Heura

a plate with a steak takes center stage, representing the connection between meat consumption and environmental degradation Generative AI

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Sustainability / Environment

Plant-Based Leaders Demand Change, Signing Collective Call to Action as COP29 Neglects Food’s Role in Climate Crisis

At this year’s COP29 hosted by the Azerbaijan capital Baku, the conversation around the climate impact of our global food system was once again stifled, despite various non-profits and groups calling on world leaders to reform food and agricultural policies. Amid the ongoing natural disasters taking place with regularity around the planet, notably absent from the majority of political and media debates is the impact of food production, which accounts for 34% of global greenhouse gas emissions, over half of which stem from animal agriculture (19.7% total), exceeding the emissions from the transport sector (16.2%). Not only was there an overwhelming lack of vegan options at the event, but reportedly, several menu items were mislabeled; Indian climate activist Shreya Ghodawat and Plant Based Treaty’s scientific …

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Dont Turn the Page campaign by Heura

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Politics & Law

Heura Urges Spanish Congress to Address Climate Emergency in Wake of Natural Disasters with New Awareness Campaign

Heura Foods, Spain’s leading plant-based food innovation company, has called on the Spanish Congress of Deputies to take a proactive and urgent role in addressing the climate emergency affecting Spain and the world. In response to recent environmental disasters, such as the devastating floods in Valencia, and the alarming advance of global warming that could exceed 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, Heura urges legislators to prioritise sustainability and global health on the political agenda, leaving partisan interests aside. “Heura understands that this challenge has no political colour and requires the unity and commitment of all forces in Congress. Therefore, we call on the people’s representatives to prioritise sustainability and global health over political interests. The climate emergency can wait no longer and urgent action is imperative,” …

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Heura launches vegan chicken sandwich at Rodilla chain in Spain

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Food Service

Heura Foods Launches Vegan Chicken Sandwich at 130+ Rodilla Restaurants Across Spain

Heura Foods and Spain’s Rodilla restaurant chain have joined forces to launch a new vegan chicken sandwich that will be available in 130 Rodilla outlets across Spain from 5 November. The sandwich is made with wholemeal bread, chickpea spread, vegan mayonnaise, Heura’s plant-based chicken, mustard, gherkins, and parsley. With this collaboration, Heura and Rodilla take another step forward in the transition towards a food model where sustainability and respect for animals are central, providing an inclusive option that adapts to the habits of an increasingly conscious society. In the words of Heura Foods CEO and co-founder Marc Coloma, this collaboration helps “accelerate the shift towards a healthier and more sustainable food system,” allowing vegans and non-vegans alike to enjoy a delicious alternative that contributes to …

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Heura

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Company News

Heura Expands Beyond Plant-Based Meat, Transforming Ultra-Processed Foods With Patent-Pending Technology

Spain’s Heura Foods, best known for producing plant-based meat alternatives, has announced it will be expanding into new categories to improve nutritional density and transform foods often labelled as ultra-processed. The company will use its patent-pending technology to replace ingredients such as additives, modified starches, and saturated fats with plant proteins and healthy lipids. The technology works by using thermo-mechanical techniques to structure product textures in categories where this was not previously possible. At Future Food Tech London on October 2, Heura unveiled prototypes of cheese, snacks, and pasta made with the technology. The company explained its vision to enhance nutritional density without compromising on taste at a live demo kitchen attended by over 100 industry leaders. Revolutionising health solutions The technology will not just …

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Heura plant-based burgers

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Studies & Numbers

Heura Study Finds 85% of Spaniards Would Consume More Plant-Based Meat If They Knew Its Benefits

Spanish plant-based meat brand Heura recently conducted a representative survey which reportedly found that 85% of Spaniards would consume more plant-based meat if they knew its benefits. Respondents said they were in favour of eating plant-based meat if it had a high nutritional value, a taste similar to animal meat, and a low environmental impact. 71% said they thought plant-based meat was healthier than conventional meat, while 56% had consumed it within the last six months. Among those aged 24 to 35, acceptance rates were even higher, with just 1.6% saying they would never consume plant-based meat. However, the survey found that most Spaniards were unaware of the environmental impact of eating less meat, with many incorrectly believing that measures such as recycling have a …

