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Alexandre Bompard at a Carrefour announcing the launch of a coalition to democratize plant-based foods

© Alexandre Bompard on LinkedIn
Company News

Carrefour and Major Food Companies Launch Plant-Based Coalition to Take Alternatives Mainstream

Président Directeur Général of Carrefour, Alexandre Bompard,  has announced the launch of a plant-based coalition to democratize and develop plant-based alternatives for the market.  In partnership with food manufacturing and distribution companies Danone, SAVENCIA, ANDROS, Bel Bonduelle, Unilever, and NUTRITION & SANTE, the coalition aims to reach €3 billion in sales by 2026. “This initiative demonstrates our ability to join forces and assume our collective responsibility as manufacturers and retailers to consume sustainable products at reasonable prices,” says Bompard on social media. Food is responsible for almost 25% of GHG emissions, and global warming is increasing rapidly. As 50% of households follow a flexitarian diet, and the purchasing power of the French is under significant pressure, Bompard believes that affordable plant-based alternatives are a solution …

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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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magnum sea salt caramel

© Magnum/Unilever
Facts & Figures

Unilever Aims for €1.5Bn in Sales From Plant-Based Products by 2025

Multinational consumer goods producer Unilever has revealed that it aims to achieve €1.5 billion in sales from plant-based products by 2025. The target is part of Unilever’s goals to reduce its carbon emissions and sustainably feed a growing population. At the recent BusinessWorld Economic Forum, Kristine A. Go — general manager for nutrition at Unilever Southeast Asia — outlined a food technology wheel developed by the company’s Netherlands-based Food Innovation Centre. The wheel is made up of six health and sustainability strategies: Natural and nutritious food — Fortifying Unilever products with nutrients, which will be tailored to the dietary needs of specific countries. Microstructure and textures — Creating plant-based products that replicate the texture of animal products. Culinary experiences — Ensuring vegan products taste like …

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bestfoods_vegan_mayo_packshots

© Best Foods / Unilever
Products & Launches

Best Foods Vegan Mayo Arrives in NZ. But Isn’t This Hellman’s? What’s the Story?

Unilever today announces the launch of Best Foods vegan mayo in New Zealand, in response to the “rapidly expanding wave of consumers looking for a better balance,” according to the brand. But consumers around the world will recognise it as the Hellman’s brand mayo which has been popular in several markets for years – what’s the story? Hellman’s / Best Foods Hellman’s, and Best Foods, identical brands owned by Unilever since 2000, operate under the two brands in different markets. The famous sauces and condiments are sold under the Best Foods brand in US states west of the Rocky Mountains as well as East Asia, Southeast Asia, New Zealand and Australia. Meanwhile, the products use the Hellman’s name in US states east of the Rocky …

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Breyers Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream

©Unilever
Products & Launches

Unilever Adds Breyers Oat Milk and Talenti Dairy-Free Gelato to US Ice Cream Line

CPG giant Unilever, the world’s largest ice cream manufacturer, is expanding its US dairy-free ice cream offerings with a new range of innovations from Breyers and Talenti gelato.   Legacy ice cream brand Breyers is rolling out Breyers Non-Dairy Vanilla – its first all-vanilla plant-based ice cream flavor. Featuring an upgraded formula made with real oat milk, Breyers Non-Dairy Vanilla is one of the first dairy-free ice creams to be offered in a large 1.5 quart tub.  Since 2015, Breyers has sold a separate line of plant-based ice creams made with almond milk.  Better gelato Another Unilever brand, Talenti, reveals it is adding a new selection of dairy-free gelato to its lineup. Crafted from cashew butter and oat milk, the Dairy-Free gelatos are said to match …

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Umiami founders team

Founding team © Umiami

Manufacturing & Technology

Umiami Acquires Former Unilever Site to Produce Plant-Based Whole Cuts in France

French alt-meat producer Umiami, which specialises in whole cuts of plant-based meats, has acquired a former Unilever production facility in its home country. Located in Duppegheim, the 14,000 m2 site will be Umiami’s first commercial-scale plant, after the opening of its innovation centre (featuring a pilot production facility) in June. The factory will be able to produce up to 22,000 tonnes of meat and seafood alternatives per year. According to Umiami, the new facility will be the only one in the world capable of producing plant-based versions of any type of meat or fish fillet. Production will begin in the second half of next year. Proprietary production process Extrusion, the most common method of making meat alternatives, is only able to produce small chunks or …

