Greggs official vegan menu. However, these sweet buns do not contain any animal-derived ingredients and so they can be said to be vegan!
The reason why Greggs Belgian buns aren’t marked as vegan is that they’re prepared alongside other cakes and buns which contain milk and eggs. But, if you accept this potential for cross-contamination, then you can go ahead and tuck in.
Fresh fruit
Whilst virtually nobody goes into Greggs with the sole purpose of buying fruit, it’s good to know that the bakery chain offers a good selection of fresh fruit to accompany your other less-healthy vegan snacks.
The fruit offered by Greggs is:
- Apple
- Banana
- Fruit medley pot
- Mixed seedless grapes pot
- Tropical fruit pot
All fruit is vegan by nature, so there’s no need for any labelling here.
Crisps & Nuts
Greggs sells all kinds of crisps and there are lots of vegan-friendly options available. You should note that these are not marked as suitable for vegans, but they do not contain any animal ingredients.
The own-label Greggs crisps which are vegan-friendly are:
- Salt & vinegar crunchy sticks
- Sea salt & cider vinegar hand cooked crisps
- Thai sweet chilli hand cooked crisps (check the packaging to be sure)
Vegans may also wish to try Greggs naked nuts and smoky BBQ crunch. These are labelled as may contain milk, but they don’t have any animal products in the actual ingredients.
Seasonal and regional items
The Greggs menu changes with the seasons to include special items like Hot Cross buns at Easter, Halloween gingerbread men and mince pies at Christmas.
There are also be some items which are only available in certain areas of the country, like stotties in the North East, Scotch pie in Scotland and Welsh cake in Wales. You can see a list of those here.
The information in this article comes from the Greggs Allergen Guide which doesn’t include all seasonal and regional items. But if you see something that looks tempting, you can ask the staff in-store and they will be happy to advise.
Discontinued vegan items at Greggs
Sadly, Greggs only has so much space in each shop. So when a vegan option is added to the menu it can mean that one is taken away.
Here are some Greggs vegan items that aren’t currently available, but we hope they return soon.
Vegan steak bake
After the success of the vegan sausage roll, the following January Greggs launched its next game-changer – the vegan steak bake. However, the steak bake has been temporarily discontinued in many stores to make room for the new vegan sausage, cheese and bean pasty.
Made from a vegan Quorn meat substitute and diced onions in a rich gravy, Greggs vegan steak bake was a meaty-tasting snack. Just like the vegan sausage roll, vegans can be sure that it’s not meat by looking at the pattern of the pastry.
The problem with the vegan steak bakes is that they were often cold. And cold wet fake meat isn’t appealing to anyone.
As more vegans received cold steak bakes, the demand for them dropped, which led to fewer people ordering and the steak bakes sitting out for even longer before being bought.
Vegan festive bake
Greggs vegan Christmas special pasty was available in November and December 2021. The puff pasty is filled with vegan Quorn pieces, sage and onion stuffing balls, a vegan bacon crumb and sage and cranberry sauce. This was absolutely delicious and I hope that it will return for Christmas 2022.
FAQs about the vegan options at Greggs
Here are the answers to some of the commonly asked questions about what vegans can eat at Greggs…
Greggs Belgian buns could be considered to be suitable for vegans as they do not contain any animal-derived ingredients. The Belgian buns are not advertised as being vegan-friendly because Greggs cannot guarantee that there is no cross-contamination with milk or eggs.
Greggs Yum Yums are not suitable for vegans as they contain egg. Greggs Yum Yums do not contain milk in the ingredients, but there is the potential for cross-contamination with items that do contain milk.
A vegan alternative to Yum Yums at Greggs would be Greggs glazed ring doughnuts, as these are not made with any animal ingredients.
Greggs glazed ring doughnuts are certified suitable for vegans. Greggs iced ring doughnut, jam doughnut, and sugar strand doughnut have a ‘may contain’ warning due to possible cross-contamination with milk and eggs, but they are vegan by ingredient. The caramel custard doughnuts, Devon doughnuts and chocolate doughnuts all have milk in the ingredients.
Greggs vegetable pasties (also known as vegetable bakes) are not suitable for vegans. This is because they contain milk. Vegans looking for pasties at Greggs should instead try the vegan sausage, bean and cheeze melt.
Greggs sweet mince pies are suitable for vegans as they do not contain any animal-derived ingredients such as suet, butter, milk or egg. While mince pies do contain palm oil, Greggs palm oil is sustainably sourced and so doesn’t pose the same ethical issues as unsustainable palm oil.
When ordering mince pies at Greggs, be sure to ask for the sweet mince pie. This is because savoury mince pies are completely different things and these contain beef!
Read more: Are mince pies vegan or vegetarian?
Greggs offers soya milk which can be added to coffees including Americano, Cappuccino, Flat White and Latte. As the coffee machine cannot be thoroughly cleaned after every customer, there is a chance of cross-contamination with cows milk. If you’re okay with that, then there are some vegan coffee options at Greggs.
Read more: Can vegans drink coffee?
Greggs currently does not offer oat milk as an option. Vegans and people with a dairy-free diet can order soya milk as a milk alternative at Greggs. However, tea and coffee isn’t officially vegan at Greggs due to potential cross-contamination.
Greggs hot chocolate is not suitable for vegans as it is made with cows’ milk.
Greggs tomato soup is not suitable for vegans as it contains cows’ milk.
Currently, Greggs does not offer any vegan cakes. All of the cakes at Greggs contain milk and/or egg. Vegans looking for a sweet treat at Greggs should instead opt for a glazed ring doughnut or a Belgian bun.
Some bread is vegan at Greggs, but some contains milk and eggs. Vegans can enjoy baguettes, corn topped rolls, oval bites, stotties and white and wholemeal loaves and rolls. Vegans should avoid floured white rolls, large white bloomers and malted brown sandwich rolls.
The spread used on sandwiches at Greggs is plant-based and suitable for vegans. Greggs doesn’t use dairy butter in sandwiches.
Greggs gingerbread men are not suitable for vegans as they contain milk and eggs.
The bottom line
Greggs is one of the best breakfast and lunch options for vegans in the UK. The Greggs vegan range has something for everyone, with a selection of vegan products that are clearly labelled.
If you’re vegetarian or willing to turn a blind eye to cross-contamination with milk or eggs, there are some accidentally vegan items that you can add to the official Greggs vegan menu,