Food & Beverage

Vegan food has come a long way over the last decade, with many vegan brands developing into industry leaders in terms of nutritional value, sustainability, and innovation of their products. While the animal-based food business is barely growing in many product categories, the vegan food sector is experiencing strong growth across the board.

Awareness of issues regarding planet and animal welfare is growing and results in an increasing number of adults and children following a vegan lifestyle. Today, the search for vegan alternatives is easier than ever before, whilst revolutionary vegan food news delivered by brands all over the world are reported by the international press.

Revolutionary food transition is shaping the future

A vegan lifestyle creates a link between the need for a healthier diet and the urgent shift to a sustainable food economy. Therefore, all signs point to a meat-free future that no longer exploits animals for food products.

News on food products without animal-derived ingredients are providing encouraging developments and events for a global food transition. Whether it’s vegan food news on airlines that will offer larger selections of vegan dishes, the emergence of dedicated plant-based school kitchens, or the creation of the world’s first vegan sub chain, they all provide clear indications for the direction that human nutrition is going to take.

A growing number of consumers are following vegan diets. Supported by a global vegan movement, including the successful non-profit organization Veganuary and The Vegan Society, many new vegan products entered the shelves of supermarkets and the menus of restaurants.

However, not only the number of vegan products in the store is rising, as searches for homemade vegan recipes are at an all-time high, while many celebrities and influencers are cooking vegan dishes to inspire their followers to go vegan. For vegan companies, it is essential to recognize trends early on and adapt the product range accordingly.

©Eat Just

Trends in vegan news

The diversity and power of innovation in vegan food news from the nutrition sector is expanding every year. Trends to watch for in 2022 include cultured food produced using cellular agriculture, vegan egg alternatives, and innovative seafood products.

In 2022, the new category of cultivated pet food for cats and dogs will make its debut, while the development of nutritious egg alternatives continues to gain momentum. As predicted by the Vegan Society, 2022 will be the year that could finally boost veganism into mainstream.

Most relevant vegan food news

At vegconomist, the first vegan business magazine, you don’t have to search for relevant news, because we report on the latest innovations and developments in our category Food & Beverage several times per week. We receive emails from leading companies and market researchers in the vegan business world and guarantee for first-class vegan food news articles and interviews.

Through our newsletter, thousands of industry insiders and friends of the vegan business community are receiving the most relevant news from the vegan business environment directly into their inbox.

If you don’t want to miss out on the most relevant vegan news, sign up for the vegconomist newsletter here.

Germany’s NIC Veg Burger Says “100% Vegan Will Become the New Normal”

December 9, 2022

Under the motto “Meat can be veg”, NIC Veg Burger has opened a new location, this time in the German town of Karlsruhe, to a rush of visitors. The Karlsruhe NIC offers 100 seats over 250 square metres, with ten employees serving fast food from Monday to Saturday, 10 am to 8 pm. Karlsruhe and Stuttgart are just the beginning of a far-reaching expansion strategy; NIC founder and owner Holger Hutmacher believes that “100 per cent vegan will become the new normal. The successful launches in Stuttgart and now also here in Karlsruhe show us that. Anyone who tries our burgers will do without burgers with meat in the future and thus automatically reduce their meat consumption.” “It was important to us to create a …

©Top Tier Foods

Wamame Foods Welcomes New Partners to Expand Plant-Based Waygu Across Canada and US

December 9, 2022December 9, 2022

Canada’s Wamame Foods, which produces the world’s first plant-based wagyu beef, welcomes Teja Foods and Sierra Meat and Seafood as new consortium partners. Along with innovation partners Merit Functional Foods, Wismettac Asian Foods and Crush Dynamics, and a co-investment from Protein Industries Canada, the plant-based consortium seeks to develop and distribute Wamame’s plant-based alternatives to wagyu beef. The companies’ efforts will build on the early success of Wamame’s Waygu brand by investing in research and development through partnerships with the University of British Columbia and the Saskatchewan Food Industry Development Centre. According to Wamame, the research process will help create a suite of products that can compete against the best beef brands in the world. These offerings would be sold under both the Waygu brand and …

©Black Sheep Foods

Black Sheep Foods Raises $12.3M to Scale Up Plant-Based Lamb and Exotic Meats

December 9, 2022

Black Sheep Foods, which specializes in plant-based lamb and other game meats, announces it has raised $12.3M in Series A funding. The company will use the capital to increase its product and R&D teams, sales and marketing, and move to a larger production facility capable of making 16 million pounds of plant-based lamb each year. This increased production is expected to begin in early 2023, says its CEO. Based in San Francisco, Black Sheep uses patent-pending technology to identify the unique flavor molecules found in lamb and reconstruct its taste and richness using the same molecules from plants. The startup introduced America’s “first ever” heritage plant-based lamb at select restaurants in 2021, including six locations of Greek dining chain Souvla. “Seriously impressed” “At Souvla, we …

