As reported by Reuters, US-based agribusiness, Archer Daniels Midland Co, reached an agreement last week with Brazil’s Marfrig Global Foods SA, the world’s largest hamburger producer, to produce and distribute plant-based burgers.
According to Marfrig, Archer Daniels Midland will supply the raw materials, and it will produce, distribute, and sell the plant-based meat to restaurants and retailers.
With the need to adapt to changing consumer demand, Marfrig’s focus on plant-based meat has already been implemented by some of its competitors in Brazil. One rival, Seara, a unit of JBS SA, recently launched a line of plant-based products to compete with smaller players in Brazil that were reporting sharp sales increases.
As we reported recently, after a slump in share prices, ADM revealed that it is looking towards the plant-based meat market as a means to offset “challenging external conditions.”
“Together, Marfrig and ADM will produce a 100% vegetable burger with a meat-like flavor and texture. We want to give consumers the power of choice. It’s up to them,” Eduardo Miron, chief executive of Marfrig, said in a statement.