Is Bubble Tea Vegan?

Walking down any high street in the UK you will likely pass someone drinking a fun, funky-looking drink. With bright colours, eye-catching toppings, and oversized straws Bubble Tea is the drink that has rapidly taken over the world.

Is it Vegan?

Whether or not your favourite treat is vegan can have a huge impact on your day. As an ethical consumer, it can be a veritable minefield to ensure you are maintaining your dietary choices. The good news is, it's easy to make sure your bubble tea is vegan. And if you run a bubble tea shop we highly recommend you promote a range of vegan options!

Bubble tea has three main ingredients to consider and we will discuss each here, and how to know your vegan options.

1 – Boba Pearls

The bubble tea (or ‘Boba') is instantly recognisable by its distinctive boba pearls that add a tasty twist to this fun drink. Although they look distinctly gelatinous, like many sweets made from non-vegan products, you can rest easy knowing that boba pearls are actually made from the tapioca starch of the cassava root. This means that boba pearls can generally be relied on to be vegan.

2 – Milk

As with most teas, bubble tea contains milk. It is actually the milk that gives bubble tea its name. When the tea, milk, and Tapioca balls are shaken together to get that distinctive mix bubbles rise to the top. Obviously milk is non-vegan… But fear not! Not only are there a plethora of vegan milk alternatives on the market, but adding oat milk to your bubble tea actually makes for an interesting and tasty twist. Vegan milk alternatives are a must for all bubble tea shops!

3 – Creamer and Toppings

The variety of creamers and toppings that are available in any bubble tea shop are numerous and vegan options are available. We recommend that you check with your server to make sure your toppings are vegan. And if you run a bubble tea shop – make sure you keep your vegan options stocked! Almost 50% of UK citizens are considering reducing their animal product intake in the future.

So there you have it. Bubble tea is a great treat and a wildly popular drink that can easily be made using vegan ingredients. If you are looking to stock your shop, see our product range.