Lidl Beats Own Plant-Based Sales Target With Nearly 700% Uptake

Lidl has surpassed a previous plant-based sales target by achieving nearly 700 percent growth.

The budget supermarket had aimed to achieve a 400 percent sales increase in own-brand meat-free and nondairy milk products by 2025. Earlier this week, Lidl announced that it has achieved sector growth of 694 percent, far exceeding the previous target and prompting further expansion of its plant-based range.

Lidl said that the milestone reinforces the brand’s commitment to achieving the Planetary Health Diet and to making sure “healthy and sustainable choices” are widely affordable. The 694 percent sales growth also informs Lidl’s separate commitment to achieving Net-Zero by 2050, and to making at least 25 percent of all protein sold in-store plant-based by 2030.

“Surpassing our 2025 meat-free and milk-alternative sales target marks a significant milestone in our wider healthy and sustainable diets agenda and supports our long-term goal of aligning with the Planetary Health Diet by 2050, a vital lever in the net-zero transition,” said Amali Bunter, the head of responsible sourcing and ethical trade at Lidl GB.

This week, the brand also introduced more than 20 new items as part of its Vemondo Plant! range, including marinated tofu, falafel, and tortellini. Lidl said that it will be “evolving” its plant-based range to meet growing consumer demand for vegetable-forward products, which currently outperform meat-style alternative proteins.

Last year, Lidl announced that it would triple its plant-based offerings after seeing a huge growth in sales. At the time, it relaunched its Vemondo label as Vemondo Plant!, and introduced many of the staple plant-based items – such as tofu, cheese, yogurts – that it is will be prioritising moving forward.

Protein, health, and plant-based foods

Photo shows a Lidl sign outsider a supermarket — Adobe Stock Lidl also aims to make 25 percent of all protein sold in-store plant-based by 2030

Nearly a quarter of consumers currently identify as “meat-reducers” or flexitarians, while a fifth are strictly vegetarian or vegan. Most consumers choosing plant-based alternatives cite health as their primary motivator, and 42 percent are prioritizing high-protein foods featuring what they describe as their “most important” ingredient.

Research published by The Vegan Society found a “collective movement toward more mindful and sustainable eating habits” in the UK, in particular, where at least 10 percent of the population is eliminating or reducing animal product consumption.