The major Canadian food producer Maple Leaf Foods, like many of its competitors, is increasingly offering plant-based alternatives, and sees great growth potential in this sector. The company’s goal is to become a dominant supplier in the plant-based food industry.
For example, Maple Leaf recently acquired the American brand Lightlife, which offers a wide range of alternative plant-based products and has recorded double-digit growth rates in recent years, as company president Dan Curtin revealed. “There are the hardcore vegans and the hardcore vegetarians, but we are seeing more and more flexitarians and reducers looking for plant-based options,” he said. Consumers want to protect the environment and animals, and prefer a healthy diet. As a result, they are increasingly turning to plant-based meat alternatives.
The American meat producer Tyson Foods also shares this view. Tyson has invested in several producers of plant-based meat substitutes and in the production of laboratory meat to promote this trend.
