Vegetarian Butcher fish fillet

© The Vegetarian Butcher

Products & Launches

The Vegetarian Butcher Launches its First Vegan Fish Product

The first vegan fish alternative from Unilever subsidiary The Vegetarian Butcher, the “Krosse Flosse”, is now available in Germany. The Dutch brand is following its philosophy of producing plant-based alternatives that provide the same experience as their animal-based counterparts, with the aim of sustainably removing animals from all steps of meat and fish production. According to the company, the “Krusty Fin” is very similar to the animal equivalent in texture, taste, and ingredients. The 100% plant-based fish fillets are made from rice and wheat protein and are enriched with omega-3. The Vegetarian Butcher has expanded its range to include various new vegan products in recent months. In January, the company presented its product innovations to a large audience at the Green Week in Berlin, receiving …

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Hugo Verkuil of The Vegetarian Butcher

Hugo Verkuil. © The Vegetarian Butcher

Interviews

The Vegetarian Butcher: “Our Mission Will Not Change, We Remain Committed to Releasing Animals From the Food Chain”

Founded 13 years ago in the Netherlands, alt meat producer The Vegetarian Butcher has since expanded into an international brand, seeing huge growth since it was acquired by Unilever in 2018. The Vegetarian Butcher’s success has partially been driven by its partnerships with major food service companies; the brand is Burger King’s main plant-based supplier, and has partnered with the chain to open meat-free Burger King locations worldwide. In the past year alone, The Vegetarian Butcher has launched plant-based butcher counters at Spanish supermarkets, developed a bacon alternative featuring new patented fat technology, and collaborated with a major döner producer to offer vegan kebab meat. The brand also marked its 13th anniversary with the opening of a plant-based butchery in Rotterdam. We spoke to Hugo …

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The Vegetarian Butcher has introduced handmade holiday specials, including stuffed vegan Christmas turkey at its newly opened plant-based butchery in Rotterdam.

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Meat- and Fish Alternatives

The Vegetarian Butcher Launches Vegan Christmas Turkey in Rotterdam’s First Plant-Based Butchery

Unilever’s The Vegetarian Butcher has introduced handmade holiday specials, including stuffed vegan Christmas turkey at its newly opened plant-based butchery in Rotterdam. The brand’s team crafted 60 vegan whole turkeys (including vegetable legs) for lovers of traditional Christmas dishes. Interested customers had to purchase the turkey in person on a pre-order basis like in traditional butcher shops (the reservations closed on the 17th of December, and the product is unavailable at supermarkets), reports RTL Nieuws. However, before Christmas Eve, customers will receive their turkeys pre-sliced into fillets stuffed with a mixture of apricots and nuts rather than obtaining the entire roasted turkey. The Vegetarian Butcher’s team also prepared other limited-edition menu items for the holiday table: a vegan meatloaf that comes with a cherry ketchup glaze …

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Burger King has launched a plant-based restaurant in Puerto Rico.

© Burger King Puerto Rico

Fast Food

Burger King Launches 15th Plant-Based Restaurant Powered by The Vegetarian Butcher in Puerto Rico

Article update 15 Nov: The Vegetarian Butcher informs us that this location does serve a “limited amount of eggs and dairy,” and as such consumers must be conscious of this if visiting the restaurant. Burger King has launched its 15th plant-based restaurant, powered by The Vegetarian Butcher: “La Casa Veggie,” in Puerto Rico.  Using the motto, “Try the green side of flavor,” the new store in Plaza Trujillo Alto offers customers a “full veggie experience,” including plant-based versions of Burger King classics such as Whopper, Long Chicken Sandwich, Nuggets, and other options, such as salads and wraps, all made with The Vegetarian Butcher’s products.  Simultaneously, Burger King has launched its veggie options on the regular menus in all of its Puerto Rico locations. “The taste …

