Arguably two of the biggest trends right now are plant-based and delivery. But how is delivery tackling plant-based? Graduate Sofia scratched beneath the surface, digging into what’s on offer from Uber Eats and Deliveroo.
State of the nation
Getting deliveries right to your door is a growing sector that continues to simplify our lives, serve our curious taste buds, and has quickly become a habit of convenience. The market size for the online food ordering and delivery platforms industry was estimated at £3.1bn in 2022. It’s becoming harder to imagine a world without a cheeky bagel delivered to the desk or dinner with friends dropped right in time to enjoy.
Brighton is home to a wide range of restaurants, cafes, and bars but also home to our Southern William Murray office. With ‘what’s for lunch?’ being a common discussion point among us, and veggie options being an important consideration, I set out to see how the two biggest delivery platforms fare.
A simple solution
Using these services is simple – just download the app and share your location. Soon, you’ll find yourself scrolling endlessly until something catches your eye. Most people are familiar with Deliveroo and many – 7.4m monthly to be precise! – have used their services. It was one of the first food delivery services to become popular.
But in 2023, 26% of Brits voted Uber Eats as their most used delivery platform with Deliveroo sitting just close behind at 25%.
The plant-based position
When searching for plant-based options on Deliveroo, there were only 33 different choices available. Despite including sweet treats and burgers, I found the selection a little underwhelming and unexciting after a brief scroll. There seemed to be a lack of substantial choices:
- Deliveroo offers the option to have your food collected from a restaurant or café
- Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, and Morrisons allow for Deliveroo to collect plant-based ranges that they stock in-store and deliver straight to your door.
- The list of restaurants didn’t really excite me when it came to the options for plant based.
- With top establishments such as Starbucks, Burger King, and Subway making an appearance, there is nothing that supports the small local plant-based food businesses that fill the notable Brighton Laines
In contrast;
- Uber Eats provided 88 options, including salads, desserts, and burgers
- It offers affordable delivery deals and holds discount days across the whole of the app
- Several large players are available including, McDonald’s, Popeyes, itsu, and Starbucks
- Smaller businesses are listed and give the option for customers to branch out stepping away from the big names – The Burger Barn and Red Rooster are my faves.
- Co-op, Sainsbury’s, and Waitrose are among the list of supermarkets that are available for home food delivery
- There is also another option available for convenience which allows the consumer to view whether their local corner shop has plant-based options
8.6 million Britons identified as vegan, vegetarian, or pescatarian in 2023, leading food services to adapt menus to plant-based diets. But which app is best for those following a plant-based diet? After some extensive research and comparison, in my view, for those based in Brighton, Uber Eats was the clear winner.
