LSDH soy plant exterior

©LSDH Group

Manufacturing & Technology

LSDH’s €32M Soy Plant in France Powered by Bühler Now Fully Operational

LSDH Group announces that its soy plant in France is now fully operational. The new plant is part of a facility owned by LSDH in partnership with Sofiprotéol, an investment company dedicated to the production of plant-based beverages. LSDH states that the company invested €32 million as part of its ambition to be a key player in France’s plant-based beverage ingredient market. The plant, with a surface area of 9,000 square meters, will have the capability to offer local soy ingredients that can be used in plant-based yogurts, ice creams, and cheeses. The business was initially established as a dairy company and now employs 2,000 staff. Its products are sold mainly as store brands in major supermarket chains around France and reportedly generated a turnover …

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Soy crop ProVeg NFH

Image: ProVeg International

Ingredients

Maximise Soy Product Sales by Addressing Consumer Ingredient Concerns

The story of soy is one of great success. The humble bean can be processed into an array of high-protein ingredients that can be used to create delicious and nutritious foods that look, taste, feel, and smell like traditional animal-based meat and dairy products. Currently the most developed plant-based protein segment, the soy protein ingredients sector was worth an estimated US$7.7 billion in 2022. By 2027, it is projected to hit a significant US$10.8 billion, recording a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7%.  While soy has seen experienced a number of victories and is predicted to see more, the mighty bean is on the receiving end of some negative information, leading to a growing number of consumers avoiding products that contain soy ingredients. In …

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soy meat Japanese cafe

@Ned Snowman - stock.adobe.com

Market & Trends

Report Says Meat Alternatives in Japan Have Entered Mainstream

A recent market report finds that meat alternatives in Japan have become increasingly mainstream, driven partly by a shift in consciousness since the pandemic, as well as a high acceptance of soy-based meat. The GlobalData report projects the Japanese market to reach JPY36.3 billion ($373.5 million) by 2026, with a CAGR of 5%. High affinity for soy The upswing is reportedly led by the country’s tendency towards soy-based products, which as we earlier reported, have witnessed a boom over the past two years. Soy-based foods such as soy sauce and miso are deeply ingrained in traditional Japanese culture, as such, meats created from soy are trusted by the Japanese consumer. Nikkei Asia reported in September that despite a 1.5X price increase on soybean crops since …

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© Nasoya

Products & Launches

Nasoya Unveils Sweet Chili Toss’ables, Sees Plant-Based Steak Sales Soar by 800%

Leading US tofu brand Nasoya is set to reveal a new variety of its Plantspired Toss’ables. The product, which consists of bite-sized, pre-baked tofu bites marinated in Korean sweet chili sauce, will launch next year. Along with the rest of Nasoya’s range, the new Toss’ables will be showcased at this year’s Global Produce & Floral Show in Orlando, Florida. The company will be at Booth #1905 at the event, which takes place from October 27-29. Plantspired Steak One of Nasoya’s most popular products is its Korean BBQ Plantspired Steak, which launched at US grocery stores this spring. The steak alternative has gained considerable traction and is now available at over 4,000 locations nationwide, with sales up 800% since its initial launch. It is also available …

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Purdue Soy Innovation

©Purdue University

Ingredients

Purdue University Receives $1.1M Grant to Advance Soy Product Innovation

The United Soybean Board (USB) announced it has awarded $1.1M to the Purdue University Food Entrepreneurship and Manufacturing Institute (FEMI), in partnership with the University of Arkansas and the University of Missouri. The joint project, which launched on Oct. 1st, seeks to build infrastructure and connectivity for small- and medium-scale processing of soy-based value-added products.  Co-funded by the Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research, a federal organization focused on addressing key problems in agriculture and food security, the year-long project will be led by Purdue associate professor and FEMI director Dharmendra Mishra. According to Purdue, the project was born out of a national discussion on the soybean value chain. Its work will concentrate on phenotyping for compositional traits in novel value-added applications, trials to eliminate …

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One Planet Pizza packaging

@OnePlanetPizza

Sustainability / Environment

New Study Shows 71% of Americans are Purchasing, Thinking About Plant-Based Products and Packaging

A new study conducted by The Plant Based Products Council (PBPC) shows strong consumer awareness and interest in plant-derived products made from renewable materials such as hemp, soy and corn. The findings also show consumers hold more favorable attitudes toward the companies, farmers and policymakers actively involved in sustainability efforts.  Among the report’s most significant findings, 71% of American consumers say they consciously think about packaging and products made with plant-based materials when they shop. Consumers also cited recyclability, composability, and the environment as primary motivations for purchasing a plant-made product, while 21% cited inaccessible waste disposable as the top deterrent for purchasing such items. As the 2022 midterms approach, 66% of consumers favor voting for a candidate who has shown support for sustainability initiatives …

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Hodo All Day Plant-Based Egg Scramble

©Colin Price/ Hodo

Food & Beverage

Hodo Launches Ready-Made, High-Protein “All Day Vegan Egg Scramble”

Plant-based protein company Hodo announces it is launching the All Day Egg Scramble, a prepared egg alternative, in 1,500 retail stores across the US. The new plant-based egg will be available at Whole Food and Natural Grocers nationwide, with Sprouts and other retailers adding the product in coming months. The scramble will also be sold through foodservice.  Made from minimally processed ingredients, the All Day Scramble was created to offer consumers a convenient, clean-label alternative to chicken eggs, Hodo says. The product features an authentic egg-y flavor, a fluffy texture and comes ready to heat for toast, stir fries, burritos or any scrambled egg recipes.  A higher-protein vegan egg Nutritionally, the new scramble contains as much protein as chicken eggs and 30% more protein than …

