In recent years, vegan and vegetarian products have become more than just food choices, but the lifestyle statements. Supermarkets are filled with “eco-friendly,” “cruelty-free,” and “plant-based” labels that promise a greener, more ethical future. But behind these feel-good slogans lies a powerful marketing strategy that often simplifies complex environmental realities. The “green” image has become a major selling point which is sometimes justified, yet sometimes misleading.
The Rise of the Green Consumer
Modern consumers increasingly want their purchases to align with their values. Climate change awareness, documentaries about factory farming, and campaigns for animal rights have all helped plant-based diets go mainstream.
Marketers had quickly recognized this shift and now the words like “sustainable,” “clean,” “natural,” and “planet-friendly” now dominate packaging and advertisements. Vegan products are often placed not only as healthier options but as moral ones, implying that choosing them automatically means saving the planet. However, as consumption patterns evolve, so do marketing agendas and what began as a genuine effort to promote ethical living has, in many cases, become a profitable branding opportunity.
Many vegan and vegetarian brands use the environmental narrative to contrast their products with meat and dairy. For example, tofu or soy-based foods are frequently advertised as climate-friendly alternatives. While this is mostly true, tofu has a much lower carbon footprint than beef or pork, the story is often oversimplified.
Selective storytelling
Deforestation caused by soy farming is widely publicized, but few ads mention that about 80% of global soy production goes to livestock feed, not to tofu or soy milk. In short, rainforests are being cleared for meat, not for vegan food but marketing rarely dives into such nuance.
This selective storytelling helps create a clear hero–villain dynamic such as vegan equals green; meat equals destruction. The nuance that sustainability depends on supply chains, sourcing, and transport often gets lost in emotional advertising.
Greenwashing and Competitive Branding
As the plant-based market grows, competition among brands has intensified. With so many products claiming to be “eco,” “organic,” or “carbon neutral,” companies now use greenwashing (the exaggeration or misrepresentation of environmental benefits) as a tactic to win consumer trust.
Some products highlight plant-based ingredients while ignoring the heavy processing, packaging waste, or long-distance transportation involved in bringing them to shelves. For instance, imported avocados, almond milk, or coconut-based yogurts may carry a larger carbon footprint than locally sourced dairy. Yet their marketing focuses on what’s absent (animal products) rather than what’s present (industrial farming and transport emissions.)
The “green” image becomes less about actual sustainability and more about perceived morality. Consumers are persuaded to buy not only a product but also a sense of ethical identity. Labels such as “Vegan Certified,” “Non-GMO,” “Organic,” and “Cruelty-Free” have become symbols of trust. But they are also powerful marketing tools. They simplify consumer decision-making while often masking regional and regulatory complexities.
Blurry line
For example, in Europe, tofu brands proudly display “EU-grown soybeans” or “deforestation-free” logos, aligning with the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR, 2023). While these certifications are crucial for traceability, they also serve as visual markers of virtue, reinforcing the product’s eco-friendly identity. In contrast, the U.S. sourced soy, which often does not meet EU traceability standards, is excluded from European tofu production. Yet few marketing campaigns explain this distinction. What consumers see is a green leaf logo and a promise, not the supply chain behind it.
This emotional economy of sustainability can inspire meaningful change, but it also risks turning environmentalism into a commodity (something to be purchased rather than practiced.) When “green” becomes a brand identity, the line between ethical choice and marketing manipulation begins to blur.
Compassion, responsibility and hope
None of this means vegan or vegetarian products are inherently deceptive. In fact, eating plant-based foods generally has clear benefits for the environment and human health. But marketing should reflect the full picture — including where ingredients come from, how they are processed, and what their real impact is.
True sustainability requires transparency, not slogans. It involves acknowledging that not all vegan products are automatically good for the planet, and that ethical consumption goes beyond buying what’s labeled “green.”
Hence, the “green” image has become one of the most powerful tools in modern marketing. Vegan and vegetarian products now sell not just flavor or nutrition, but values of compassion, responsibility, and hope. Yet as this market grows, so does the temptation to oversimplify and overpromise. To move beyond marketing myths, both producers and consumers must demand accountability and truth in labeling. Only then can the plant-based revolution truly live up to its sustainable promise and not just in image, but in impact.
RESEARCH | ARTICLE © Prerana Subedi, Leah Gand, Anastasia-Alexia Colesnicenco
PHOTO: https://www.freepik.com/author/jcomp
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