6 hello plant foods vegan foie products piled up on top of a table

Hello Plant Foods Launches “Hyper-Realistic” Vegan Foie Gras Across Spain

December 8, 2022

Hello Plant Foods, a Spanish plant-based meat producer, announced the launch of Hello Fuah!, a vegan foie gras alternative, in Alcampo hypermarkets and specialized vegan food stores across Spain. The company states that this new gastronomic and technological innovation will revolutionise Spain’s foie gras market, where there are no alternatives besides Nestlé’s vegan foie gras limited edition. Javier Fernández, committed to a healthy and sustainable diet, started Hello Plant Foods in 2021 to develop vegan products that mimic animal meat’s organoleptic properties. Hello Burger Healthy was the company’s first product, soon joined by Hello Bacon. Hello Fuah! marks the newest addition to the brand’s animal-free meat portfolio. “Hello Fuah! will become the category’s benchmark product and will be available throughout the year,” says Fernández. A hyper-realistic …

©Bel Brands USA

Bel Brands USA Unveils First Animal-Free Dairy with Nurishh Incredible Dairy and Laughing Cow Plant-Based

December 8, 2022

Following the successful launches of Babybel Plant Based and Boursin Dairy-Free, Bel Brands USA announces the launch of The Laughing Cow Plant Based and Nurishh Incredible Dairy Animal Free Cream Cheese – its first animal-free product created in partnership with Perfect Day. Debuting at select retailers, including Kroger and Whole Foods, the new offerings include: The Laughing Cow Plant Based – Certified plant-based and vegan, The Laughing Cow Plant Based delivers the same taste and creamy spreadability people know and love. Available in Garlic & Herb and Original at Whole Foods locations nationwide for $5.49. Nurishh Incredible Dairy – Nurishh, Bel’s first dairy alternative brand, is launching an animal-free cream cheese alternative that tastes just as good as traditional cream cheese because it contains real …

©Tender & True

Tender & True Debuts Its First Line of Plant-Based, Upcycled Dog Treats

December 8, 2022

Pet food brand Tender & True announces the launch of its first plant-based dog treats. Made with upcycled ingredients, the new PB+ line includes three formulas featuring whole fruits and vegetables, reports Pet Food Processing. According to Tender & True, the PB+ name plays on the inclusion of 100% plant-based ingredients and natural peanut butter flavors. The new range is low in fat and calories and includes: PB+ Banana Recipe – sweet potato, flaxseed and banana PB+ Berries Recipe – sweet potato, blueberries, cranberries, flaxseed and rolled oats. – PB+ Honey Recipe – sweet potato, apples, dried honey and rolled oats. Tender & True says the products are nut free, while still including a natural peanut butter flavoring. All three recipes also include pea protein, apple …

©Motif Foodworks

Motif Foodworks’ IP Battle Intensifies as Europe Revokes Impossible Foods Patent

December 7, 2022

Food tech startup Motif Foodworks announces it has filed four new challenges to US patents held by Impossible Foods. The company’s legal move comes a week after The European Patent Office (EPO) announced it had revoked an EU patent held by Impossible Foods. The EU and US patents that Motif is challenging involve meat alternative products containing heme protein, sugars and sulfur compounds. Motif argues these ingredients are not patentable by Impossible due to their longstanding use as taste and smell enhancers for meat alternatives. The reasoning behind the EPO’s decision to revoke Impossible’s patent (No. 2,943,072 B1 – Methods and compositions for affecting the flavor and aroma profile of consumables – ‘072) has not been published, but an Impossible Foods spokesperson asserted that the …

BENEO Presents Authentic Vegan Chicken Chunks at Fi Europe

December 7, 2022

German ingredients manufacturer BENEO showcased vegan chicken chunks as the next step in the company’s vegetable protein strategy at the Fi Europe show yesterday. Following the acquisition of Meatless BV at the beginning of the year, BENEO is expected to add the chicken chunks as a semi-finished product to its portfolio for the first time in the second quarter of 2023. Thanks to a special recipe and a patented production process, BENEO states it will offer manufacturers a highly scalable and effective way to join the plant-based shift. Visitors to Fi Europe were able to sample the plant-based chicken pieces for themselves as award-winning chef Pieter-Jan Lint from Belgium prepared vegan dishes with prototypes of the new semi-finished product. The vegan chicken chunks offer food …

MALK Raises $9M in Series B to Become “Cleanest Premium Organic’’ Plant-Based Milk

December 7, 2022

Plant milk brand MALK Organics reveals it has raised $9M in Series B funding in a round led by investors Benvolio Group and Rotor Capital. The raise brings the company’s total funding to date to $17M. Aiming to become the “cleanest premium organic” dairy-free milk on the market, MALK plans to hire additional executives and increase its marketing spend as it prepares for a new chocolate almond milk and upcoming Publix launch, reports Forbes. “We are extremely bullish about MALK’s growth prospects, because not only is the product highly differentiated in a growing on-trend category, but the seasoned team in place has delivered exceptional results in 2022 and has a strong plan to accelerate future revenue and achieve profitability,” said Sam Frankfort, Managing Partner of …

