An international cooking website has labelled Amsterdam as the fifth-best city in the world for vegans. 

Amsterdam is a great city for vegans

Chef’s Pencil, a website where professional chefs share their favourite recipes and that publishes reports on news and trends within the catering industry, has published a study highlighting the best cities around the world for vegans. Using Google Trends, the site analysed the popularity of veganism worldwide. They discovered the popularity of veganism was at an all-time high. 

For the first time, the Dutch capital has made it into the top 10, meaning the city has also won the prize for the most improved city ranking, with the site stating “This laid-back, cosmopolitan city has, surprisingly, been slow to take an interest in veganism.” Amsterdam has come in joint fifth place, alongside Hamburg and Berlin. 

Veganism in the Netherlands

Nationally, the Netherlands is also doing quite well when it comes to the growth of veganism. Meat sales across the country have dropped by 9 percent since 2017, and the site observes that a number of butchers are attempting to work with meat substitutes. The Netherlands now ranks eleventh in the world for the national popularity of veganism.

Furthermore, supermarkets across the Netherlands have also improved their range of vegan products - the number of plant-based foods available in Dutch supermarkets has grown by a whopping 51 percent since 2017. Albert Heijn has increased its meat-free options by 33 percent since 2016, and Jumbo offers nearly 200 plant-based “meat” products. 

Find out the international rankings

Curious to find out the go-to places for vegan dining? Want to know how your country or city ranks? Take a look at the international rankings. 

The top 10 cities around the world for veganism

1. Bristol
2. Portland
3. Edinburgh
4. London
5. Amsterdam; Berlin; Hamburg
6. Manchester
7. Leipzig
8. Vancouver

The top 15 countries around the world for veganism

1. The United Kingdom
2. Australia
3. Israel
4. Austria
5. New Zealand
6. Germany
7. Sweden
8. Switzerland
9. Canada 
10. Ireland
11. The Netherlands
12. The United States
13. Denmark 
14. Finland
15. Chile