Vegans get a pretty bad reputation in the United States. Plenty of people scoff and roll their eyes at vegans. If you want people to instantly write you off as a hippie tree-hugger, tell them youre vegan. With that said, there are plenty of scientifically-backed reasons to go vegan. In fact, veganism could very well be an inevitable trend. Before we look at particular vegan stocks to buy based on this trend, let me explain a little bit further.

For the purposes of this argument, Im going to expand veganism to vegetarianism. Remember, vegetarianism is a vegetables-only diet. Veganism is a diet with no animal products at all (milk, cheese, dairy, etc.)

Todays society is facing two major problems. The first problem is the task of feeding an exponentially increasing population. The second problem is cooling off a rapidly warming planet. Veganism actually addresses both of these problems.

Many people dont quite realize how inefficient the meat industry is from an energy consumption perspective. This isnt because meat companies are poorly run. Its just science. For example, a full-grown bull weighs about 1,100-2,200 lbs. A bull also takes five years to reach full size. It requires a massive amount of grain, water, energy, labor, and physical land to produce one bull. On the other hand, vegetables and grains require just a fraction of the water and land. They also can be grown to full-size within one year. On average, it requires about 100 times more water to produce a pound of animal protein than grain protein.

Each year, the U.S. livestock population eats seven times as much grain as the American population does. As the human population continues to increase exponentially, food producers will need to get more efficient in how they use their limited land and resources.

As far as fighting climate change, cattle are the top contributor to greenhouse gases. According to Stanford Magazine, cattle produce about 18% of the worlds methane. This is more than all of the worlds planes, cars and trains put together.

Livestock just require too much land, food and water. So why arent there more vegans?

In general, most people dont want to go vegetarian due to the lack of options. Going vegetarian use to imply switching from juicy, delicious steak to lettuce. Who would ever want to do that? This is no longer the case though.

In the past few years, there has been a surge of alternative meat companies. These companies produce meatless meat products that taste near identical to their counterparts. Over the coming years, traditional meat companies will face growing backlash. This backlash will come from both consumers and politicians.

The whole scenario is similar to whats currently unfolding in the electric vehicle industry. At first, consumers rejected the idea of electric cars. This was mainly because there was no viable option on the market. Tesla changed this. Now, consumers pretty much love Tesla. Additionally, the government is investing heavily to make electric vehicles the norm.

Right now, there isnt necessarily a Tesla of Vegan Stocks. But there are a few companies that come close. With that out of the way, its time to finally talk about how we can make some money.

Lets dive into the five best vegan stocks to buy.

NOTE: Im not a financial advisor and am just offering information and commentary. Please do your own due diligence before making any decisions.

In general, its a great time to consider investing in vegan stocks. Over the past few years, there were lots of high-profile IPOs. The entire industry may have gotten overhyped. Since then, prices have come crashing back down.

For example, Beyond Meat was an incredibly talked-about IPO. This vegan stock surged as high as 250% on the day it went public. Since that day, it is down over 70%. Even though the stock has fallen from its all-time high, that doesnt mean that business is slowing. In fact, sales were up every single quarter in 2021 on a year-over-year basis.

On average, Beyond Meats sales have grown 136% annually since 2017. It also has one of the strongest brands of any alternate meat company. This has helped it land partnerships with McDonalds and Yum Brands! (KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell).

Beyond Meats stock is down 48% year-to-date (YTD). Its down 3% since it went public in 2019.

Oatly is mainly known for its oat-based alternative dairy drinks. It was another vegan stock that recently went public in a highly-anticipated listing. The stock rose almost 30% initially but has since fallen 70%.

Despite this, Oatlys business still appears to be doing well. In 2021, its quarterly sales have risen from $140.05 million to $146.15 million to $171.06 million. These are year-over-year quarterly increases of 66%, 53% and 49% respectively.

Oatly is another company that has an incredibly strong brand. On its website, it listed 10-holiday sweaters for sale at $125 a pop. As I write this, every single one is sold out.

Since it went public, Oatlys stock is down about 60%.

The next vegan stock to consider investing in isnt as well-known as Beyond Meat or Oatly. Tattooed Chef is another plant-based food company. A few products on its menu are ready-to-cook bowls, zucchini spirals, riced cauliflower, acai and smoothie bowls and cauliflower pizza crusts.

Tattooed Chef is yet another great example of an overhyped vegan stock. After going public in 2020, its stock surged 170% in a few months. Since its all-time high, the stock has fallen about 40%. With that said, sales still seem to be doing just fine. In fact, Tattooed Chef just reported record revenue of $58.78 million in Q3 2021. This was a 43.9% increase from the previous year.

Tattooed Chefs stock is down 30% so far in 2021. Its up about 60% since going public in 2020.

Very Good Food Company is a Canadian-based alternative food company. It is yet another example on this list of vegan stocks that has slumped from its all-time high. Very Good went public in 2020 and has fallen over 80% from its all-time high. The company got its start in 2018 when it appeared on Dragons Den, the Canadian version of Shark Tank. Afterward, it raised $600,000 through the crowdfunding platform FrontFundr.

Very Good has posted a few huge losses that might be making investors nervous. In 2020, it reported revenue of just $4.64 million and a net loss of $13.86 million. The first three quarters of 2021 werent much better. It posted net losses of $15.02 million, $12.50 million, and $13.70 million. However, there is some good news.

This vegan stock is in the process of aggressively entering the U.S. market. It is currently on the shelves of 600 U.S. stores. It plans to almost double this number to 1,125 stores by Q1 2022. So far, Very Good products seem to be selling well. In October 2021, it reported record revenue of $1.5 million. It generated this revenue from both retail and eCommerce channels.

Very Goods stock is down almost 80% so far in 2021.

Im cheating a little bit by including Natural Order Acquisition Corp. on a list of vegan stocks to buy. Thats because this is a SPAC that has not made a final decision yet on which company to buy. However, according to its website, it is our intention to pursue prospective targets that are focused on technologies and products related to sustainable plant-based food and beverages, alternative protein, and ingredients.

This company could end up taking another plant-based food company public. Notably, one of the largest players in the market, Impossible Foods, is still private.

I hope that youve found this article valuable when it comes to learning a few of the best vegan stocks to buy. Please base all investment decisions on your own due diligence and risk tolerance.

A University of Miami grad, Teddy studied marketing and finance while also playing four years on the football team. Hes always had a passion for business and used his experience from a few personal projects to become one of the top-rated business writers on Fiverr.com. When hes not hammering words onto paper, you can find him hammering notes on the piano or traveling to some place random.

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5 Vegan Stocks That Will Whet Your Appetite - Investment U