2019 Will Be the Year of the Unidentifiable Vegan

Plant-based eating is no longer the grassroots veganism of the ’60s. Twenty-first century vegans don’t just survive off of plain grains, beans, fruit and veggies; they now have a new “are you sure it’s vegan?” category in their diet.

In other words, modern plant-based products are nearly unidentifiable as plant-based foods. I’m talking meat, seafood, dairy and egg products… but vegan.

Although previous years have been chock-full of trendy vegan products, the ones taking storm in 2019 are beyond a plant-eater’s wildest dreams.

1. The McVegan

Okay, so this one isn’t taking up shelves or shopping carts (unless you’re a vegan burger hoarder), but it is taking up my mind. In 2017, McDonald’s locations in Finland and Sweden began to serve a vegan burger, the McVegan, after a successful trial period.

The unfortunate part of this exciting news is that the McVegan has yet to come to America.

To see if this move to America would happen, I contacted McDonald’s. When asked if they planned to serve the McVegan burger in the U.S., they told me they “actually don’t have any information on that yet,” but they are documenting the questions and comments regarding this.

With the success of the McVegan abroad, and the petitioning of Americans to bring it to the U.S., the soy-based burger will undoubtedly be coming across the pond.

At least that’s what my vegan visions are telling me.

2. Vegan Tuna

Wait… what?! 

You heard me.

Admittedly, I was a big fan of tuna salad sandwiches in my pre-vegan days. Luckily, Good Catch Foods has taken vegan-innovation to the next level and is now selling fish-free tuna.

This intriguing product will likely become a popular pick for vegans in 2019. The bean-based “tuna” is ready-to-eat or perfect for making a tuna melt with your favorite vegan cheese.

Plus, the product is gluten-free, non-GMO and ocean-friendly. Good Catch explains that the company “strives to honor sea life and our ocean ecosystems—because fish have feelings too.”

So it’s vegan approved and Nemo approved.

I’m not clown(fish)ing around about this soon-to-be household hit.

3. Violife Feta 

Mamma mia, vegans rejoice! We can now enjoy feta cheese on our salads (or pizzas, pasta, dips or… you get the idea).

Violife’s Just Like Feta is the best new vegan cheese on the market.

In my days of eating dairy, feta cheese was a personal favorite. Besides the fact that cheese has some addiction-inducing compounds, I truly had an inexplicable love for the make-it-or-break-it salad ingredient.

While vegan cheeses have been all the rage for a while, Violife’s feta will be the cheese-alternative of 2019.

4. JUST Egg

JUST, Inc. has debuted yet another plant-based product that could leave a vegan wondering if they just ate something from an animal.

The company’s new product, JUST Egg, is a mung bean-based product that cooks up just like scrambled eggs.

The “eggs” can be used for a multitude of meals like a plain scramble, fried rice, omelets or French toast (oh. heck. yes.). Once cooked, the cholesterol-free egg-alternative takes on the color and texture of real eggs.

Popular vegan restaurant Veggie Grill even started using JUST Egg in its breakfast burrito, so it must be the real deal.

I JUST know this product will be taking households by storm in 2019.