Here’s a snapshot of the exciting plant-based food nudges and defaults movement happening across our communities.
Cities like New York, Denver, Austin, Los Angeles, the City of West Hollywood, Sammamish WA, Brampton ON (Canada), and more are prioritizing plant-based procurement, endorsing the Plant-based Treaty, and updating standards and policy to include Plant-based Defaults and Nudges. By offering animal products by request only, cities are massively slashing Scope 3 food-related carbon emissions.
Campuses are leading the charge in the plant-based movement! The University of Michigan has made oat milk the default in campus cafés, aligning with MDining’s broader climate commitment. At the University of Bristol and Imperial College London, students voted to support for 100% plant-based catering through the Plant-Based Universities campaign. The University of Northern Colorado rolled out more plant-based options for Spring 2025. University of Colorado Boulder was recently named the top school for plant-based dining and sustainability, boasting over 50% plant-based offerings and aiming for 75% by year’s end. The University of North Texas pledged to make 60% of its dining options plant-based by 2027!
In a significant move towards plant-based defaults, Paquebot Café eliminated the oat milk surcharge and made oat milk the default option entirely. And Dunkin’ has removed the extra charge for plant milk, joining the trend where all top five U.S. coffee chains now offer plant milk at no additional costs. 🎉
Peet’s also announced plans to drop the plant-milk upcharge starting in June 2025. These changes mark a major shift in making plant-based options more accessible to customers. A new coffee shop in Minnesota, The Briar Bar, just opened with oat milk as the default.
Plant-Based Cities Movement, with support from the Better Food Foundation, helped Jay Peak Resort in Vermont highlight veggie dishes with simple menu changes.
Sodexo UK and Nuffield Health are partnering with Greener by Default, to launch a pilot study across all 37 hospitals. And leading the plant-based defaults charge, NYC Health + Hospitals marks a milestone of 2 million plant-based meals served.
Discover which plant milks work best for cafes. Compare oat, soy, almond & coconut milk for taste, froth, cost & environmental impact.
Discover how DefaultVeg Interns are revolutionizing campus dining by making plant-based options the delicious default.
A guest blog by Marielle Williamson, a student at Duke Kunshan University, about the importance of adopting oat milk as the default in coffee shops.