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World Vegan Day

Image: vegconomist

People

Messages From Vegan Business Leaders on World Vegan Day, Part 3

In this third and final installment of our World Vegan Day special, we feature valuable insights from and words of solidarity from: CEO of The Vegetarian Butcher, Hugo Verkuil; CEO of Let’s Plant Meat, Smith Taweelerdniti; founder of Plantform and Boldy Foods, Allen Zelden; founder of Fenn Foods, Alejandro Cancino; CEO of Libre Foods, Alan Iván Ramos; and CEO of Impact Food, Kelly Pan. These messages come to us from each corner of the planet, with the founders located in Thailand; Australia; The Netherlands; Catalonia, Spain; and San Francisco, California. We asked: as we approach the end of what has been a turbulent year for many in the business, what is your message for the plant-based industry as we look ahead to 2024? Hugo Verkuil, …

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Burger King to offer discounted Vegan Royale burgers

Image: Burger King

Marketing & Media

Burger King UK to Offer Discounted Vegan Royale Burgers Every Monday

Burger King UK is now offering its chicken-style Vegan Royale burger at a discounted price of £2.99 on Mondays, with the aim of encouraging more customers to try plant-based options. It comes after a poll commissioned by the chain in collaboration with The Vegetarian Butcher found that 73% of meat-eaters wouldn’t choose a plant-based menu option, with 48% saying they don’t believe plant-based meat tastes as good as animal meat. However, 31% said they would be more likely to choose a plant-based dish if they knew it tasted as good as the conventional option, while 38% said better value for money would make them more likely to order plant-based food. Plant-based game show To address the idea that plant-based options don’t taste as good, Burger …

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The Vegetarian Butcher plant-based butchery

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Company News

The Vegetarian Butcher Celebrates 13th Anniversary With New Plant-Based Butchery in Rotterdam

Dutch alt meat brand The Vegetarian Butcher (owned by Unilever) is marking its 13th anniversary with the opening of a plant-based butchery in Rotterdam. The store will offer “the meatiest plant-based craftsmanship out there”, with dozens of varieties of meat alternatives available. This will include limited edition products that are exclusive to the store. The news comes after The Vegetarian Butcher opened plant-based butcher counters at 24 Carrefour stores in Spain earlier this year, along with one in France in 2022. The brand has also previously opened a pop-up restaurant in The Hague and a lunchroom at Rotterdam Central Station. From local to global Since it was founded in 2010, The Vegetarian Butcher has successfully grown from a local brand to a global one, with …

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The Vegetarian Butcher and Düzgün Food Group, launch plant-based kebab skewers for food service.

© Unilever

Food Service

The Vegetarian Butcher and Düzgün Group Launch Plant-Based Kebab Skewer for Food Service

Unilever’s The Vegetarian Butcher and Düzgün Food Group, a producer and wholesaler supplying skewers to döner chains, shops, and restaurants in more than 15 countries, announce the European launch of their first jointly developed product: a plant-based kebab skewer for food service. The new meat-free kebab, intended for large-scale operations, can be cooked and grilled vertically on a large skewer and shaved off as traditional animal meat. The NPD is said to offer the authentic taste and experience of the traditional kebab. It is halal-certified and lactose-free, suitable for vegans, vegetarians, and flexitarians. The product is already available for distribution.  “Hacking meat icons like the döner kebab with plant-based equivalents is what it is all about for us. We are targeting meat lovers – from vegans …

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La Vie bacon close up

© La Vie

Meat- and Fish Alternatives

The Technology Behind the Success of Carnivore-Fooling Vegan Bacon

By channeling cutting-edge technology, food tech companies make vegan bacon that looks, tastes and feels like pork bacon, convincing flexitarians and carnivores alike. Crispiness, moisture, bite, and flavor are the top challenges R&D and scientific teams must overcome to win over consumers. According to Coherent Market Insights, vegan bacon is becoming increasingly popular because companies have developed healthier alternatives. The global vegan bacon market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.6% between 2022 and 2032, totaling around US$ 2,425.4 million by 2032. Let’s look at the technology behind some of the most popular brands of vegan bacon. Hooray Foods — emulsion tech San Francisco-based Hooray Foods launched its first plant-based bacon in 2020, claiming that it rivaled the taste and texture of pork …

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The Vegetarian Butcher Vegan Bacon NoBacon 2.0

Image courtesy of Unilever

Meat- and Fish Alternatives

Unilever’s Vegetarian Butcher Unveils New Vegan Bacon With Patented Fat Technology

