Foods High in Vitamin B12: UK Portions and Vegetarian Sources

The foods highest in vitamin B12 are liver, clams and mussels, oily fish such as sardines and mackerel, then beef and lamb, eggs, milk, cheese and yoghurt; the only plant-based sources are foods with B12 added, fortified breakfast cereals, plant milks, spreads and yeast extracts. No fruit, vegetable, grain, nut or pulse contains it, and the plant foods often said to, seaweed, tempeh, spirulina and mushrooms, carry mostly inactive look-alikes that do not count.^{1, 2} The UK reference intake is 1.5 micrograms a day, which is small: a portion of fish or meat, two eggs or a glass of milk each covers most of it, and a mixed diet supplies three to five times the need. The table below gives UK portions in micrograms so you can see where you stand, with the vegetarian and vegan routes set out separately, because that is where the shortfalls are.

• Richest: liver, clams, mussels, sardines, mackerel, salmon, trout
• Everyday: beef, lamb, pork, chicken, eggs, milk, cheese, yoghurt
• Vegetarian: eggs and dairy cover it; fortified cereals and yeast extract add more
• Vegan: fortified foods daily or a supplement; no unfortified plant food is a source
• Need: 1.5 micrograms a day; 2.0 when breastfeeding

Foods high in vitamin B12, per UK portion

Approximate figures from UK food composition data; fortified products vary by brand, so check the label.

• Lamb's or calf's liver, 100 g: about 80 micrograms, more than a month's need; not in pregnancy, because of its vitamin A
• Clams or mussels, 100 g: about 15 to 20 micrograms
• Sardines or mackerel, 100 g: about 8 to 9 micrograms
• Salmon or trout, 100 g: about 3 to 5 micrograms
• Tinned tuna, 100 g: about 2 to 3 micrograms
• Beef or lamb, 100 g cooked: about 2 to 3 micrograms; pork about 1; chicken about 0.5
• Eggs, one medium: about 0.8 micrograms, so two eggs cover a day
• Milk, 200 ml: about 1.8 micrograms; a glass covers the day
• Cheddar or similar hard cheese, 30 g: about 0.7 micrograms
• Yoghurt, 150 g: about 0.3 to 0.6 micrograms
• Fortified breakfast cereal, 30 g: about 0.6 to 1.5 micrograms, brand dependent
• Fortified plant milk, 200 ml: about 0.75 micrograms (0.38 per 100 ml is the usual level)
• Fortified yeast extract, 4 g on toast: about 0.6 to 1 microgram; fortified nutritional yeast, a tablespoon: 2 to 4 micrograms

Our page on what vitamin B12 is good for explains the roles behind the need; the signs of B12 deficiency covers what happens without it.

Which food is highest in B12?

Liver, by a distance: a 100 g portion of lamb's liver supplies around 80 micrograms, which the body cannot absorb all at once, since absorption saturates at roughly 2 micrograms per meal, so the surplus is simply lost. That ceiling is why eating B12 regularly matters more than eating a lot occasionally, and why a glass of milk or an egg a day does more for status than a weekly liver dinner.¹ After liver come clams and mussels, then the oily fish, then red meat. Liver is not advised in pregnancy because of its vitamin A content, and once a week is plenty for anyone else.

Is there B12 in fruit and vegetables?

No. Vitamin B12 is made by bacteria and accumulates in animals; plants have no need for it and no mechanism to make or store it. Fruit, vegetables, grains, nuts, seeds and pulses contain none, whatever the lists online say, and "which fruit is rich in vitamin B12" has no answer. The exceptions people cite do not hold up. Seaweeds such as nori and spirulina contain compounds that look like B12 on a laboratory test but are mostly inactive in the body and can give a falsely normal blood result. Tempeh and other fermented soya foods contain small, variable amounts from bacterial contamination, not reliably. Mushrooms carry traces on their surface from soil. None is a source to depend on.²

Vegetarian sources of B12

Vegetarians who eat eggs and dairy are usually fine: two eggs, a glass of milk and some cheese or yoghurt a day supply around 3 micrograms, double the need. The watch-points are vegetarians who eat little dairy, who are over 65 and absorb food B12 less well, or who take metformin or acid-suppressing medicines; for them fortified cereal and yeast extract daily, or a modest supplement, closes the gap. B12 for women covers pregnancy and breastfeeding, where the need rises.

