In September 2017, the fastest man in Formula 1 posted on Snapchat that he was about to watch What the Health, adding: “I’m on a mission to go vegan, people.” The paddock rolled its eyes. Athletes need meat, everyone knew that.
Then Hamilton won the 2018 world championship. And 2019. And 2020, equalling Michael Schumacher’s record of seven titles. All of it fueled by plants. Whatever the paddock knew, it needed updating.
QUICK ANSWER
Yes, Lewis Hamilton eats fully plant-based, and has since September 2017. One honest nuance: he usually says “plant-based” rather than “vegan”. The diet is the same; the label is his choice. As of 2026, at Ferrari, nothing has changed.
Last fact-checked: July 7, 2026
Why he switched
Three reasons, in his own telling: the environmental cost of animal agriculture, slaughterhouse footage he couldn’t unsee, and performance. The trigger was the documentary What the Health, announced mid-mission on Snapchat. Within months he reported feeling “incredibly clean and healthy”, and unlike most January resolutions, this one survived contact with an F1 calendar.
The performance argument aged well. Hamilton won three of his seven world titles after the switch, at an age when most drivers decline. He wasn’t alone in making that case on screen either: he was among the backers of The Game Changers, the 2018 documentary about plant-based athletes.
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“I'm on a mission to go vegan, people.” He watches What the Health and overhauls his diet within weeks.
2018: first plant-based title, PETA honor
Wins the world championship in his first full plant-based season and is named PETA UK's Person of the Year.
2019: Neat Burger launches
Hamilton co-founds the plant-based burger chain, later attracting Leonardo DiCaprio as an investor.
2020: title number seven, vegan bulldog
Equals Schumacher's record. His bulldog Roscoe switches to plant-based food and, per Hamilton, acts “like a puppy again”.
2021: invests in Bramble
Backs the plant-based dog food startup, putting money where Roscoe's bowl is.
January 2025: Neat Burger closes, Ferrari begins
The chain shuts its UK sites after heavy losses. A business failure, not a diet change: reports from Maranello soon cover the vegan options at Ferrari HQ.
September 2025: goodbye Roscoe
Roscoe dies at 12. Hamilton's tribute doubles as a quiet case for how well the plant-based years treated him.
What about Neat Burger?
Worth addressing head-on, because “Hamilton’s vegan burger chain failed” occasionally gets spun into “Hamilton gave up on vegan”. The chain closed its UK restaurants in early 2025 after roughly $10M in losses. That’s the restaurant business being the restaurant business. His diet didn’t change, his dog food investment didn’t change, and his daily falafel-with-hummus habit, which he once claimed to hate, definitely didn’t change.
Fact or fiction?
He won more world titles after going plant-based than before. Fact or fiction?
Fiction, but barely. Three of seven titles came after the 2017 switch (2018, 2019, 2020). Four came before. The plant-based ones came per season at a higher hit rate though.
His dog ate plant-based too. Fact or fiction?
Fact. Roscoe the bulldog went plant-based in 2020 and Hamilton said he was “like a puppy again”. Roscoe died in September 2025 at 12.
He eats whatever he wants, sugar included. Fact or fiction?
Fiction. He reportedly keeps sugar to around six grams a day. Six. Grams.
Quiz: how well do you know plant-based Lewis?
Five questions, no cheating
1. Which documentary kicked off his plant-based switch?
2. How many world titles did he win after going plant-based?
3. What was his burger chain called?
4. What's his daily go-to snack?
5. What was Roscoe the bulldog's diet?
Is Lewis Hamilton still plant-based in 2026?
Yes. His September 2025 tribute to Roscoe was steeped in the plant-based life they shared, coverage of his Ferrari move included the vegan menu question at Maranello, and no credible report has him eating animal products. The “plant-based, not vegan” label distinction is his only hedge, and it’s about wording, not food.
Worth addressing head-on, because “Hamilton’s vegan burger chain failed” occasionally gets spun into “Hamilton gave up on vegan”. The chain closed its UK restaurants in early 2025 after roughly $10M in losses.
Fact or fiction?+
He won more world titles after going plant-based than before. Fact or fiction? Fiction, but barely. Three of seven titles came after the 2017 switch (2018, 2019, 2020). Four came before. The plant-based ones came per season at a higher hit rate though.
Is Lewis Hamilton still plant-based in 2026?+
Yes. His September 2025 tribute to Roscoe was steeped in the plant-based life they shared, coverage of his Ferrari move included the vegan menu question at Maranello, and no credible report has him eating animal products.
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