Following Unilever’s recent announcement that it aims to achieve €1.5 billion in sales from plant-based products by 2025, the multinational contacts vegconomist with news that its plant-based meat brand The Vegetarian Butcher has launched plant-based bacon, “NoBacon 2.0”, which it says features a new patented fat tissue technology that mimics the same texture, oil release and translucency of real bacon. Unilever states that its food scientists have focused on using plant oils to deliver plant-based bacon that is crispier, juicier, and has 20x more fat release meaning the product can be fried without the need for additional oil. Like the original NoBacon product, this new iteration is made from soy and wheat protein. Unilever claims that the new bacon is unique in terms of fat, …

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The Vegetarian Butcher at Carrefour butcher counter

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Retail & E-Commerce

The Vegetarian Butcher Launches at Butcher Counters at Spanish Carrefour Supermarkets

The Vegetarian Butcher and European hypermarket chain Carrefour strengthen ties to expand the offer of meat alternatives in some of the butcher shops in Spanish Carrefour locations. Although products from The Vegetarian Butcher were already available last year, from this month the products will be available in a total of 24 Carrefour group establishments. The products that will be available at the butcher counters are crispy burgers; breaded burgers with iron and vitamin B12 called the Kikiricrunch Burger; vegan soy and wheat-based beef burgers; the famous Burghesian Rapshody patty; and vegetable nuggets. With this new agreement, Unilever‘s plant-based meat brand reinforces its commitment to the democratization of these products through Carrefour, which has positioned itself as one of the pioneer distributors in making this type …

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Meat-free popup

© Burger King

Fast Food

Burger King Opens Meat-Free Popups in Three Nordic Cities

Burger King has opened three meat-free popup restaurants in the cities of Oslo, Stockholm, and Copenhagen. Customers in the Norwegian, Swedish, and Danish capitals can now choose from a range of offerings made using The Vegetarian Butcher’s plant-based meat — including meat-free versions of classic options such as the Whopper and Chicken Royale. Some sauces containing eggs and dairy are still available, but customers can ask for these to be omitted to make their orders fully vegan. “By opening a restaurant that only serves plant-based and meat-free alternatives, we get a good opportunity to test products that are not yet part of our traditional menu for our further product development and innovation within the plant-based segment,” said Carsten Lambrecht, country manager for Burger King Denmark. …

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© La Vie

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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© BURGER KING Deutschland GmbH

Fast Food

Burger King Develops New Breading to Visually Differentiate Plant-Based Products

Burger King Germany launches the Plant-based Long Chicken Cheddar Style in collaboration with Violife, and has developed a new breading to visually differentiate plant-based products from their animal counterparts. All plant-based chicken patties and plant-based nuggets from Burger King are now offered with newly developed breading with green parsley sprinkles in order to differ in appearance from the breading used for animal meat products. Vegconomist will contact BK to ascertain whether this will be rolled out internationally. Separate fryer Burger King says that employees and guests can now easily identify the plant-based products directly at first glance due to the new parsley coating co-developed by Burger King and The Vegetarian Butcher. The chain says the plant-based products are also cooked in a deep fryer used …

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Subway plant-based beef slices

© Subway

Food Service

Plant-Based Beef Slices by the Vegetarian Butcher Launch at Subway in Northern Europe

The Vegetarian Butcher‘s plant-based beef slices are now available at Subway locations in the UK, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, and Finland. The slices will be featured in the new Plant-Based Steak Sub. Available as a six-inch or foot-long sandwich, customers can add as many vegetables as they like, along with vegan cheese and a sauce of choice (Subway recommends teriyaki). “Our Plant-based Steak has been created in collaboration with The Vegetarian Butcher, one of the world’s leading plant-based meat brands, so our guests don’t have to compromise on taste or texture to enjoy a meat-free lunch,” said Angelina Gosal, Head of Marketing UK & Ireland at Subway. The new sub adds to Subway’s existing vegan options, the Plant Patty and Veggie …

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sacrifice nothing add for the vegetarian butcher

