Greggs accused of ‘ruining Christmas’ after replacing iconic festive item

'Tis the season to check out the festive menu which bakery fans look forward to each year.

The Greggs Christmas menu has become a bit of a national treasure with its eagerly awaited sarnies and pasties.

However this year, Greggs has omitted an iconic item from the menu, with some fans joking the decision has 'ruined Christmas'.

The excluded item is none other than the legendary vegan festive bake, which had headlined the festive menu for vegans since 2021.

It has this year been axed from the menu and replaced with a new item, which could be the vegan go-to this festive season.

Disgruntled Greggs fans have shared their frustrations on X, formerly Twitter, with one saying: "Sorry but Greggs not bringing back the vegan festive bake this year has actually ruined Christmas."

I was absolutely gutted when I went into Greggs this morning and there was no Vegan Festive. I've been waiting all week for this. I'm not even a vegetarian. The spicy curry bake has nothing to do with Chrismas and is completely rubbish. What have you people done?!

— Balesandro Kuracan (@_balesandro) November 10, 2023

i feel close to tears at the fact that there wont be a vegan festive bake at greggs this year. day ruined

— gabby 🛋 (@iquitelikefrogs) November 9, 2023

The new item is the spicy vegetable curry bake and people were quick to offer their opinion on the change.

Another said: "Greggs replacing the vegan festive bake with a vegetable curry one is enough to tip me over the edge. Genuinely gutted."

Some fans were also blind-sided by the decision, only finding out about it on the release day: "Um… so the Greggs festive bake is back today… but I’m looking on the app and THE VEGAN ONE IS NOT THERE??????"

It will not be the only festive option for vegans though, with a vegan turkey-free baugette also taking its place on the 2023 menu.

The well-known festive bake is made up of pastry filled with chicken, sage and onion stuffing, and bacon in a sage and cranberry sauce, with the vegan version swapping our chicken and bacon for meat free replacements as well as a vegan pastry coating.

The spicy vegetable curry bake has been described by the bakery chain as 'a vibrant mix of rice and veg, including chickpeas, onions, sweetcorn, pepper and parsnip all in a curry sauce - with added chillies for that kick of seasonal spice'.

Another fan also pointed out that the vegan festive bake is not the first meat-free alternative to be axed as of late, saying on X: "Beyond disappointed with the @GreggsOfficial vegan bake options these days. What happened to the vegan festive bake or the vegan sausage bean and cheese bake!!"

The ever-loved vegan steak bake was also an unwelcome omittance from the Greggs menu, with many fans mourning the loss of this item following its positive introduction in 2020.

The meat-alternatives industry has been suffering in sales recently, possibly because of their higher prices compared to real meat.

LADbible has contacted Greggs for comment.