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Heura launches at Esselunga

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Retail & E-Commerce

Heura Launches at Leading Northern Italian Retailer Esselunga, Expands Presence in UK & Netherlands

Spanish plant-based meat brand Heura has announced that it is launching at Esselunga, a leading supermarket chain in Northern Italy. Heura products will be available at 173 Esselunga stores, expanding the brand’s Italian presence. The country is currently Heura’s third-largest market after Spain and France; total turnover reached €800,000 last year, and this figure is expected to double in 2024. Additionally, Heura has strengthened its partnerships with UK supermarket chain Waitrose and Dutch retailer Jumbo, gaining listings for its plant-based burger. The three new collaborations total 1,200 points of sale, and are part of Heura’s plan to establish strategic alliances with leading retail chains. In the past year alone, Heura has formed agreements with France’s Intermarché, Portugal’s Auchan, Italy’s Pam, and Belgium’s Colruyt. Heura’s turnover …

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Taylor Swift Eras tour

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Fairs & Events

Heura Brings Plant-Based Menu to Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” in Madrid

Taylor Swift will perform two concerts in Madrid on May 29 and 30 as part of her “Eras Tour” at the Bernabéu Stadium. Over 130,000 attendees are expected over the two days. At Swift’s request, the Bernabéu will offer a variety of meat-free dishes provided by Spanish plant-based meat company Heura. Promoting plant-based This initiative aligns with Swift’s history of promoting conscious consumption. In 2023, she showcased vegan clothing made from eco-friendly materials in New York. Last summer, Mexican plant-based startup Propel Foods provided food at her concerts in Mexico City, and she also featured vegan shrimp from the Ish Company at her concerts in Tampa, Florida.  Concertgoers in Madrid can expect a diverse menu featuring items like a burger with pickles, salsa, and vegan …

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Heura plant-based butcher shop

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Retail & E-Commerce

Heura Opens Itinerant Plant-Based Butcher Shop in France as Traditional Butchers Close

Paris has reportedly lost a third of its traditional butcher shops over the past two decades, and Spanish plant-based meat brand Heura is stepping up to fill the gap. The company has announced the launch of an itinerant plant-based butcher shop that will initially come to three E-Leclerc hypermarkets in France, followed by a series of other stores in the coming months. Customers will be able to try flagship Heura products such as burgers, mince, and nuggets, along with the brand’s additive-free plant-based ham. Chef Clément Werbrouck, who is the Head of Plant-Based Cuisine at Heura, will also be present to give cooking demonstrations showing how plant-based meat can be incorporated into French cuisine. Heura first launched in France in 2021, and the brand’s products …

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Heura closes Series B round, forming plant-based alliance

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Facts & Figures

Heura Announces €38.3M Turnover and 63% Growth in International Sales

Spanish plant-based food startup Heura has announced that its turnover reached €38.3 million in 2023, while international sales rose by a huge 63%. In France, growth was particularly significant at 88%. A partnership with supermarket chain Waitrose allowed Heura to increase its presence in the UK, and the brand saw double-digit growth in all the other European markets where it has a presence. The announcement comes after Heura raised €40 million in Series B funding, in what was claimed to be the largest plant-based funding round of 2023. Among the investors was Upfield, which will work with Heura on a food tech collaboration. All the investors in the round will also join a board that aims to accelerate the transition to a sustainable food system. …

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A package of La Vie's new plant-based ham

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Politics & Law

Plant-Based Companies Respond to French Decree Banning Meat-Like Words on Veggie Packaging

Yesterday 27 February, the French government issued a decree prohibiting the use of words such as “steak, “ham”, “cutlet”, or “escalope” on the labels of meat-free foods. The ruling comes in response to allegations from the meat industry that such terms are confusing for consumers. Similarly, last December, the Republican (Les Républicains) party of France introduced a bill to prohibit the production and marketing of cultivated meat in the tradition-focused country. The measure seriously compromises the sales prospects of home-grown French innovations in the face of major foreign companies not affected by this new legislation, argues French vegan whole-cut leader Umiami. Despite the French government’s support for the industrialisation of the plant-based sector, including the Umiami startup factory, these regulations seriously hamper their economic development …

