Flave's plant-based burger

© Flave

Studies & Numbers

32.2% of Australians Have Reduced Their Meat Consumption in the Past 12 Months

A study by Australia’s Griffith University has found that 32.2% of respondents have reduced their meat consumption over the past year. Health was the most commonly cited reason, amid rising concerns about the link between animal products and chronic disease. This was followed by environmental and animal welfare issues. However, a small percentage of respondents (3.3%) had actually increased their meat consumption. Most participants who had cut down on meat said they aimed to follow a plant-forward diet, but a minority (14.3%) said they were just trying new products and did not necessarily plan on a long-term diet change. Overall, findings indicated widespread interest in and openness to plant-based foods. Some respondents reported barriers to eating a plant-based diet, such as other household members not …

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unMEAT vegan luncheon meat

© UnMeat

Meat- and Fish Alternatives

unMEAT’s Vegan Luncheon Meat Launches in 960 Australian Woolworths Stores at Price Parity

unMEAT, an alt meat brand owned by Philippines-based seafood giant Century Pacific, is expanding into Australia with a rollout at the country’s largest supermarket chain, Woolworths. The brand’s shelf-stable vegan luncheon meat is now available at 960 Woolworths stores across the country, at price parity with conventional luncheon meat products. The meat alternative is also available from the Woolworths website. According to Century Pacific, one in three Australian consumers is consciously reducing their meat intake, meaning the company sees favorable prospects for the unMEAT brand in the country. “The thesis behind plant-based alternatives remains,” said Greg Banzon, executive vice president and COO of Century Pacific. “Consumers want healthier and more planet-forward food choices. As a food company, we need to address these needs through innovation …

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Australian meat lobby calls for alt meat labelling restrictions

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Politics & Law

Australia: Alt Meat Labelling Restrictions Delayed as Government Seeks Industry Views

In 2021, Australian Senator Susan McDonald — former owner of meat retailer Super Butcher — chaired an inquiry where she pushed for the introduction of alt meat labelling restrictions. The aim of the proposed laws was to prevent plant-based producers from using meat-like terms such as “beef” and “chicken”. The inquiry followed lobbying from the Australian Red Meat Advisory Council, which claimed that meat alternatives were using terms that misled consumers. The Australian Competition & Consumer Commission sided with the plant-based industry, but despite this, the inquiry published results in 2022 recommending that labelling restrictions be introduced. Now, over 18 months later, the Australian meat industry has expressed frustration that the restrictions have not yet been made law. Cattle Australia interim CEO Adam Coffey told …

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Plant Forged Physique vegan weightlifting belts

© Plant Forged Physique

Materials

Australia’s Plant Forged Physique Launches Vegan Weightlifting Belts

Plant Forged Physique, an Australian brand offering vegan fitness gear, supplements, and apparel, has launched a new line of vegan weightlifting belts. According to the company, ethical weightlifting belts were previously almost impossible to find. Made from synthetic vegan leather and microsuede, the new belts provide powerlifters, bodybuilders, and gym-goers with core support during intensive strength training. The material is reportedly easier to clean and maintain than leather, while also being less prone to moisture damage. The belts are available in five colours — Forest Camo, Khaki, Pink, Sky Blue, and Snow Leopard. “Achieving goals without compromise” As more athletes adopt a vegan lifestyle, companies are increasingly offering ethical alternatives to sports gear and apparel that may traditionally be made with animal-derived materials. For example, …

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Mr. Charlie's Vegan Big Mac

©Mr. Charlie's

Fast Food

“Vegan McDonald’s” Mr. Charlie’s to Open First Australian Location

Mr. Charlie’s, the US fast food chain often referred to as the “vegan McDonald’s”, is expanding into Australia with a new location in Sydney. Based in the suburb of Redfern, the store has already been built and will open in the coming weeks. The location has been chosen partially due to its proximity to the Aboriginal Employment Strategy offices; Mr. Charlie’s plans to work with charities and brand partners to provide opportunities for indigenous communities. This echoes the chain’s practices in the US, where it has hired several homeless or formerly incarcerated staff members with the aim of “employing people so deserving of a second chance but overlooked by a broken system”. Employees are paid above the minimum wage. “More than a vegan burger joint” …

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New vegan supermarket opens in Sydney

