Europe’s First Vegan Supermarket Chain Sets New Industry Standard For Sustainability And Transparency

Responding to customer requests for more transparency on the production of vegan groceries, Germany’s Veganz has partnered with Switzerland’s Eaternity to create new product labels that give shoppers the information they need to make better buying choices.

“Finally, our customers can learn about the real resource consumption of our products,” said founder and CEO of Veganz, Jan Bredack. “We’re openly and critically addressing our own weak points. Right on our new product packaging, with no diversions. For me, this is a huge step forward within our industry, which badly needs transparency and more sustainability.”

The project involved gathering detailed information on the raw materials, distributors and producers of the Veganz product lines, feeding it into a database and then comparing the data with information on 100,000 products from other supermarkets.

Vegan cashew cheese first to get labeled

Over a year and a half in the making, the first Veganz product is ready to receive one of the new labels designed by Studio Oeding and is expected to appear in stores next month.

Shoppers will see that a cashew-based cheese that’s matured with vegan lactic acid cultures called The Gourmet Classic produces 565 grams of CO2 during its manufacture. It scores well on animal welfare – naturally – and rainforest protection, but is let down by its water use, for which it only receives one star.

Veganz has now submitted the next products for scrutiny, its organic coconut, crisp and hazelnut choc bars.

Veganz customers will also be able to use the new CodeCheck mobile app to scan product barcodes for detailed information on the company’s plant-based grocery products.

The store opened its doors for the first time in 2011, as a one stop shop for vegan groceries. Since 2015, it has been developing and selling its own brand plant-based and organic products – which now number more than 160. The Veganz product line is available for purchase online, in conventional supermarkets as well as Veganz stores in Europe, and in pharmacies.