Summary
- Growing interest in plant proteins drove strong growth in sports nutrition and ready meals & side dishes
- Consumers are demanding plant-based products whose texture and flavor meet high standards
Consumers interest in their wellbeing fostered the growth of plant-based and vegan foods, and their concern has accelerated due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Product launches with plant-based and vegan claims show strong growth in North America, Europe, and Australasia, with acceleration after 2018 continuing into 2020.
A growing number of products are claimed plant-based or a similar term such as 100% or plant-powered. According to InnovaDatabase, in 2020, products claimed plant-based made up 2% of total food/beverage launches in Europe, 4.5% in Australasia, and 6% in North America. The plant-based claim is especially concentrated in three categories dairy(33%), sports nutrition(14%), and cereals(8%). These account for over half of launches.
Vegan launches have reached a mainstream level in North America and Australasia. In 2020, nearly 10% of total launches in Europe, 12% in North America, and 15% in Australasia carried a vegan claim. Vegan claims are more evenly distributed among a broad range of food categories, with snacks(11%), sauces and seasonings(10%), and bakery(10%).
Also, growing interest in plant proteins drove strong growth in sports nutrition and ready meals & side dishes. According to InnovaConsumerSurvey, consumers are increasingly choosing dairy and meat alternatives: one-quarter of adults age 45 or younger now consume them daily. US-based Impossible Foods makes delicious, nutritious meat products directly from plants. Its well-known Impossible Burger, often referred to as a game-changer. McDonalds Germany launched a vegan burger for the first time in 2019, made with Nestles plant-based Incredible burger (it was renamed Sensational Burger in 2020). Burger King also launched a vegan Impossible Whopper throughout the US in 2019. Beyond Meat had partnerships with McDonald's and Yum Brands, which operates KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell, to accelerate plant-based menu offerings in Feb 2021.
Consumers are demanding products that contain non-animal-based ingredients, while still requiring that their texture and flavor meet high standards. Food companies are looking at ways to improve the functionality and sensory profile of the current plant-based or vegan products. CJ TasteNrich® and FlavorNrich, fermented products, can be considered key ingredients which give them their unique meaty flavor as a natural flavor to improve the sensory profile of plant-based or vegan products.