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Unilever Dairy Proteins

©Unilever
Company News

Unilever May Launch Its First Animal-Free Dairy Ice Cream in 2023

Multinational food giant Unilever reveals it is currently using precision fermentation techniques to develop its first animal-free dairy ice cream. The company might launch its first precision-fermented ice cream product sometime next year, reports Bloomberg.  Unilever is the world’s largest ice cream manufacturer and owns top-selling brands like Ben & Jerry’s, Breyers, Magnum, and Klondike.  Andy Sztehlo, Unilever’s head of research and development, says the company is working with several startups on animal-free versions of its ice cream, and if successful, would likely launch fermented dairy proteins in one of its major brands in 2023. He also noted he had recently tasted prototypes.  The entry into animal-free dairy is part of Unilever’s environmental stategy, which seeks to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions produced by its …

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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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Unilever Recommends Plant-Based Diets

© The Vegetarian Butcher
Studies & Numbers

Unilever Recommends Plant-Based Diets for Public Health and Sustainability

Scientific review by Unilever recommends plant-based foods as a way of improving consumer health and benefiting the environment. Multinational consumer goods corporation Unilever has carried out research into the benefits of plant-based foods. The review, which draws on 141 studies, concludes that a transition towards plant-based diets is desirable to improve consumers’ intake of several vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients such as fibre. This would have the added benefit of reducing the environmental impact of food production. The review recommends that public health strategies should try to make this transition easier for consumers, with the nutrition industry also playing an important role. However, the scientists caution that all diets studied had some nutritional inadequacies. They say proper education of consumers, along with fortification of plant-based …

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Vegetarian Butcher

©The Vegetarian Butcher
Products & Launches

The Vegetarian Butcher Launches in Singapore, Now Available at Retail Stores Citywide

The Vegetarian Butcher launches in Singapore, with its products now stocked at retail outlets such as FairPrice Group and RedMart. After successfully breaking into Singapore’s foodservice market, Unilever-owned alt-meat brand The Vegetarian Butcher has announced its retail launch in the country. Four of the brand’s products — Mince Charming, Chickened-Out Chunks, Little Peckers, and Big Winners — can now be purchased by Singaporean consumers. To begin with, the products will be available via FairPrice Group, Cold Storage Singapore, and RedMart, as well as Amazon. The company is increasingly targeting the Asian market, having launched in China earlier this year. “The leader in plant-based meat” Last year, The Vegetarian Butcher grew by a huge 70%, just a few months after telling vegconomist that it had successfully …

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The Vegetarian Butcher - Mural SMUG

The Vegetarian Butcher has partnered with Glasgow-based artist SMUG to curate a giant 'Elephant in the Room' mural

Society

The Vegetarian Butcher Launches ‘Elephant in the Room’ Campaign to Push Plant-Based Ahead of COP26

The ‘Elephant in the Room’ campaign from The Vegetarian Butcher aims to help consumers participate in bringing a crucial issue to COP26’s attention: the environmental impact of animal meat consumption on the planet. “The numbers don’t lie. A transition to diets that incorporate more plant-based food is a vital part of the solution to the climate crisis” Looking for meaningful action from leaders and policymakers, the campaign highlights how reducing animal meat consumption and switching to a plant-based diet can play a significant role in the fight against climate change. The campaign claims the issue is conspicuously absent from the COP26 agenda and lacking in European policy.  Since the livestock industry contributes between 14.5% and 18% of global anthropogenic greenhouse gases, according to the United …

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Mick-van-Ettinger

©LIVEKINDLY Collective
Interviews

LIVEKINDLY Collective: “On Track to Become One of the World’s Largest Plant-Based Food Companies”

The LIVEKINDLY Collective was founded with the goal of changing people’s beliefs and habits: “Ultimately, we want to transform the broken food system into a sustainable, plant-based one.” To achieve this mission, the collective of food industry executives is building an assembly of ethically aligned brands whose footprint is gradually expanding across the globe. We caught up with Mick van Ettinger, Chief Marketing Officer Global of the LIVEKINDLY Collective, to find out more about the organisation and its goals moving forward. How long has LIVEKINDLY Collective been around and where does the company currently stand? LIVEKINDLY Collective was founded in 2020 on the belief that plant-based alternatives have the power to make the global food system sustainable. Its mission is to make plant-based living the …

