Plant-based per product category

Plant-based meat alternatives

Although plant-based meat alternatives have improved greatly in recent years, food developers still face three main challenges. Firstly, plant proteins have lower structuring properties than fibrous animal protein; secondly, the flavour of some plant proteins can be perceived as off-notes; and thirdly, plant-based meat alternatives lack the juiciness of meat 6

Manufacturers have traditionally favoured texturized vegetable protein (TVP), produced via extrusion, for meat analogues This protein base is mixed with binders, such as egg white protein in vegetarian products and methylcellulose in vegan products, to recreate formed meat products like sausages and burger patties

Using a variety of plant proteins can result in more meat-like textures A mix of soy protein and wheat gluten, for instance, may result in a more fibrous structure than soy protein alone7 The latest version of the Impossible Burger blends soy and potato protein for improved texture and chew 8

The ‘holy grail’ of plant-based meat analogues, however, is a whole-cut of meat such as steak, and novel processing technologies are paving the way for such products Couette (shear) cell technology, developed by researchers at Wageningen University and commercialised by its spin-off Rival Foods, can produce large pieces of fibrous meat analogues with different textures depending on ingredient, temperature, and pressure inputs 9

High-moisture twin-screw extrusion processes are tipped to be a game-changer in delivering whole muscle products, particularly for chicken and fish analogues,10 while some companies are using 3D printing to create complex, layered textures Austrian start-up Legendary Vish, Spain’s NOVAMEAT, and Israel’s Redefine Meat are active in the 3D printing space. Other companies are taking a single-ingredient and minimal processing approach by fermenting mycelium, the root-like structure of fungi, as a wholefood meat analogue (see spotlight on Fermentation on p 11 for more)

Strides are also being made to replicate the functionality and taste of animal fat, which provides a mouthcoating juiciness and richness in meat. Animal fat is difficult to create using plant-based oils because of different melting points; animal fat is solid at room temperature but many vegetable oils are not Some companies opt for fat blends - the latest version of Beyond Burger’s patty uses a mix of coconut oil and cocoa butter – while encapsulating fat is another solution to prevent fat from melting before it is desirable 11

Scientists are also looking into the potential of quillaja, a botanical extract with natural emulsifying and foaming properties, which could be used to create nano-scale oleogels 12 US company Motif FoodWorks is developing novel processing techniques to create animal-free emulsions that it says display the physical properties of animal-based fat at room temperature and allow manufacturers to recreate the marbled structure of fat in muscle 13

Fish and seafood alternatives

By 2030, global demand for seafood is projected to be 30% higher than 2010 levels Increases in aquaculture production and wild caught fish will not be sufficient to meet this demand, however, and so plant-based fish and seafood alternatives could offer a sustainable solution to meet this demand.14

So far, product development of plant-based fish and seafood has lagged behind beef, chicken and pork alternatives, accounting for just $9 5 million (1%) of total plant-based meat dollar sales This indicates plenty of opportunity for both new and established brands 15

The current seafood alternative landscape is made up of three product types: 1) plant-based offerings from companies like New Wave Foods, which uses soy, pea, and algae to make vegan prawns, or Ocean Hugger Foods, which uses whole vegetables such as tomato to replicate sushi tuna; 2) fermented products, such as Quorn’s mycoprotein-based fish fingers; and 3) cell-cultured products from companies such as Cultured Decadence and Finless Foods, none of which are currently commercially available

Given that many people choose fish over meat for health reasons, plant-based brands should be mindful of the nutritional profile of their products. Good Catch, for instance, uses a blend of six legumes for an optimal amino acid composition and adds DHA-rich algae oil extracted from seaweed for both its distinct seafood flavour and omega-3 fatty acid content

In 2020, the World Sustainability Organization (WSO) announced a certification programme for plant-based seafood products through its Friend of the Sea initiative, allowing vegan foods to position themselves as sustainable seafood 16 Certified front-of-pack labels such as this could reinforce the eco-friendliness of seafood alternatives and drive further consumer interest

Dairy alternatives

The popularity of plant-based alternatives to dairy milk has surged in recent years, to the extent that analysts now refer to the ‘post-dairy era’ and describe the traditional dairy industry as being ‘under siege’ 17

Soy milk was once found only in health food shops; today, supermarket shelves around the world are filled with an ever-expanding selection of alternatives made with soy, almond, oat, cashew, rice, quinoa, coconut, pea, and more

On an indexed basis, global dairy alternative drinks rose 60% and spoonable, non-dairy yoghurts doubled between 2015 and 2019, according to Innova 18

Ensuring that plant-based alternatives are nutritionally equivalent could be an important consideration for brands In 2015, dairy products and ingredients accounted for around 20% of the average US individual’s protein intake 19 Consumers who shift entirely from dairy to plant-based alternatives on a like-for-like basis could therefore be at risk of protein deficiency.