©Kraft Heinz

Kraft Heinz Launches Philadelphia Plant-Based Cream Cheese in US

December 7, 2022December 7, 2022

Kraft Heinz announces it is launching a plant-based version of its iconic Philadelphia Cream Cheese. Now available at select retailers in the US Southeast, including Atlanta, Houston and Miami, the company is planning more flavors ahead of a national rollout in Summer 2023. The new plant-based cheese is made from a base of coconut oil and faba bean protein, and comes in the brand’s original beloved cream cheese flavor. According to the company, the product is free from dairy, lactose and gluten, with no added flavors or dyes. Robert Scott, President of R&D at Kraft Heinz, says the company spent two years developing the new recipe, and they focused primarily on ensuring the product could spread easily on a warm bagel or waffle, and provide …

JUST Egg and Cheryl’s Cookies Partner for New Plant-Based Cookie Line

December 6, 2022

JUST Egg and Cheryl’s Cookies announce they are partnering on a new selection of 100% plant-based cookies. Available through Cheryl’s cookie delivery service, the new treats come in four varieties and are available to ship to the US and Canada in time for the holidays. According to Cheryl’s, which is part of the 1-800-FLOWERS, Inc. family of brands, the cookie flavors include sugar, chocolate chip, marshmallow chocolate chunk and frosted cut-outs. The desserts come individually wrapped in assortments like the Vegan Cookie Sampler, Traditional Holiday Gift Tin, and Happy Birthday Box. Cherly’s first released a line of vegan cookies in August 2022 – with the inclusion of JUST Egg, the company says anyone who enjoys them will not be able to tell they are plant-based. …

Sausage Manufacturer Arthur’s Food Company Launches Alt Meat Brand in India

December 6, 2022

Arthur’s Food Company, a Bengaluru-based manufacturer of German-style sausages, has launched a plant-based brand called Veganya. The brand offers a range of meat alternatives that aim to cater to Indian tastes, including kebabs, meatballs, jackfruit fingers, keema, and several types of burger patty. Vegan omelettes and scrambled eggs are also available. Arthur Maurer, founder and CEO of Arthur’s Food Company, told Vegan First that he believed India was an ideal market for plant-based foods due to its large vegetarian population. He added that he hoped the brand would become well-known in India, and eventually in Germany too. Veganya already has 34 plant-based products on offer, some developed in partnership with major food companies such as Dr. Oetker, Kerry, and Ami. India posed for explosive growth …

Else Debuts Full Infant and Child Nutrition Line at Fresh Thyme Markets

December 6, 2022December 5, 2022

Else Nutrition (OTC: BABYF) announces it is launching its full range of Baby, Toddler and Kids Nutrition products at all 71 Fresh Thyme Market stores. The company’s plant-based nutrition products will be available in ten states, including IL, IA, WI, MN, MO, IN, MI, OH, KY and PA. Fresh Thyme will offer Else Toddler, Toddler Omega, Kids Nutritional Drink in Chocolate and Vanilla, as well as three flavors of Baby Super Cereal. “At Fresh Thyme Market, we are committed to offering our customers real food at low prices, helping people live better and healthier lives,” said Liz Zolcak, President of Fresh Thyme Market. “Else’s plant-based food is a natural fit and will help meet our shoppers wherever they are on their wellness journey. We couldn’t …

©Nestle

Nestlé to Launch Plant-Based Toll House Chocolate Morsels in 2023

December 5, 2022

Nestlé USA announces it is planning to debut a new plant-based version of its Toll House chocolate morsels. According to the conglomerate, which released a line of allergy-friendly, dairy-free chocolate morsels in 2018, the upcoming product will reportedly be newly positioned with more innovative ingredients, says Axios. “Nestlé Toll House plant-based morsels will be a brand-new product within the Toll House portfolio,” Nestlé said in a statement. “As we continue to look to innovate in the plant-based category, baking is an area we’re excited to explore.” Nestlé says the new plant-based chocolate morsels might potentially debut in stores in early 2023. “Plant-based, especially for those that are trying to avoid dairy, can be one of those places where you feel like you have to compromise,” …

Image supplied by DSM

DSM Launches “World’s Only” Soy-Free TVP Containing All 9 Essential Amino Acids

December 5, 2022December 5, 2022

DSM announces the launch of Vertis™ Textured Pea Canola Protein, which the company claims is the world’s only textured vegetable protein (TVP) with all nine essential amino acids necessary to be a complete protein, made without soy, gluten, or dairy. The new Vertix texturized protein blends pea protein and Vertis™ CanolaPRO®, an isolate with complete protein unlocked from canola seeds — a product that took DSM a decade of research and was introduced to the market as recently as last week. According to DSM, combining both ingredients gives alternative meats a flexible, firm, and meat-like texture allowing manufacturers to create realistic meat-like analogs with high nutritional profiles, free from major allergens. This new ingredient is the company’s latest addition to its Vertis portfolio, which includes a …

The vegconomist-newsletterinformation for decision-makers

The vegconomist-newsletterinformation for decision-makers

The vegconomist-newsletter
information for decision-makers

The vegconomist-newsletter
information for decision-makers