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Marc Coloma, CEO and co-founder of Heura Foods at the Heura Lab

Marc Coloma, CEO and co-founder of Heura Foods at the Heura Lab, image supplied
Company News

Following €40M Investment, Upfield & Heura Reveal Plans to Fast-Track Innovation in Plant-Based Foods  

Last week, Spain’s Heura announced it had secured €40 million in what it claimed to be the largest plant-based financing round of 2023. The investors in the Series B round are to form a strategic coalition aiming to fast-track innovation in plant-based foods. Heura and Upfield today explain what this will entail. The work between Heura and Upfield aims to rapidly accelerate the protein transition towards a sustainable food system. Aside from the animal suffering and environmental damage caused by animal agriculture, one of the problems in our food system is its inefficiencies: plant-based crops feed more people while occupying less land. Today, plant-based food occupies only 23% of global agricultural land, yet provides 82% of our calories[1]. Data shows that cutting meat and dairy …

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Heura closes Series B round, forming plant-based alliance

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Investments & Acquisitions

Heura Raises €40M, Forming Strategic Plant-Based Alliance With Upfield & More

Spanish plant meat leader Heura has raised €40 million in Series B funding, in what it claims is the largest plant-based funding round of 2023. Heura states the funding will drive the company to profitability and reinforce its position as a frontrunner in the industry. The brand is already a leader in the Spanish market and continues to expand across markets such as the UK, France, and Italy. The round saw participation from leading plant-based company Upfield, venture capital firm Unovis Asset Management, food tech fund the European Circular Bioeconomy Fund, and impact investor Newtree Impact. According to Heura, these investors will form a strategic coalition, creating “one of the biggest plant-based alliances”. The companies will join a board that aims to increase Heura’s impact …

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Plant-based ham on a plate

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Products & Launches

Heura Launches “World’s First” Additive-Free York-Style Plant-Based Ham

Spanish alt meat brand Heura has launched a new product that it describes as a world first — additive-free York-style plant-based ham slices. The product has 64% protein density while being low in total and saturated fat. Through the launch, Heura hopes to attract consumers who are turning away from processed deli meats due to their link to chronic diseases such as bowel cancer. Spanish people are currently said to consume eight times more processed meat than recommended by the World Health Organization. With their high nutrient density and lack of additives, the new slices remove two of the most common consumer objections to plant-based meats — that they are too processed and not nutritionally equivalent to animal meat. “In the context of a health …

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Heura Fish in wrap

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Agriculture / Agribusiness

Plant-Based Seafood Labels Accused of Deceiving Consumers by Spain’s Seafood Industry

In yet another war against plant-based food labelling, Spain’s seafood industry has joined forces to denounce “fraud in the labelling and presentation of plant-based seafood products,” arguing that such practices confuse consumers. The coalition, also joined by the association of wholesalers, importers, exporters, and processors of seafood products Conxemar, is calling on the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to review and immediately withdraw plant-based seafood products that use fish names on their labels seeking to “deceive consumers on the nutritional value of the products,” as reported by the media.  In addition, they argue that the products do not comply with “several” European and national regulations, including unfair competition practices, advertising of food products, and food safety and nutrition. A recent USDA Spain Seafood Report 2023 says …

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Marc Coloma and Bernat Ananos, Heura founders

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Company News

Heura Raises Over €2.6M in Crowdfunding in Just 48 Hours

Heura, the leading Spanish company in plant-based meat products, has started its third crowdfunding round and has raised more than 2.6 million euros in 48 hours. Since its launch on May 5, the company has 3,400 more investors. The objective of this crowdfunding campaign, which will be active until May 17 through the Crowdcube platform, is to lead the plant-based protein market at the European level, deploy the net positive impact plan, and drive technological innovations under a new patent. European growth The plant-based sector currently generates sales in Europe of €5.7 billion and a GFI report from this February found that alt protein companies across Europe raised nearly 24% more last year than in 2021. Spanish companies in particular attracted €42 million in funding  …

