By Rieva Lesonsky

Move over cupcakes, artisanal bacon and absinthe: Is going vegan the next hot food trend? A recent article by the Baltimore Sun looks at how the vegan lifestyle—featuring a diet free of animal products, including dairy and eggs—is growing.

I’ll never be a vegan, but according to a 2008 Harris Poll, there are about 1 million Americans who identify themselves as vegans, and businesses are catering to them with gourmet vegan cookbooks, vegan restaurants and recipes, and vegan blogs.

High-profile vegan bakeries like BabyCakes in New York City have given vegan an air of glamour and helped it become more widely known. Vegan celebrities like Ellen DeGeneres, Ginnifer Goodwin, Alicia Silverstone and Emily Deschanel have helped make vegan hip.

But what’s really key to the rise of vegan is the increased interest in eating healthy, local and organic foods. “As recently as five years ago, a vegan diet was considered alternative and radical,” the article quotes Mary Lawrence, whose Well On Wheels, a Connecticut personal-chef service, provides vegan meals and teaches vegan cooking classes. “Now, with the new emphasis on healthy lifestyles, people are more open and interested.”

Vegan options are sold at mainstream stores like Whole Foods; more restaurants are adding vegan dishes to the menu; and Publishers Weekly notes an increase in vegetarian and vegan titles.

Niche industries are always great places for entrepreneurs to thrive. While vegan will probably never go mainstream, vegans are passionate about their way of life, making them devoted customers for businesses who get it right.

Want to learn more about vegan? Today’s the last day of Vegan Month of Food, when more than 300 vegan bloggers worldwide post daily updates about what they ate. Find all participating blogs at snipurl.com/s9fmr.