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Nasoya Plantspired Plant-Based Steak

©Nasoya

Meat- and Fish Alternatives

Nasoya Announces National Launch of Plantspired Plant-Based Steak

Nasoya, a top-selling brand of tofu and plant-based foods, will launch its premium Plantspired Steak in US grocery stores beginning this spring.  The plant-based steak, which will initially roll out at Albertsons, Vons and Pavilions stores, first debuted at more than 200 WaBa Grill locations in 2021, in the fast-casual chain’s healthy rice bowls.  Made from non-GMO soy, Plantspired Steak offers marinated steak-like strips that are char-grilled over an open flame. Containing 14 grams of protein, the plant-based steak can be quickly warmed and served alone or with an endless variety of dishes such as rice, noodles, soup, salad and veggies. The product is available in a Korean BBQ flavor paired with a sweet and smoky bulgogi sauce, and can be found in the produce …

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BH_Soybean

©Benson Hill

Agriculture / Agribusiness

Benson Hill Announces ‘Crop Accelerator’ to Supply Massive Demand for Plant Meat

Benson Hill, a publicly listed company since this September, announces the opening of its Crop Accelerator, a state-of-the-art research facility located near the Company’s St. Louis HQ. The company reports that the Crop Accelerator, designed to provide a more than twenty-fold expansion in testing capacity, is operational ahead of schedule and that its first soybean and yellow pea seeds were planted on September 17. The Crop Accelerator employs 27 staff and is looking to hire more innovators in plant science, data science and food science as it continues its expansion to meet demand for such ingredients, as the plant-based meat market is forecast to reach approximately $140 billion by 2029.  The 47,000 square-foot facility features dynamically adaptive Conviron® growth houses and chambers, equipped with multi-channel LEDs, additive CO2, temperature, humidity and …

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©Good Mills Innovation

Products & Launches

GoodMills Innovation Raises the Sensory Qualities of Alt Meat & Fish to a “New Level” With VITATEX Texturates

Germany’s GoodMills Innovation, part of the GoodMills Group, Europe’s leading milling corporation, introduces VITATEX texturates based on wheat, soy and peas, for fish and meat substitute products. The company states that the texturates are perfect for alt seafood products such as plant-based tuna, fish fingers, pan- or deep-fried fish, and are optimally suited for the frozen food sector. “Whether it’s fish & chips, fish fingers or fishcakes, all of these specialities can be readily converted into vegan form with VITATEX®”, says the Hamburg based firm. As well as the applications in seafood alternatives, the texturates can be applied to alt meat products such as vegan patties, meatballs, Bolognese sauce, chicken nuggets, Vienna sausages, or schnitzels. After working with wheat texturates for around a decade, GoodMills …

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Nasoya X WaBa Grill

Products & Launches

WaBa Grill Launches Plant-based Steak in Approx 200 Restaurants Across California and Arizona

California’s WaBa Grill, one of the USA’s leading fast-casual chains, announces the launch of Plantspired Steak at all of its almost 200 locations across California and Arizona, in partnership with Nasoya Foods USA, owned by Korea’s Pulmuone since 2016. Pulmuone entered the alternative meat category this March with the Plantspired range which began with 20 new products in its domestic Korean market as well as in China, Japan and in the USA. The collaboration marks the first time Nasoya has worked with a major restaurant chain. The plant-based steak is marinated with Asian style flavours then grilled and served with WaBa Grill’s signature WaBa Sauce, and is according to the chain “conveniently priced”. “Today’s launch is significant for WaBa Grill as the continued evolution of …

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Benson Hill

©Benson Hill

Agriculture / Agribusiness

What Benson Hill’s $2B Public Valuation Means for Alt Protein

Benson Hill plans to go public in a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) in a deal valuing the St. Louis-based plant-tech firm at $2 billion. Benson Hill is developing gene-edited and selectively bred versions of crops used in alt protein products, with the deal’s expected $625 million capital raise accelerating Benson Hill’s ability to drive down plant-based food costs.  With the commercial production of its ultrahigh-protein soybean and yellow-pea protein concentrate set to begin next year, Benson Hill says it can develop soy and pea crop breeds that mature faster, have higher protein content, or taste better, thus saving time and resources in the production of alt protein products. SPACs are shell companies that raise funds through an IPO to take a private …

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plant-based milk beverage drink

© alex9500 - stock-adobe.com

Market & Trends

A guest post from Future Grocery Shopping

The German Plant-based Milk Market

plant-based milk beverage drink
© alex9500 – stock-adobe.com

Compared to other plant-based products such as cheese and meat, plant-based milk alternatives have been around for some time and many consumers are already well familiar with milk alternatives like soy and coconut milk. In Germany 93% of consumers already buy plant-based milk alternatives, which is higher than in any of the other plant-based product categories.

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Someat plant based meat, image courtesy of freefrom

Food & Beverage

Established Tofu Manufacturer Somenoya Launches Someat, Leveraging Traditional Japanese Soybean Techniques

Bringing plant-based meats that make use of traditional Japanese technology to the world: Somenoya TOFU Co., Ltd. a long-established tofu manufacturer founded in 1862, has launched its first plant-based meat Someat. How does plant-based meat created with traditional techniques inherited from the Edo period look? Somenoya talks to Hiroto from freefrom Inc about the story behind the scenes.

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United Soybean board

©United Soybean board

Agriculture / Agribusiness

United Soybean Board Partnership Launches Pilot Phase of Sustainably Grown US Soy Mark

From January 19 through March 19, the United Soybean Board (USB) is teaming up with partners from Soylent and DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences that will be participating in a pilot program to market their products and ingredients as being made with Sustainably Grown U.S. Soy.

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