Convenience Store Food in Taiwan in 2020

Updated April 2020

The 7-Eleven chain has introduced a new 'plant-based' range (see below) but unfortunately little if any of it is vegan.

Not As Good As It Used To Be

Berlin, one of the world's most vegan-friendly cities, seemed like the perfect place for a vegan supermarket chain, yet it failed dismally, not because there weren't enough vegans, but because there were too many. Vegan food is everywhere, so vegans have no need for their own supermarket. And the same thing appears to have happened with convenience stores in Taiwan. There was a time that finding a vegan meal was so hard one had to resort to convenience stores, yet with so many vegan restaurants in Taiwan now it seems that convenience stores no longer have the need for - or the profits in - feeding vegans.

7-Eleven 

Vegan Frozen Meals

As of 2020, these are the closest to a meal which can be found at convenience stores in Taiwan, but only a few 7-Elevens stock them. 

These two frozen meals are vegan, and are as good as rice which has been cooked, fried, frozen and then microwaved can possibly be. Unfortunately, they are only available at a limited number of stores, but these are often the more remote ones at which one is likely to be desperate enough to want a 7-Eleven meal.

It's nothing to blog about, but it's better than nothing. Most people will need at least two for a filling meal. 

Beware of the New 'Plant-Based' Range

These "plant-based" items are not all vegan, and many aren't even vegetarian. 

In March 2020 the 7-Eleven stores began heavily promoting a new 'plant-based' (蔬食) range of items. Just as in the West, there is much discussion and confusion over whether plant-based should be need to be entirely vegan.  While the curry apparently does not contain any animal products (but is made on the same production lines as animal products, so it can't be labelled 素 (vegetarian), most of the new plant-based range contain animal products, including meat. 

This is especially dangerous for non-Chinese speaking/reading foreign travellers, who may use Google Translate (or similar) to translate it and assume that it's vegan. 

My suggestion: avoid all these products, and stick only to items labelled as vegan.
For more information on the various labelling systems (updated for this new range) please see my page on Vegan and vegetarian labelling in Taiwan).  

Family Mart's Rice Burger

Alternatively, if one is desperate enough, Family Mart stock this vegan rice burger, that is a burger made from rice pressed together in place of a burger patty. It's not a five-star meal either, but it serves a purpose when desperate enough. Take it to the counter to be microwaved. As with the other meals, take it to the counter and the staff will microwave it in the bag.

By 2018, these are the only hot vegan meal available at the main convenience store chains.

Options at Most Convenience Stores  

Most convenience stores sell a range of nuts and dried fruits. Most are vegan, but beware that some nuts contain fish (usually shown in pictures) but it pays to check for the vegan symbol to be sure.

vegan cashew nuts from the 7-11

Vegetable crackers like this have been around for years, and sometimes turn up in smaller convenience stores (as in local ones, not the big chains like 7-11 and Family Mart, which generally run their own lines). Check for Taiwanese vegan food labels. 

These aren't very healthy, but they taste quite good, and are safely vegan.