Vegan sources of B12

Fortified foods or a supplement, every day or near it; there is no third option. The Vegan Society's advice is to eat fortified foods two or three times a day to reach at least 3 micrograms, or take 10 micrograms a day as a supplement, or 2,000 micrograms once a week; the higher supplement doses reflect the absorption ceiling.^{1, 3} Fortified plant milks, cereals, spreads and yeast extracts are the foods to read labels on; the B12 figure per 100 g or per serving is what matters, and not every plant milk is fortified. A meta-analysis of vegan adults found a large share with low functional B12 status among those who did not supplement and near-normal status among those who did.³ Wellgard's vegan vitamin B12 is a single high-dose option; vitamin B12 contributes to normal red blood cell formation, normal functioning of the nervous system and the reduction of tiredness and fatigue.

What drink is high in B12?

Milk, at about 1.8 micrograms a glass, is the only everyday drink that is a real source. Fortified plant milks carry around 0.75 micrograms a glass. Fruit juices, tea, coffee and water contain none; "B12 energy drinks" supply synthetic B12 at high doses alongside caffeine and sugar, and the caffeine is what people feel.

How to raise B12 naturally

Eat a B12 food at most meals rather than one large portion: an egg or milk at breakfast, fish or meat or cheese at lunch or dinner, yoghurt as a snack. For vegans, a fortified food at each meal. Cooking loses a little B12, meat loses perhaps a quarter, milk less when not boiled, so nothing to worry about. If you absorb poorly, because of age, medicines or a gut condition, food will not fix it however much you eat, and which is better, B12 or B complex explains why a supplement at a higher dose is the route. "How to raise B12 quickly" has one honest answer: a supplement, since food works at the pace of the absorption ceiling.

What we don't know

• How much B12 in fermented plant foods is active. Variable and mostly low; none should be relied on.²
• Whether UK plant-milk fortification levels suffice for vegans eating no other fortified food. Probably not on their own.

Frequently asked questions

Which foods are the richest in vitamin B12?

Liver, clams and mussels, then sardines, mackerel and salmon, then beef, lamb, eggs, milk and cheese.¹

Which fruit is rich in vitamin B12?

None. No fruit, vegetable, grain, nut or pulse contains vitamin B12.

Are there vegetarian sources of B12?

Eggs, milk, cheese and yoghurt, plus fortified cereals, plant milks and yeast extracts. Vegans rely on the fortified foods or a supplement.³

Are 2 eggs enough for B12?

Two medium eggs supply about 1.6 micrograms, roughly the daily need, provided you absorb normally.

What foods should I avoid if I have a B12 deficiency?

None need avoiding. Alcohol in quantity worsens absorption, and seaweed or spirulina can mask the problem on a blood test. Treat the deficiency as your GP advises and eat B12 foods regularly.

Sources

1. Green R, et al. Vitamin B12 deficiency. Nature Reviews Disease Primers, 2017. PubMed 28660890.
2. NHS. B vitamins and folic acid: vitamin B12 sources. nhs.uk.
3. Niklewicz A, et al. A systematic review and meta-analysis of functional vitamin B12 status among adult vegans. Nutrition Bulletin, 2024. PubMed 39373282.
4. Public Health England. McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset. gov.uk.

This article is general information, not medical advice. If you have symptoms of B12 deficiency, or absorb poorly because of age, medicines or a gut condition, see your GP for a blood test; food alone may not be enough.