Only soy and pea come close to the protein content of cow’s milk but soy is increasingly shunned by consumers due to association with environmental problems, while pea can have unpleasant flavour notes that require masking 20 Many plant-based brands will need to fortify their products to enable a protein health claim

An alternative strategy is to communicate about the chosen ingredient’s other nutritional benefits.21 Oats may be low in protein, for instance, but they can provide a source of whole grains, beta-glucans, and fibre. Given that most people in developed countries are deficient in whole grains and fibre22, oat milk can deliver its own health benefit even though it is not nutritionally identical to cow’s milk Blending can also offer solutions and Mexican brand

Heartbest blends pea with lysine-containing amaranth in its plant milk to make the pea protein more easily digestible

Adding probiotic cultures is another way that dairy alternatives are improving the nutritional quality of their products, and is an increasingly popular strategy in spoonable and drinking yoghurt alternatives Probiotics may help with protein digestibility and absorption,23 and Innova has identified the combination of plant proteins and probiotic cultures as 'an ingredient synergy trend' 24 US brand Nancy’s oat milk-based yoghurt alternative contains four strains of live probiotics as well as the cultures commonly found in most yoghurts, S Thermophilus and L Bulgaricus, that create a creamy texture without the use of hydrocolloids

Cheese alternatives

Non-profit organisation ProVeg has identified plant-based cheese as one of the biggest ‘missing categories’ on European supermarket shelves – and therefore a potentially lucrative opportunity for product developers 25

While plant-based milks have become commonplace, plant-based cheese has so far failed to become a shopping basket staple of flexitarian eaters, something that is commonly attributed to failings in taste and texture

Naturally colourful botanicals, such as annatto, curcumin or spirulina, can help brands recreate the appearance of a cheddar or stilton, but matching the taste and texture of dairy cheese remains challenging. Almost half (49%) of consumers surveyed by Mintel say it is difficult to find cheese alternatives with good texture 26

Canadian researchers have identified zein, a protein found in maize and a common by-product of corn starch and corn syrup production, as effective in increasing the meltability and stretchability of plantbased cheese 27

However, clean label concerns over additives could also grow The average plant-based cheese has 11 ingredients compared to just four in a traditional dairy cheese,28 and many vegan cheese alternatives use coconut oil as a base, adding modified starches, gums and other texturizing agents. The final product therefore tends to be high in saturated fat, low in protein and have a long ingredient list, which can be offputting for consumers

Many artisanal brands make cheese alternatives from fermented cashew and almond milk while US brand Grounded Foods uses cauliflower and hemp for its camembert-style cheese. If next generation cheese alternatives can recreate the sensory experience of dairy cheese with clean label ingredient lists, they could be well placed to take a bite out of dairy cheese sales

Egg replacers

Egg substitutes have low penetration rates and only 11% of people who are actively trying to reduce their consumption of animal-based foods have recently purchased plant-based eggs ProVeg conducted a 6,000-strong European survey and noted strong potential demand, particularly in Germany, the UK, and the Netherlands 29 In the US, the plant-based egg category is already worth $10 million, with dollar sales growing 228% between 2017 and 2019 30

As in the meat and dairy sectors, egg manufacturers are acting to protect themselves against a potential drop in sales of hen eggs by launching their own vegan versions Grupo Mantiqueira, one of Brazil’s biggest egg producers, developed a vegan egg substitute made from pea protein that can replace eggs in bakery and cooking applications, and is working on a standalone replacement 31

Aside from being able to make an on-pack plant-based claim, packaged food manufacturers have their own reasons for wanting to use egg alternatives Liquid and shell eggs are fragile, perishable, prone to volatile price fluctuations, and require segregated production lines as they are an allergen.

However, eggs as an ingredient provide a myriad of functions ranging from foam stabilisation, emulsification, coagulation, gelation, binding, thickening to crystallisation control – and replacing them is challenging. Eggs also boost the protein content, add flavour, improve the appearance of baked goods, and are clean label and natural 32

While no company has managed to develop a like-for-like replacement, a number of B2B products that perform some of these functionalities exist Yumgo and Algama use potato protein and algae, respectively,33 while Renmatix uses cellulose obtained from agricultural residual waste via a process of supercritical hydrolysis 34 Consumer-facing brand Just uses mung bean protein isolate in Just Egg, while Follow Your Heart’s VeganEgg is made with soymilk powder

Identifying plant protein isolates that perform important functionalities such as coagulation could be the key to developing next-generation egg substitutes One such protein, ribulose bisphosphate carboxylaseoxygenase (known as RuBisCo), is promising because it produces protein gels with similar properties to egg white gels and is found in almost all plants and green algae 35