Vegan Butchers..... a Tad Pricey?
In the News
Just read this ....
BBC News - Vegan butchers: Could one be opening on your high street?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-56717667
Have you seen the prices? 
https://www.fauxbutcher.co.uk/our-products
Chicken thighs are £6 for TWO. I can buy THREE KILOS of normal chicken thighs for that.
How can normal people afford to be vegan and have a proper varied diet?
Even supermarket vegan food seems very expensive.
What are your thoughts on the matter?
Why not? Firstly, most vegans grew up eating meat, so they may like the taste of certain foods and still wish to enjoy those without having to sacrifice animal welfare for them. Also, since many family traditions center on food, vegan meat alternatives allow people to enjoy familiar dishes and some of their favorite comfort foods without compromising their values of kindness and compassion.
MelanieMason I’ve given a good explanation above. It could be because they like the taste of a certain food (and have often grown up eating said foods) so would like to still have these without having to sacrifice animal welfare.
lornaae I guess I've never acctualy thoght much in to it or why peope even become vegan in the first place to be honest. Each to their own, it doenst affect me so I guess i don't pay much attention to it but I have always woundered about substitute meat products in shops and they are pretty pricy. I think it was slimming world have quorn chicken nuggets that were low in syns and I looked at buying them until I seen the price
MelanieMason yeah if you think about the reasons behind veganism (there are of course different reasons) then its easy to understand. Perhaps people can’t eat meat for health reasons or allergies and want to still enjoy similar foods. Likewise if they are vegan due to animal welfare, they can then still get the taste without the sacrifice of animal welfare. You mentioned the cost of that particular Weight Watchers product, but ive found that Weight Watchers products in general are expensive, so not sure how fair that generalisation is to all vegan products. Quorn do nuggets, as do Asda and these are very reasonably priced.
Because of stuff like this: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/bill-gates-roasted-for-saying-rich-countries-should-eat-100-synthetic-beef/ar-BB1dK3AS
I eat a lot of vegan food due to allergies and it really is frustrating how much everything costs. It shouldn’t cost so much more.
The vegan ranges in the supermarkets are not good value at all. I think vegan food in general is often over priced. If they want people to eat less meat then that's something that really needs to be addressed. Some people have a low budget when it comes to food shopping, and the vegan options will often be too expensive for them.
Until many more people become Vegan the prices will stay high. It is not cheap to mass produce food and I suppose they need lots more customers before they can lower the price.
I have never understood veganism although I have no problem with vegetarians. My granddaughter went through a vegan stage and it was frustrating reading every label on every jar, bottle, can or packet.
My friend is supporting her daughter through being vegan and I think it lends a lot to taste and preference and “trial and error” though; especially now as the brands vary from many supermarkets own niche to the branded names. Quorn chick nuggs are great as treat tho can say that.
Vegans want you to be ethical but are their prices ? No. I think they are very costly. Something will cost more. But I feel that are taking advantage out of this. And know there is a huge market. I’ve tried a lot of vegan stuff. Some of it very nice. Some of it poor. But some of it I could afford to buy again.
I’m not vegan but have chosen to eat more pant based products when I can afford it.
If the vegans are really wanting to change others habits then it shouldn’t all be about profit. Just my theory
A few comments have mentioned the cost of vegan food being too expensive. I agree that there should be more low priced vegan products. However, I have noticed that the variety of vegan products are expanding and with it, the price of said products seem to be coming down. Also, I have seen many articles/studies that have shown that adopting a vegan/plant based diet actually has meant that people spend less on food.
It depends on why you are vegan. If you were a meat eater who has been to go vegan for health reasons or you like meat but want to be more planet friendly then plant based "meat" products can be a good thing. Personally I just dont like much meat so have gone vegetarian but rarely bother with plants pretending to be meat - never been a fan of Quorn or anything by Linda Mcartney.
having said all that, some of the new plant based ranges coming out are really good and the supermarkets and fast food chains are introducing better plant based options all the time. I now often have Greggs vegan sausage rolls, the Subway vegan patties are really nice too. Supermarket prices are coming down slowly as the products become less niche. Bring it on!
I guess making meat substitutes requires a lot of processing but there are many vegan meals which are very cheap because vegetables can be very cheap. Also mushrooms are a good meat alternative for many meals and its fairly easy to grow your own mushrooms they aren't fussy about their conditions and you can use old waste products like coffee grounds etc. You can grow a much wider range of mushrooms at home than you would probably get in supermarkets and many mimic meat quite well. If you haven't got the coin for fancy processed vegan meat substitutes there are plenty of options. I've had nice curries with just mushrooms, onions, peas and the sauce.
