Excellent news for the vegan and plant-based communities: the craze will soon be coming to some stores worldwide as Nestle is launching a vegan KitKat bar, according to ABC News. The chocolate candy bar, named KitKat V, will be made using 100 percent sustainable cocoa and is certified vegan.
The option will still be true to the popular KitKat bar — chocolate along with a crispy wafer, company officials say. Nestle said the move is a natural progression especially given the times.
“Demand for plant-based food is growing everywhere,” Alexander von Maillot, head of Nestle’s confectionery business, said, according to Bloomberg. “KitKat was a logical choice, as it’s by far the biggest brand and a global brand.”
Nestle has already begun manufacturing plant-based alternatives to dairy using products including rice, oat, soy, coconut, pea and almonds. KitKat V uses a rice-based formula instead of dairy. It took researchers a couple of years to develop the vegan chocolate bar.
The KitKat V will initially only be available at the Swiss-based company’s boutique KitKat Chocolatory shops and also via some select stores online as part of its test run. The KitKat was originally developed and the vegan research was done in York, England, so it will also be sold in Great Britain. It will also be available in several countries “across the globe,” but company officials are not yet providing specifics.
However, KitKat V will not readily be available in the U.S. This is despite the fact KitKat is produced here under a licensing agreement with Hershey’s. Fingers crossed for more sweet news.
