To celebrate World Vegan Month, we are sharing the ten most popular vegconomist interviews from so far this year. Interviews are not only a powerful tool to collect information but also an excellent way to acknowledge the experience and perspective of the most inspiring alt protein experts.
Take advantage of this opportunity to catch up if you missed any of the following popular interviews with vegan businesses from Germany, France, California, South Korea, Israel, and the UK.
In descending order of popularity, here are the ten most clicked Q&As from 2023 so far.
1. Klaus Schmaeing – Burger King Germany
By far the most popular vegconomist Q&A of 2023 came from Klaus Schmaeing of the famous burger chain, who revealed in August that “one in five Whoppers is now sold with a plant-based patty”.
Burger King stands out for its efforts to offer plant-based versions of its iconic burgers. In 2021, the company committed to making 50% of its menu plant-based by 2030 and said it would drop some meat products. In Germany, one of the most plant-based forward countries, Burger King drives the plant-based trend. In this interview, Klaus Schmaeing, Chief Marketing Officer at Burger King Germany, talks about the chain’s work to promote plant-based options in the country and its plans for the future.
Read the interview with Burger King Germany here.
2. Cyril Carrat – KaTech
KaTech Ingredients Solutions is an international food technology company, acquired by Ingredion in 2021, that supplies textural ingredients to manufacturers and brands. In this interview, KaTech’s group managing director, Cyril Carrat, reveals how the company’s texture experts are helping manufacturers create vegan products that are delicious, nutritious, and affordable.
Read the September interview with KaTech here.
3. Martin Habfast – Umiami
Umiami is a French food tech startup founded in 2020 to produce plant-based whole cuts using a patented technology for texturizing plant proteins called “umisation.”
In this interview, co-founder Martin Habfast shared details about its groundbreaking technology and the company’s challenges in manufacturing plant-based meat at scale.
Read the Umiami interview from October here.
4. Matt Gibson – New Culture
New Culture is an animal-free cheese producer based in California, USA. The company leverages precision fermentation to produce casein for realistic animal-free mozzarella.
After achieving a significant production milestone, New Culture’s CEO and co-founder Matt Gibson spoke with vegconomist to discuss the company’s mission, the role of casein in cheese, and successfully producing casein for 25,000 pizzas through its fermentation platform.
Read the September interview with New Culture here.
5. Svenja Fritz – Oatly
Oatly offers a wide portfolio of oat-based dairy, including milk, ice cream, yogurt, cooking creams, spreads, and on-the-go drinks. The Swedish company has been campaigning politically in favor of plant-based foods.
Head of Communication & Public Affairs Svenja Fritz, who serves the company in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Poland, shares with vegconomist her insights on the challenges of making plant foods equal to animal products.
Read the September interview with Oatly here.
6. Ellen Kim – Nasoya
Nasoya is undeniably a brand to watch in the plant-based industry. A subsidiary of The South Korean leader Pulmuone, the company has seen tremendous success with its Plantspired line.
Its flagship product, the plant-based steak line Plantspired, has seen success in global markets. In this interview, Marketing Director Ellen Kim dives deep into the company’s offerings and market targets and reveals Nasoya’s plans for the future.
Read the Q&A with Nasoya from May 2023 here.
7. Pierre Paslier – Notpla
Notpla is a company from the UK on a mission to replace single-use plastics with seaweed alternatives, some are even edible. The company famously won the Earthshot Prize in the category of “Build a Waste-Free World.”
Vegconomist spoke with Pierre Paslier, co-founder and co-CEO of Notpla, to learn more about its sustainable alternatives that will make a pivotal change in the future of packaging.
Read our Q&A with Pierre from this May here.
8. Amos Golan – Chunk Foods
The Israeli company Chunk Foods utilizes solid-state fermentation tech to make realistic plant-based whole cuts. The company has raised $15 million to build the largest plant-based whole cuts factory in the world, scheduled for completion this past summer. Its first development, a plant-based steak, has gathered even press attention after it launched in a well-known Florida steakhouse.
Chunk’s CEO and founder, Amos Golan, shares in this interview the company’s journey, its product portfolio, funding challenges, and future goals.
Read our August Q&A with Chunk Foods here.
9. Anthony Chow – Agronomics
London-based VC Agronomics boasts an impressive portfolio of venture-stage cellular agriculture companies, including precision fermentation companies Formo, The EVERY Co., and Liberation Labs, and cultivated meat pioneers such as BlueNalu and Mosa Meat.
Cellular agriculture holds the promise of the next agricultural revolution with its ability to make ingredients inspired by biology without exploiting the land, the animals, and the planet’s resources. Co-founder Anthony Chow shares in this interview his views on the current and future state of the cellular agriculture industry while sharing his unique and valuable insights.
Read the interview with Anthony from this April here.
10. Christopher Kong – Better Nature
Better Nature is a UK pioneer of tempeh, the all-natural legume-based alternative to meat from Indonesia. The company has achieved retail success in the UK, with a rollout into more than 400 Tesco stores, and over the course of 2023 has secured numerous further retail listings including expansion into Lidl.
Christopher Kong, CEO and co-founder of Better Nature, talked to vegconomist, sharing his views on the market for natural options, the development of the company’s portfolio, and plans.
“In 5 years, tempeh will be a mainstream food across the UK, Europe, and the US, and we will be the leading tempeh brand. We’ll have explored even more ways to use tempeh fermentation to create all-natural, nutritious products to help people live healthier lives,” states Kong.
Read the interview with Better Nature from May here.
