Frome shoppers will be able to buy meals from what is believed to be the biggest ever roll out of vegan products in the UK in just a few weeks..

The Co-op, which has four supermarkets in the town, has announced a huge expansion plan which in 2020 will see it offer same-day online city-centre deliveries from 650 stores with an exclusive new brand, called GRO.

It was launched yesterday (January 2) and will be available at up to 6,000 Co-op and independent stores, including the ones in Frome by the end of January.

The vegan range comes on the back of exclusive research from the Co-op's Ethical Consumerism report which revealed that the market has topped £1 billion for the first time ever and has more than doubled in the last 20 years, up from £452 million in 1999. In just 12 months, Co-op's findings reveal that vegetarian product sales have risen by over 12 percent and non-dairy milk alternatives have seen a 14 percent uplift.

Jo Whitfield, CEO Co-op Food, said: "At Co-op, we make it easier to get products when you need them and we stay close to our customers changing requirements. We have to provide fantastic products and services with strong ethics and a purposeful focus on convenience. Our new vegan range taps into the latest consumer trends and our online services meet the growing appetite for fast home deliveries."

The first stores to stock the range, after London and Manchester will be Brighton, Bournemouth, Southampton.

Co-op will also expand its partnership with Deliveroo which will be extended to 400 stores, reaching around 100 major towns and cities.

The GRO brand features over 35 meat-free products and will be stocked in 2,000 Co-op stores and in up to 4,000 independent retailers through Co-op's wholesale operation, NISA.

It is believed to be the largest ever product rollout of own-brand vegan products by a supermarket and takes Co-op's total food and wine vegan range to over 1,000 products. In addition, all Co-op's beer and cider range will become vegan in 2020 while it already offers almost 120 vegan wines.