© Greens Supermarket

Market & Trends

Latest News From Australia: New Vegan Supermarket & Alt Dairy Developments

As plant-based diets continue to grow in popularity in Australia, we take a look at the latest vegan and alt protein news from the country. New vegan supermarket A vegan supermarket called Greens has just opened its doors in the Sydney suburb of Newtown. It is said to be the city’s first fully plant-based store, and the largest in the country. The retailer stocks products that are usually difficult to find in Australia, such as vegan cheeses from Italy, no-salmon sashimi made by Netherlands-based Vegan Zeastar, and egg alternatives from New York’s Simply Eggless. A range of pantry staples, fresh produce, bakery products, and confectionery is also available. Additionally, there is an on-site canteen serving sandwiches, bowls, and more. The canteen operates on a zero-food-waste …

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Earth Bound range

© Earth Bound

Products & Launches

Australian Newcomer Earth Bound Debuts with Convenience Foods Covering All Meals From Scrambled Eggs to Meatballs

Earth Bound, a newcomer to the scene headquartered in New South Wales, Australia, is debuting a range of pre-mixed meals offering plant-based solutions for all three meals of the day, as sustainable foods in powdered form continue to increase in popularity amongst eco-conscious consumers globally. Launching with a range of seven vegan pre-mixed meals which require only the addition of water and oil, Earth Bound says it has invested “immense research and development” into its initial offering. The products are free from artificial flavors, colours, and preservatives, offer a 12-month shelf life, and are “designed to deliver exceptional results in nutrition, energy, and detoxification”. Real Australian plant-based ingredients The products are manufactured in Silverwater, Australia and are currently available in single pouch products at TK …

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Harvest b co-founders Alfred Lo and Kristi Riordan holding a bag of plant-based proteins

Harvest B co-founders Alfred Lo and Kristi Riordan © Harvest B

Company News

Harvest B Partners with Butcher Supplier Dunninghams to Bring Plant-Based Whole Cuts to New Zealand

Australian food manufacturer Harvest B has signed an agreement with Dunninghams, a butcher supplier in New Zealand since 1921, to distribute its high-quality plant-based whole cuts. This agreement marks Harvest B’s first distribution deal and first export. Co-founders Kristi Riordan and Alfred Lo started Harvest B in 2020 to supply the food industry with the next generation of plant-based meat and hybrid products. The company, which has an R&D center in Sydney, has developed a range of plant-based whole cuts using proprietary plant protein formulations and extrusion technologies. “Over our 100 year history, Dunninghams has always sought to lead the market by offering high-quality, innovative ingredients and food products to New Zealand. We believe that Harvest B’s products will deliver a healthy, affordable and great tasting …

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Australia's Vegan Food Hub is raising funds to expand its business across Australia

© Soul Burger

Protein

Australian Alt Protein Industry Has Grown Tenfold, But Bottlenecks Must Be Addressed

According to non-profit organisation Food Frontier, the alt protein industry in Australia and New Zealand has grown tenfold in the past few years, but the speed of growth has led to bottlenecks in supply chains. The plant-based meat market in the region is expected to generate almost $3 billion in domestic consumer sales by 2030, with 169,000 tonnes of end product manufactured over this period. It comes after the number of producers increased from just four in 2018 to over 20 this year. However, there are currently bottlenecks in the form of infrastructure capacity, a shortage of skilled workers, and a limited local supply of crops and other ingredients. This could provide an opportunity for farmers, who could benefit from producing the pulses and legumes …

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Vegan meal kits cooked and served

© Just Add Vegan

Delivery Services

Just Add Vegan Opens Seed Round to Officially Launch Meal Kit Delivery Service in Australia

Australian vegan meal kit subscription service, Just Add Vegan, has opened an AUD$700 thousand seed round to upgrade its subscription platform, enhance operational efficiency, and officially launch in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory.  Just Add Vegan was founded in 2021 by Padma Lianos and Arthur Voorwinden as Australia’s first health-focused meal kit service, operating at the intersection of plant-based eating and convenience.  Since its establishment, the company has tested its concept by delivering over 12,000 meal kits to more than 300 customers, allowing it to assess its viability, enhance its operations, and measure its potential success. “It was tremendously rewarding to see our vision come to life and to hear from customers that Just Add Vegan was actually ‘life-changing’ for them. Probably …

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Wide Open Agriculture receives a grant from the Australian government to expedite the production of an oat drink enriched with lupins