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Veggie2Business

©Kraut Food Studio
Fairs & Events

Spain to Host its First Ever Vegan B2B Event Sponsored by Heura, Unilever & Nestlé

The first 100% vegan business event in Spain, Veggie2Business, has the support of brands such as Heura, The Vegetarian Butcher (Unilever) and Garden Gourmet (Nestlé), and up to a dozen other companies that will present their plant-based products to the hotel, catering and community sectors. Veggie2Business, a pioneering plant-based business meeting in Spain, will hold its first edition on 4 and 5 October in Madrid. It is already sponsored by multinational food companies such as Unilever (with its brand The Vegetarian Butcher) and Nestlé (with the Garden Gourmet line), as well fast-growing Spanish phenomenon Heura Foods. In addition, with different spaces and participation, companies and brands of 100% plant-based products such as RevoluGreen, Sanygran, Biogran, Alpro, New Wind Foods, Green&Great, Violife, Meatless Farm, Dacsa Group, …

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Burger King France

© Burger King France
Products & Launches

While Burger King Opens 100% Vegan Location in Germany, Burger King France is Just Introducing its First Veggie Burger

Last week, Burger King announced the opening of a 100% plantbased popup location in Berlin. Shortly afterwards, Burger King France announced the launch of the Veggie King, a vegetarian burger created in partnership with The Vegetarian Butcher, the Dutch brand However, while some people are pleased with this progress, others deplore the fact that this burger is not vegan because it contains cheese. On Twitter, one can read: “Might as well make it vegan, right? It’s about time.” or “A veggie burger! Seriously!?! What a bunch of players. A vegan burger was too dangerous? Pay for the courage and innovation with a veggie in 2021.” Indeed, many comments from internet users highlight the fact that France is still far behind consumer demands and the vegan …

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ABUNDA by ENOUGH

@ENOUGH
Food & Beverage

Unilever Partners With ENOUGH to Provide Zero Waste Mycoprotein for The Vegetarian Butcher

Unilever has announced that it will partner with food-tech company ENOUGH (formerly 3F BIO) to bring new plant-based meat products to market through its brand The Vegetarian Butcher, suppliers of plant-based products to Burger King. Unilever also commented to vegconomist that, in addition to plant-based meat innovation, the company is also working to further develop its plant-based ice cream and mayonnaise portfolio. ENOUGH’s technology uses a unique zero-waste fermentation process to grow a high-quality protein. Natural fungi are fed with renewable feedstock, such as wheat and corn. This produces ABUNDA® mycoprotein, a complete food ingredient containing all essential amino acids as well as being high in dietary fibre. Unilever subsidiary The Vegetarian Butcher was chosen as the supplier of Burger King’s Plant-Based Whopper across Europe, …

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77 Foods lardons

©77 Foods

Startups, Accelerators & Incubators

Unilever Selects French Plant-Based Pork Fat Specialist 77 Foods as Innovation Champions

Unilever has named French startup 77 Foods, creator plant-based pork fat product, as the winner of its Innovation Challenge. Unilever aims to reach its target of €1 billion annual sales of plant-based meat and dairy alternatives within the next five to seven years. According to 77 Foods, 92% of participants in a blind test preferred 77 FOODS bacon to pork bacon.

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Company News

Unilever CEO Says Rise of Plant-Based is “Inexorable” as The Vegetarian Butcher Grows 70% in 2020

Unilever’s annual report reveals that the company’s plant-based meat alternative brand, The Vegetarian Butcher, reached growth peaks of 70% in Q4 of 2020. Unilever announced ambitious growth targets for its plant-based division last year, aiming to achieve at least one billion in sales of plant-based products in the next 5-7 years. Speaking to the Guardian, Unilever CEO Alan Jope described the rise of plant-based foods as an unstoppable trend. Unilever sees a shift towards more plant-based diets in every single country in the world, even in emerging markets and other poorer regions of the world. In addition to The Vegetarian Butcher, Unilever offers many other plant-based products, such as vegan ice cream from Magnum and Ben & Jerry’s, and vegan mayonnaise products from Hellmann’s, which …

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