Mushrooms work for me as as meat substitute.
I love meat free food, don't like the taste of meat and the flavour is very similar sometimes
me too myself and hubby tonight got a whole chicken each with bbq sauce and some bread and butter 
I have been cutting down on the amount of meat I eat, partly for environmental reasons, although I don’t think it is as straightforward as some people make out. I just wanted to remind people that if you cut out all animal products you will have to have some dietary supplements (or check that they have been added to the food you buy). Vitamin B12,for instance, is only found naturally in animal products.
This isn’t necessarily true, there are natural ways to get B12 as a vegan. See here https://www.freshnlean.com/blog/vegan-b12-sources/
It‘s absolutely possible to be vegan and get all the nutrients you need naturally. However I’m doubtful that meat eaters get all of the required/recommended vitamins/nutrients.
lornaae forgive me arguing but aren’t these sources all covered by ‘or check that it has been added to the food you buy’? I was simply advising that you can’t just go vegan by just eating fruit and veg.
Grannyclock I was simply explaining that where you often hear people saying that you can't get all of the things you need in a vegan diet, it's not true. Going vegan doesn't just mean eating fruit and veg, there are other food groups and you can easily still get all that you need without supplements 
There‘s a vegan ‘chicken’ shop near me that sells vegan ‘fried chicken’ - it’s more expensive than the kfc round the corner! Tried it once, never again
If you use this line of thinking, you will end up being fed with everything that is produced in the lowest possible quality. I am not saying that vegan/vegetarian products are cheap, but it seems obvious that KFC, buying tons of chicken produced in often precarious conditions and without any animal welfare, will offer you prices that often fall below even one whole chicken in the supermarket.
I am not a vegan, but everything that is done without any ethics or care for the environment will always cost cheaper, exactly because it is mass produced without any concern with its effects on soil, water, nature, etc.
Most products are now produced in Asia, not only because of the cost of labour, but also because companies are not tied to strict health and environmental rules as in Europe, drastically reducing their production costs.
I would of thought that it’s more expensive because the demand is currently less than animal products, I’d imagine it would get cheaper the more common it gets and the more competition there is for suppliers and retailers.
Also, when you buy beef for example it’s made of cow, just 1 ingredient. I looked at the ingredients on a vegan steak a while ago and the list was quite long, I’d assume that has to impact the cost too.
Also....I remember hearing something interesting on LBC and they were saying that being vegan is seen as a ‘privileged lifestyle’ and that statistically vegans have more expendable income than non vegans. That could be why vegan meat and nut milks etc are generally more, companies could be taking advantage of their key demographic.
That is true across so many industries its not what something costs to make but what people are willing to pay. Why sell something for £1 if it will still sell at £3. It's when a market becomes saturated with competitors and over capacity that drives prices down. That doesn't always happen sometimes competitors will keep to prices similar to their competitors and prevent over capacity in the industry so they aren't forced to reduce prices.
Lightweight aluminium bikes for small children cost around £300 at retail but probably cost about £20 factory door price. They have very little material in them, use cheap components and you can fit a huge amount of these small bikes in a shipping container yet cost large sums at retail and thats because parents are happy to pay a premium for lighter bikes to give their kids the best bike experience. An adult bike costing £300 at retail might have a factory door price of £80 almost 4x as much.
It reminds me of when bottled water became popular, it was very expensive. When things take off the consequences are that they become cheaper to produce.
I'm another one though, who can't understand why they want to shape the food into burgers or sausages (for example) why not come up with something new that doesn't look like meat. Surely the chances of eating a non-vegetarian burger or sausage as someone else's home is more likely because of the same shape?
It's probably fairer to compare the price against organic free range chicken rather that birds raised in intensive factory farms. The products sold in a vegan butcher will be made in much smaller quantities whereas in factory farms a large number of chickens get gassed at once or move along a conveyor belt system to be killed mechanically. Although, most vegetarian & vegans I know don't want plant based food that tries to mimic the taste of meat. Vegan butchers may appeal more to flexitarians 
I don't mind vegan food but only every now and then, as it is expensive for my budget. It's the same with non food items which are vegan and organic.. they seem lovely but just too expensive for me and not practical.
No thanks will stick to Brian the butcher selling top class meat instead of fake stuff
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