© Dirty Clean Food

Company News

WOA Receives AUD$5M Government Grant to Produce Oat Milk Enriched with Lupin Protein

Wide Open Agriculture (ASX: WOA), an Australian agriculture and regenerative food company which owns the brand Dirty Clean Food, has received an AUD$5 million grant from the Western Australian Government to scale up the production of a new oat milk enriched with a lupin-derived protein called Buntine. A the end of 2021, WOA raised $20 million to build a production facility near a farming area of high-quality oats in Western Australia. The grand will expedite its establishment. At the facility, WOA will produce the new oat milk and lupin protein formula in various formats and will continue producing its already launched oat milk products— “the world’s lowest carbon” plant-based drinks. The new plant, expected to launch in Q3 2025, will feature novel manufacturing technologies to reduce production costs and …

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Cultivated lamb

© Magic Valley

Cultivated Meat

Magic Valley and Biocellion Join Forces to Improve Bioreactor Tech for Large-Scale Meat Cultivation

Melbourne-based cultivated meat company Magic Valley announces it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with US company Biocellion SPC, a software developer and computer modeling company for life sciences, to drive advancements in bioreactor technology by researching cell behavior in these tanks. The ultimate goal is to scale up the production of cultivated meat to lower its prices.  “At Magic Valley, we are committed to revolutionizing the way meat is produced, with a focus on sustainability and ethical practices. By collaborating with Biocellion, we aim to unlock valuable insights into cellular behavior, enabling us to create delicious cultivated meat products efficiently at scale,” comments Paul Bevan, CEO & founder of Magic Valley. All types of meat Magic Valley is known as the first company to cultivate lamb …

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Flora Plant Cream

© Flora

Milk- and Dairy Alternatives

Upfield Launches Whippable Flora Plant Cream in Australia, Aims to Become 100% Plant-Based

Plant-based dairy leader Upfield has launched Flora Plant Cream, an alternative to thickened cream, for the Australian retail market. The product is whippable and is said to perform just as well as dairy cream in all applications. Like the plant-based cream offered by Upfield under the Elmlea brand in the UK, it uses lentils as a base and is free of palm oil. Upfield has previously offered Flora cream for food service, both in Australia and in other markets such as the UK and the US. However, this is the first time the product has been available in Australian retail stores. Sold in 500ml cartons, the cream has now launched at all major supermarkets across the country. “For Flora, we recognised a real gap in …

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© Made With Plants

Meat- and Fish Alternatives

Made With Plants Launches Seitan-Based Steak at Woolworths Stores Across Australia

Australia’s Made With Plants has launched a plant-based sirloin-style steak at Woolworths stores across the country. The steak is made with seitan (wheat gluten), and is said to have a highly realistic texture. The production process is inspired by centuries-old traditions, with specialised flour used to create a dough that is then seasoned and cooked. “We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to indulge in the rich, comforting taste of steak. Made With Plants Meat Free Steak offers the best of both worlds, providing a guilt-free, mouth-watering alternative for meat lovers,” said Made With Plants co-founder Cale Drouin. “Unbelievable flavour” Made With Plants has been available at Woolworths since 2019, offering a selection of meat and dairy alternatives. In 2020, the brand announced an …

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Monde Nissin Australia launches a new range of deli meat slices called Deli-Licious

Image credit: Mondo Nissin Australia LinkedIn

Products & Launches

Monde Nissin Australia Launches Deli-Licious Meat Slices into Coles

FMCG company Monde Nissin Australia has moved further into the plant-based market with the launch of a new vegan-friendly deli meat brand called Deli-Licious into Coles supermarkets. Described as a delicious source of proteins without added preservatives, artificial flavours, or colours, the Deli-Licious range includes Ham Style, Chicken Style, and Hungarian Salami. “We are incredibly excited and proud to bring Australian consumers a new way to lunch with the launch of Deli-licious™, a range of tasty deli meat slices that are plant-based and 100% Deli-Licious, as the name suggests,” Monde Nissin stated. Reducing meat consumption Monde Nissin Australia is home to iconic brands, including Black Swan, nudie, Wattle Valley, Peckish, and Quorn. Last year, in response to the growing plant-based foods sector, the company signed …

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Australia's Vegan Food Hub is raising funds to expand its business across Australia

© Soul Burger

Fast Food

The Vegan Food Hub Launches Crowd Equity Raise to Open 40 Vegan Fast Food Joints in Australia

