by Jeanne Yacoubou, MS

VRG Research Director

Convenience store 7-Eleven® told The VRG in October 2011 that they now offer four pre-cooked vegan meals at one hundred locations in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts. The ready-to-eat meals are manufactured and distributed by UNIVEG/Hot Cuisine America, Inc. ®, in Swedesboro, NJ.

UNIVEG/Hot Cuisine America® offers a wide variety of pre-cooked meals and distributes them widely. At this point, its vegan dishes represent a small, but growing, segment of their product offerings. UNIVEG/Hot Cuisine America® purchases ingredients from other companies then prepares meals with those ingredients according to recipes that it has developed. A senior staff member at UNIVEG/Hot Cuisine America® told The VRG that the vegan meals are prepared in a kitchen free of meat and dairy products.

The culinary team at the company is in the process of developing several more ready-to-eat vegan meals for 7-Eleven® and expanding their distribution to grocery stores such as Giant® in Maryland. “In the first quarter of 2012,” according to this staff member, customers may begin looking for vegans meals composed of, for example, a noodle component, a meat analog, and a vegetable, as well as ones like those currently offered at some 7-Eleven® stores in the northeast corridor (see below).

Many patrons enjoy the UNIVEG/Hot Cuisine America® meals eaten cold, but they may be heated as well. Heating them in the original containers is not recommended, according to the UNIVEG/Hot Cuisine America® staff member.

The VRG also spoke with Margaret Chabris, the public relations specialist for 7-Eleven®. She told us that the convenience store chain is “involved in intensive marketing research” and “moving positively in that direction [of offering more vegan meals at more 7-Eleven® stores.]” She stated that “it will be in select locations,” but that “it is too premature to say anything more at this time.”

Ingredient information about the four vegan dishes prepared by UNIVEG/Hot Cuisine America® and available at select 7-Eleven® stores is as follows (note: processing method of brown sugar is undetermined at this time):

Vegan Spinach Noodles with Vegetables
Ingredients: Spinach Pasta (durum wheat semolina, spinach powder, water), carrot, mushroom, sesame oil, onion, brown sugar, cilantro, apple cider vinegar, garlic, ginger, naturally brewed soy sauce, sea salt, spices. Contains: Soy, Wheat.

Vegan Pad Thai Noodles
Ingredients: Cooked pasta (durum wheat, water), cabbage, brown sugar, carrot, green onion, garlic, tomato, apple cider vinegar, lime juice, naturally brewed soy sauce, sesame oil, canola oil, sea salt, spices. Contains: Soy, Wheat.

Vegan Linguine Tikka Massala
Ingredients: Cooked pasta (durum wheat, water), water, spinach, red pepper, cilantro, sesame oil, tomato, brown sugar, garlic, spices, salt. Contains: Soy, Wheat.
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Vegan Asian Linguine
Ingredients: Cooked pasta (durum wheat, water), cabbage, mushroom, naturally brewed soy sauce, carrot, brown sugar, green onion, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, cilantro, salt, spice. Contains: Soy, Wheat. The 7-Eleven® stores carrying the vegan meals are as follows (7-Eleven® directed us to this list found on the PeTA® website and described to us as “accurate” by 7-Eleven®):