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Marc Coloma and Bernat Ananos, Heura founders

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Company News

Heura to Unlock “Unprecedented Nutritional Value” With New Patent-Pending Technology

Heura has announced the development of a new patent-pending technology that claims to make it possible to produce plant-based foods with previously unattainable nutritional values. The Spanish food tech startup says it aims to address unresolved challenges in the plant-based industry, creating a “superior sensorial experience with high value nutritional products” and no additives. The new technology — derived from Heura’s Good Rebel Tech platform, which launched last year — is also said to provide a faster and more efficient way to design and process food products. According to Heura, the proprietary technology uses a novel thermomechanical technique, with heat and mechanical energy used to shape or modify a material’s properties. It is one of numerous innovations developed by Heura’s R&D team; another is an …

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Heura lasagne Iberojet

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Tourism & Travel

Heura and Iberojet Collaborate to Bring Tutti Foods Vegan Lasagne to Onboard Menu

Heura and Iberojet, the Spanish / Portuguese charter airline, recently collaborated to add a 100% plant-based lasagne dish to its onboard menus. The vegan Bolognese lasagne, made with Heura‘s vegetable protein meat, fresh egg-free pasta sheets, cauliflower-based béchamel sauce and grated vegan cheese, has been available since January 9 on 40% of flights departing from Spain and Portugal. “Iberojet makes available to all passengers a 100% vegetable dish suitable for vegans, turning into a commodity an option which is usually offered as a premium category or special offer,” says Director of Customer Experience Juan José Salgueiro of Iberojet. This initiative has been possible thanks to the alliance between Tutti Food Group, a company specialized in the production of frozen ready meals, and Heura, the leading …

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Marketing & Media

10 Times Vegan Brands Took on the Food Industry With Provocative Ad Campaigns

In a week where allplants and THIS in the UK, as well as Eat Just in the US, have challenged their counterparts with disruptive ad campaigns; we take a look at ten plant-based brands that have taken on the food industry over the past 12 months, causing the public to consider their food purchasing choices through the use of thought-provoking factual information or humor. And, in one case, nudity. 1. allplants, UK This week, vegan meal delivery service allplants has announced it is “taking a stance to break the industry free from ultra-processed foods with wholefood plant power”. The company has erected billboards in the UK comparing the ingredients in an allplants dish to those in a supermarket ready meal, after conducting a survey showing …

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four heura chorizos on a plate

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Investments & Finance

Spain’s Alternative Protein Sector Stands Out Among Food Tech Investments in 2022

In 2022, Spain remained prominent among the top ten European food tech countries according to Eatable Adventures’ report, The State of Foodtech in Spain 2022. Here we take a look at some top-ranking Spanish alt food brands in terms of investments including Heura, Cocuus, Innomy, Cubiq, and Novameat. This year, the total investment figure for food tech in Spain stands at 268 million euros, an increase of 9.38% compared to the previous year, not counting the investment round achieved by Glovo (450 million euros), says the report. Series A rounds saw an increase, growing by nearly 20%, 5 points more than in 2021. According to Eatable Adventures, the emergence of the alternative protein sector stands out among significant investments rounds in 2022, with three startups …

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Domino's Spain

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Fast Food

Domino’s Launches New Vegan Pizzas in Spain

Domino’s Pizza has launched a new selection of vegan pizzas for the Spanish market: Varbacoa de Heura, Tony Veggeroni and Veggiña. This launch has been carried out through the campaign that addresses the late launch of vegan pizzas “A buenas horas pizzas verdes.” The campaign, in collaboration with Good Rebels, will focus on digital and outdoor media, and will publicise its new vegan recipes, thus offering this target group the possibility of consuming these products in shops and at home. The new pizzas offer classic recipes but with animal-free ingredients: Heura‘s Varbacoa pizza – made with a base of barbecue sauce, Violife cheese, Heura chicken, onion and corn. The Veggiña – with a natural tomato base, Violife cheese, mushrooms, black olives, onion and green pepper. …

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