From McDonald's to Greggs: The amount of calories and sugar in vegan fast food might shock you

From manchestereveningnews.co.uk

With Veganuary in full swing, more Brits than ever are looking to replace their favourite meat and dairy products with items containing no animal produce.
In a bid to help people do this, the high-street's favourite fast food chains have been ramping up their vegan offerings.

From McDonald's and KFC, to Greggs, Burger King and Subway, restaurants across the board have come up with meat and dairy-free alternatives of shoppers' favourite dishes.

But a new study suggests that the vegan versions of popular menu items could actually be worse for you, with many containing more calories, salt, sugar and fat than their non-vegan counterparts.
Content agency JBH looked into the calories, fat, salt and sugar content in the vegan fast food offerings from a load of the nation's chains, and the results are proof that a vegan diet isn't always as healthy as people may think.

                                                                         (Image: Subway)

Topping the list for salt was Subway's 6" Meatless Marinara, which contains a whopping 19.3g of sugar and 3.5g of salt. Its non-vegan counterpart, the Meatball Marinara, contains less, with 13.5g of sugar and 1.9g of salt - so if you're looking to keep these factors low, that's the better option (if you're a meat eater, of course).

Pret's Very Berry Croissant also found itself at the top of the list for sugar, containing 21.9g (or 5 teaspoons) of sugar.

The best vegan option in terms of salt and sugar is McDonald's veggie dippers, which contain just 1.1g of salt and 2.3g of sugar per serving.

Here's how all of the brands' vegan offerings compared with their non-vegan counterparts:

McDonald's

Veggie Dippers: Calories (321), Fat (13g), Salt (1.1g), Sugar (2.3g), Sugar in tsp (1)
Chicken Nuggets: Calories (259), Fat (13g), Salt (0.51g), Sugar (0.6g), Sugar in tsp (0)

Burger King

Vegan Rebel Whopper: Calories (596), Fat (33g), Salt (2.8g), Sugar (12g), Sugar in tsp (3)
Whopper: Calories (627), Fat (34g), Salt (2.2g), Sugar (12g), Sugar in tsp (3)

KFC

Vegan Burger: Calories (450), Fat (18.99g), Salt (2.91g), Sugar (5.96g), Sugar in tsp (1)
Fillet Burger: Calories (450), Fat (18.99g), Salt (2.91g), Sugar (5.96g), Sugar in tsp (1)

Subway

Meatless Marinara: Calories (558), Fat (12.3g), Salt (3.6g), Sugar (19.3g), Sugar in tsp (5)
Meatball Marinara: Calories (438), Fat (16.2g), Salt (1.9g), Sugar (13.5g), Sugar in tsp (3)

Costa

Vegan Ham and Cheeze Toastie: Calories (352), Fat (8.9g), Salt (2g), Sugar (2.9g), Sugar in tsp (1)
Ham and Cheese Toastie: Calories (307), Fat (8g), Salt (1.7g), Sugar (5.9g), Sugar in tsp (1)

 

Greggs

Vegan Steak Bake: Calories (380), Fat (24g), Salt (1.8g), Sugar (1g), Sugar in tsp (0)
Steak Bake: Calories (408), Fat (26g), Salt (1.4g), Sugar (0g), Sugar in tsp (0)

 

Pret

Very Berry Croissant: Calories (299), Fat (12.2g), Salt (0.6g), Sugar (219g), Sugar in tsp (5)
Croissant: Calories (291), Fat (16.8g), Salt (0.7g), Sugar (4.5g), Sugar in tsp (1)

It is important to remember that these are fast food items, so they were never going to be the healthiest products in the world.
However, the point is, many people often think that vegan food will at least be a little bit healthier than its non-vegan counterparts in terms of calories, fat, salt and sugar, but sometimes it can prove worse for you. Everything can be enjoyed in moderation!

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/uk-news/calories-vegan-mcdonalds-greggs-subway-17536600