Note: this article was amended to correct 2028 to 2029 The Vegan Food Hub (VFH), an Australian vegan restaurant company that owns Sydney’s burger chain Soul Burger and ghost-kitchen brands Plantas Taqueria and Zaynas Lebanese, recently announced the launch of a crowd equity raise to expand its restaurant portfolio.  Amit Tewari, a pioneer in Sydney’s vegan scene, established Soul Burger in 2015 and founded VFH to popularise vegan food and make it readily accessible throughout Australia. His company operates four vegan burger stores across New South Wales, including Parramatta, Glebe, Newtown, and Randwick. It has eight delivery-only locations of its other plant brands. “We will be building brands across a diverse range of cuisines, with the unifying theme being, they are all vegan!” says VFH. 40 restaurants …

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Boldly Shrimp Bites

© Boldly

Company News

Boldly Debuts the “Widest Range of Vegan Seafood On the Market” at NRA Next Week

Boldly, the Australian alt seafood brand unveiled this January, is to formally launch its product portfolio, designed for the US foodservice industry and described by Boldly as the largest range of 100% vegan seafood on the market, at the National Restaurant Association Show taking place next week in Chicago. The NRA debut follows Boldly’s exclusive preview at upscale vegan hotspot PLANTA South Beach, as part of the SEED Food & Wine Festival where Josie Smith Malave of the TV show Top Chef prepared a four-course dinner with dishes such as Boldly Crab rolls with truffle yuzu butter and Peruvian causa de atun with Boldly Tuna sashimi, alongside host chef Bruny Rosado. All the classic seafood, without the fish Co-founded by Allen Zelden and headed by …

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Fenn Foods becomes certified carbon-neutral

© Fenn Foods

Sustainability / Environment

Fenn Foods Becomes Australia’s First Certified Carbon-Neutral Plant-Based Food Company

Australia’s Fenn Foods, best known for its vEEF range of meat alternatives, has become the country’s first plant-based food producer to be certified carbon-neutral. vEEF plant-based mince was the first of Fenn’s products to be certified, in 2018. Two years later, Fenn told vegconomist that it aimed for all products and the entire company to eventually be carbon-neutral — a goal that has now been achieved. To be certified, Fenn Foods’ ingredients, products, packaging, practices, and even its employees’ commutes had to be rigorously audited by the Carbon Reduction Institute. Fenn then purchased accredited carbon offsets to counter all potential emissions. Sustainable meat alternatives Fenn Foods offers a range of retail products under the vEEF brand, including burgers, meatballs, and chicken alternatives. A selection of …

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Allen Zelden, founder of Boldly, image supplied

Interviews

Boldly: “It’s Clear That the Future Will Either Be Filled With Fishless Fish or Fishless Oceans”

APAC expert and co-founder of alt-protein accelerator PlantForm, Allen Zelden, revealed his new vegan seafood brand Boldly this January, offering an impressive line of vegan prawns, salmon and tuna sashimi, calamari, shrimp, crab sticks, white fish filets and more. Allen has been keeping details of the brand and future plans under his hat since the launch; it was time we sat down and gave him a vegan seafood grilling. Firstly congratulations on the launch of Boldly! Can you give us your elevator pitch; what was the inspiration behind starting a vegan seafood brand? If I’m being brutally honest, I just felt it was time to disrupt the plant-based sea of sameness with an all-new, positive and fun experience, and what better way to do this …

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Smart MCs is set to scale its production line to supply with microcarriers the cultivated meat industry

© Smart MCs

Manufacturing & Technology

Smart MCs Tackles Scalability Bottleneck in Cultivated Meat Production with Edible Microcarrier Technology

Sydney-based biotechnology company, Smart MCs, has been awarded AUD$600K by the Australian Government’s Accelerating Commercialisation Grant to revolutionize the bioprocessing industry with its edible microcarriers (MCs) for the emerging cultured meat sector. The company will establish a fully automated edible microcarrier production line with the grant’s funds. Founded in 2022, Smart MCs focuses on developing efficient and cost-effective methods for the large-scale expansion of cells, with a particular emphasis on cellular agriculture.  The startup was part of Big Idea Ventures’ sixth cohort, which launched with 16 other companies last October. Additionally, it has successfully locked two minimum viable products, closed a pre-seed round,  and expanded its team and advisors.  “We are thrilled to have been awarded this grant by the Australian Government, which will allow …

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