5 Irish Vegan Businesses to support

Shopping local allows us to see the creative and hard-working people around us. Supporting businesses, particularly independent businesses, is a conscious consumer decision that helps our local business owners. During times like these, it is essential to support companies that are near and dear to us, as it allows them to thrive and grow their business.

Oh Happy Treats

Vegan treats are to die for. Oh Happy Treats offers an array of vegan baked goods that you totally cannot tell are plant-based. You can find their stocklist on their Instagram, and they supply around Dublin, Kildare, Meath and Wicklow.

For your afternoon tea or a gift to a loved one, Oh Happy Treats have a selection to choose from, even boxes of different things. Oh Happy Treats is a must.

Even more exciting, is it’s sister business, Naked Bakes, which sells vegan cookie dough that you can bake at home. This is available in many cafes around Dublin, Wicklow, and Kildare.

Veganic

I have never seen a fully vegan supermarket in Ireland before, and with such a fantastic selection. Veganic, based in St. Stephens Green, is a perfect store for vegan bits. The store is also great for sustainable purchasing as they offer refill products, allowing you to buy your oats, pasta, and other essentials plastic-free.

Veganic also offers a range of eco-friendly household products. This truly is a store of sustainable dreams. You can find vegan food items, refill pantry essentials and reusable household items that are perfect for accomplishing a more sustainable lifestyle.

You do not have to be from Dublin to purchase from Veganic as they also do home deliveries. It is a great place to check out for vegan and sustainable goods!

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Harry’s Nut Butter

Harry’s Nut Butter has an extensive range of Peanut Butters that are a cupboard staple. I have started to see more flavours of peanut butter pop up in the market lately and it is great to see such a huge amount of culinary creativity appearing on the shelves. From plain, spicy and chocolate, Harry’s nut butter has a selection of different flavours- which are vegan friendly.

Harry’s Nut Butter is available to purchase in many cafes around Ireland and it can also be ordered from their website.

Better Bakes

A new business that caught my eye, based in Co. Kildare, is Better Bakes. This is a business that offers vegan-friendly cakes that you can get delivered around parts of Kildare or collect!

Better Bakes provides decadent cupcakes that are 100% plant-based and decorated beautifully. With a range of different flavours, this company definitely has something for everyone! Better Bakes also does cupcakes for different festive occasions, a vegan business you certainly would want to check out!

Thanks Plants

Thanks Plants is an Irish business that stocks vegan-friendly meats. They have three different flavours of vegan sausage to choose from: Frankfurter; sundried tomato and herb; and apple and sage, with the cutest dachshund packaging. They also offer a vegan roast in their range, perfect for Sunday and Christmas roast dinners. From taking a look through their site, the ingredients are visible and are rich in protein.

Founder Aisling Cullen shares on the Thanks Plants website:

“I’m very much vegan for the animals and for our environment and we can all do our bit to help these causes by reducing or eliminating meat from our diet with really simple changes to our favourite dishes.”

With a passion for animals and the environment, Thanks Plants is certainly a business to get behind.

Thanks Plants is available in Supervalu, health food stores, and other independent shops around the country. These products would be essential for BBQs for the summer months ahead!

The pandemic certainly has made us more aware of where we buy from. Something positive that has come out of lockdowns and restrictions has been keeping in touch with the businesses around us, and putting our money into smaller companies rather than larger corporations. Also, with the vegan market on the rise, plant-based companies are certainly the ones to support if we want to see an increase in the amount of veganism around us. Local plant-based companies are definitely what we need to keep an eye out for as they are driven by a passion for the planet, animals, and the people!

To see more vegan, we need to buy more vegan!