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Marketing & Media

The Vegetarian Butcher Debuts “Sacrifice Nothing” Ad Campaign on Spanish TV

The Vegetarian Butcher, Unilever’s plant-based meat brand, aired its TV commercial, “Sacrifice Nothing,” for the first time in Spain. The spot also highlighted El Gran Capo, the brand’s first vegan chicken breast for sale in the country. As in the spot’s English version, the TV ad in Spanish uses the tagline “sacrifice nothing” to deliver the brand’s intention of becoming a vegan butcher with a double message: the brand’s expertise in mimicking beef, pork, and chicken using vegetables without “sacrificing” meat’s real taste and by not “sacrificing” animals for their meat. The Vegetarian Butcher’s TV campaign intends to reinforce the brand’s mission found in its marketing ads and webpage: “The Vegetarian Butcher is the traditional butcher of the past but with the meat of the future. …

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Annual vegan BBQ Parliament The Hague

Vegetarian Butcher burger served to Dutch politicians © Vegan Today

Fairs & Events

Famous Vegan Brands Serve Plant-Based BBQ to Dutch Parliament

Vegan Today and Diervriendelijk Nederland, in partnership with The Vegetarian Butcher, Beyond Meat, Vivera, Alpro, Willicroft, and other top vegan brands, organised the 7th edition of the Annual Plant-based BBQ in the House of Parliament in The Hague, offering politicians an opportunity to taste the best vegan foods in the Netherlands Both organisers declared the event delivered a clear message: the future is vegan. The Netherlands is known for the progressive work done by its plant-based brands and the high consumer demand for animal-free options. The politicians at the event sampled planet- and animal-friendly versions of traditional foods like hamburgers, chicken, beef, salmon, calamari, shrimp, cheese, milk, desserts, and sweet treats, offered by Dutch brands.   Maryen van Castro and Matthijs den Hollander of Vegan …

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©The Vegetarian Butcher

Fast Food

Burger King Opens Two Meat-Free Locations in Switzerland

Following the success of the plant-based Burger King trials in London, Madrid and Cologne, Burger King has converted its locations in the Swiss cities of Basel and Geneva into plant-based stores for a limited time in partnership with The Vegetarian Butcher. The popup stores will be present from now til 23rd June offering 14 plant-based menu options including the launch of new Cajun Veggie King and Cajun Veggie Long products. It is not clear at this stage whether these are 100% vegan — vegconomist will report further. Says The Vegetarian Butcher on social media: “Due to popular demand, the fully vegetarian Burger King restaurants have now landed in Switzerland! And this time, we even opened TWO of them! After Cologne, Madrid and London, Burger King …

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Retail & E-Commerce

The Vegetarian Butcher Launches Frozen Range into Sainsbury’s 

The Vegetarian Butcher, a leading plant-based meat producer, has launched frozen versions of some of its most popular chilled vegan products. Now available in UK supermarket Sainsbury’s, the range will receive a wider retail rollout in the near future.  Unilever-owned alt-meat brand The Vegetarian Butcher’s new frozen range includes Patty on the Back quarter pounders, Happy Go Clucky chicken-style burgers, Unbelievaballs plant-based meatballs, and Little Peckers chicken nuggets. The retail move comes as the brand’s research found a gap in the market for larger and more value-for-money plant-based frozen ranges. The rapidly growing brand has made multiple foodservice moves lately, most notably with Burger King – including a fully vegan store in Madrid – as well as Domino’s Peppero’nay pizza, and Starbucks’ Tu’Nah sandwich. Frozen …

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Carrefour The Vegetarian Butcher

© Carrefour / The Vegetarian Butcher

Food & Beverage

Carrefour France Now Offering Plant-Based Meat at Traditional Butcher Counters

As a major first in France, Carrefour – the eighth-largest retailer in the world – has begun offering products from The Vegetarian Butcher, a Dutch brand owned by Unilever, in its traditional butcher’s shop. “Bringing these two types of products together simplifies the shopping experience for our customers who want to go vegan. The second big first is that Carrefour is the first major retailer to market these delicious products that have already won over Burger King,” Carrefour said on its various social networks. After the launch and extension of its Carrefour Veggie brand and the exclusive nationwide marketing of La Vie vegan products, Carrefour continues to see the potential of plant-based products in the European market. This vegan corner in the traditional butcher’s department …

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