The retail giant revealed its plans for growth - which also includes more robot-driven checkouts and upmarket convenience stores - at a recent meeting for investors and City analysts

The store will expand its vegan offering (Photo: Tesco)

Retail giant Tesco will introduce hundreds of new vegan ready meals in a bid to boost its profits.

The supermarket - the UK's largest - revealed its plans to fuel growth at a recent meeting with investors and City analysts.

In addition to boosting its plant-based offering, the store also wants to open more robot checkout tills, and is considering opening upmarket convenience stores which will only sell its Finest range products.

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Vegan at Tesco

Tesco already sells its Wicked Kitchen range - created by its Executive Chef & Director of Plant-Based Innovation Derek Sarno and his brother Chad - which features more than 30 products and launched in January 2018.

According to the retailer, it plans to introduce a new range called Plant Chef and some products will be released under this brand. Around 300 vegan items in total will be ranged.

Wicked Kitchen

Tesco may be basing the projected success of its proposed Plant Chef range on the solid sales figures of Wicked Kitchen.

Last year, Sarno revealed that the store had sold 4 million vegan meals from the Wicked Kitchen range in just 33 weeks.

"We've proven to the world it’s time for a change and people are responding," Sarno said. "I've no idea what that equates to when thinking of less suffering and I can’t think that way because there is still suffering going on this very moment as long as we’re not connected to the foods we choose to eat.

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"BUT it proves we can change, are changing and if we continue to provide delicious choices we will succeed much faster [sic]."

*This article was updated on June 21 to reflect that Tesco will offer around 300 vegan items in total, not just under the Plant Chef range.