Top Vegan Office Snacks at Every Price Point

Based on Crafty client data, vegan office snacks are employers' most common dietary accommodation, second only to gluten-free snacks. Not only do plant-based options accommodate those who are veggie-forward, but they're also appealing to those who care about minimizing their impact on the environment. 

Vegan or not, employees appreciate having options that connect to their values. According to our recent sustainability report, 70% of employees say sustainable companies are more attractive employers. The challenge is building efforts into programs that employees interact with regularly.

Workplace teams leverage office food and beverage programs to embed sustainable values into everyday workplace culture. It's not just about reactive practices like composting or recycling, but preventing waste and excess emissions in the first place. 

Vegan options help solve that problem, and Crafty's innovative office snack inventory management platform makes it easy to find those alignments in your existing and future product lineup. Plus, you can track consumption in real-time across locations to see what products are doing well.  

Let's jump in as we share the best vegan office snacks. We'll unpack the benefits of plant-based foods in the workplace to craft a sustainable office pantry program.

Sustainable Snacks for Work

Here's some food for thought: A University of Oxford study found that plant-based diets can cut emissions by up to 73%. For example, one glass of dairy milk produces almost 3x the greenhouse gas compared to non-dairy milk. Small reductions in animal products can add up to big changes, so stocking up on vegan snacks can appeal to more than just those who eschew animal products full-time.

Research shows that consumers increasingly care about how their actions and the actions of corporations affect the environment. In the 2023 Kearney Earth Day Survey, 42% of respondents said they always or nearly always consider the environmental impacts of their purchases; a record high since 2019 and an 18-percentage-point increase over 2022. 

Prioritizing sustainability also carries over into the workplace. An IBM report found that 75% of employees want to see their employees take action on social responsibility issues. At Crafty, we see this manifest in a push for plant-based snacks in categories such as candy, bars, and spreads; oh my!

Read the full Sustainability Report. 

Top Vegan Office Snacks

Bars 🍫

Bars are the ultimate convenience: Prepackaged in a handheld size, they're the perfect grab-and-go snack. It's no wonder bars are among our top growing categories, with a 102% increase in spend YoY.

• Value: Nature's Bakery Whole Wheat Fig Bars, Blueberry
  These soft-baked, jam-filled bars are made with real fruit while satisfying your sweet tooth. Nature's Bakery supports sustainable practices by partnering with growers who reduce energy usage by processing figs with solar power and minimizing waste by using the whole fruit during production.

• Premium: GoMacro MacroBar, Coconut + Almond Butter + Chocolate ChipsFor a chewy protein bar you can feel good about, opt for GoMacro. Not only are these bars made with whole ingredients, but 100% of the company's operations are powered by 100% renewable solar and wind energy.

Breakfast 🥣

For many, breakfast is the first opportunity of the day to fuel, so make those nutrients count. Additionally, employers can save their employees $6-$15 per day when they provide breakfast foods.

• Value: Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Cup
  Add hot water or pop this in the microwave for a healthy breakfast of whole grains with bits of apple and a sprinkling of cinnamon. Bob's Red Mill is committed to sustainability: recycling its packaging scraps, using on-site renewable energy, and eliminating paper lids from their oatmeal cups

• Premium: MUSH Vanilla Bean
  If you believe oats are a dish best served cold, MUSH is for you. These whole-rolled oats are soaked in almond milk and sweetened naturally with dates.

Condiments 🧂

What are fries without ketchup? Or tacos without hot sauce? Condiments can take food from good to great, so the best workplace kitchens keep plenty in stock.

• Value: Cholula Hot Sauce
  Cholula is a classic in the hot sauce world, adding a kick of flavor without overpowering you with heat.

• Premium: Justin's Classic Almond Butter
  Justin's almond butter is made with just two ingredients, living up to its slogan of being "naturally delicious." The company also uses mindfully sourced ingredients, including deforestation-free sustainable palm oil.

Alternative Milk 🥛

While cow's milk is still milking the market share, a small but growing percentage is going to plant-based alternatives such as oat and almond milk. According to the Good Food Institute, plant-based milk held 15% of the total milk market share in 2022, up from 12% in 2018. In 2023, Crafty clients spent 103% more of their F&B budget on dairy and alternative milk than they did in 2022.

• Value: Silk Almondmilk - Unsweetened
  This sugar-free plant-based milk is smooth and refreshing, perfect for adding to cereal, lattes, or drinking on its own. Silk is mindful of water conservation and sustainability, with the goal of its packaging being recyclable, reusable, or compostable by 2030.

• Premium: Oatly Oat Milk - Original
  Baristas love oat milk for its neutral flavor and ability to steam and froth exceptionally well compared to other alternative milk. Oatly aims to minimize its environmental impact by shifting to 100% sustainable ground transport by 2029.

Dry Snacks 🍿

A pantry staple, dry snacks such as potato chips are slow to spoil and quick to satisfy. For health-conscious snackers, be sure to stock more nutritious chip alternatives.

• Value: Kettle Brand Potato Chips, Sea Salt
  Nothing beats the satisfying crunch of kettle-cooked potato chips made with only three simple ingredients. Kettle Brand prides itself on sourcing its potatoes from the best farmers and has even set up a Tater Tracker so that consumers can find out exactly which farm their chips came from.

• Premium: Food Should Taste Good Tortilla Chips - Sweet Potato
  A mix of stone-ground corn and dried sweet potato makes this an interesting twist on a traditional chip. Try it with hummus, pico de gallo, or salsa.

Jerky 😋

Traditional jerky is salted and dehydrated lean, trimmed meat, making it lightweight and portable, with a longer shelf life. You can use fruits in a similar process to make vegan snacks. Plant-based jerkies are growing in popularity, and as you'll see below, they can be savory or sweet!

• Value: Solely Fruit Jerky, Chili Mango with Salt
  Solely makes this chewy, flavorful fruit jerky with only three ingredients: organic mango, chili, and salt. Solely maintains a network of certified farms that grow non-GMO organic produce as part of its commitment to making clean food.

• Premium: Savory Wild Portabella Jerky, Sesame, Ginger & Korean Chili
  Sweet, spicy, and salty, these portabella mushroom jerkies pack 10 grams of protein per bag.

Candy 🍬

Candy is Crafty's second-fastest-growing category, up 113% in 2023 versus 2022. According to Persistence Market Research, the vegan confectionery market is valued at $1.7 billion in 2023 and will grow to $2.9 billion in 2030.

• Value: Rip Van Wafers, Chocolate Hazelnut
  Low in sugar and high in fiber, Rip Van Wafels are a healthy alternative that tastes decadent.

• Premium: Rule Breaker Deep Chocolate Brownies
  A plant-based brownie that has protein and fiber? Yep, Rule Breaker makes their cookies with chickpeas for a healthier sweet treat to cure that afternoon slump.

Conclusion

Whether you want to be inclusive of your vegan and vegetarian employees or do your part to help the environment (or both!), stocking plant-based office snacks is a win for everyone. The Crafty Platform makes aligning products with your values easy while helping you manage your inventory to minimize waste before it happens. Learn how Crafty can help you build a plant-based, sustainable office pantry program.