September/October 2019 - 10

NEW PRODUCTS
PLANT-BASED MEATS
" Plant-based foods are a growth
engine, significantly outpacing overall
grocery sales, " said Julie Emmett, Plant
Based Foods Association senior director
of retail partnerships, in a summary of
the research.
The meat category is among the
leading drivers of plant-based sales,
with the others being milks and dairy,
including cheese, yogurt and ice cream.
Refrigerated plant-based meat is driving
category growth with sales up 37%,
the data showed.
Michael Robbins, communications
consultant for the Plant Based Foods
Association said the " flexitarian
movement " is a big driver of the
category's growth. He described
flexitarian as " the desire by individuals
for a whole variety of reasons to reduce
their consumption of animal products. "
" I don't know when flexitarian
became a thing, but it's definitely a
thing now, " he added.
Robbins couldn't say how many fast
food outlets are offering plant-based
meats as a menu option, but those that
do made a strategic choice.
" From Burger King to Tim Horton's
and White Castle and Del Taco, retailers
and fast food companies don't do
these things randomly, " Robbins said.
" They're seeing proprietary data that
shows this is what consumers want. "
 Beyond Meat, which supplies these plant-based burgers to PLNT Burger in Maryland, recently announced
it would partner with McDonald's on a new plant-based option to its menu. Photo: PLNT Burger
Ramped-Up Demand
For more than 30 years, the
fami ly-owned Sunshine Burger,
headquartered in Wisconsin, has been
producing organic veggie burgers
made with fresh ingredients that
range from carrots and fresh herbs
to onions, garlic, mushrooms and other
items like brown rice and sunflower
seeds, depending on the product.
General Manager Cole Jones said the
company's strongest supporters have
traditionally been dedicated vegans,
though that's changing.
" We do see a growing number of
flexitarians gravitating toward our
super-clean ingredients, " he said.
Whi le the category has
broadened to include other
options besides burgers -
nuggets, strips, crumbles,
etc. - he noted that " the
growth in plant-based
burge rs has been
biggest with the meat
analogs, which were
engineered to appeal to
omnivores. "
In April, Chicagoba
sed Green lea f
Foods - with brands
including Lightlife
Foods and Field Roast
Grain Meat - announced plans to build
what it says is North America's largest
plant-based protein manufacturing
facility in Shelbyville, Indiana. Expected
to be operational by late 2020, the
230,000-square-foot facility will more
than double production capacity, which
the company said is needed to meet
" surging consumer demand. "
" Only 3% of the population is made
up by vegans and vegetarians, and
while that number continues to grow, so
do the number of Americans embracing
a plant-based or flexitarian lifestyle, "
said Dan Curtin, Greenleaf president
and CEO. " It's from the flexitarians
that we're seeing the most growth in
demand for protein alternatives that
deliver the same texture, taste and
experience of traditional meat. "
Lightlife and Field Roast are in
more than 30,000 retail locations
across the U.S. and Canada. Those
include Acme, Albertsons, Haggen,
Jewel, Pavilions, Safeway, Vons,
Wegmans, Sprouts and Fresh Thyme,
with others coming on board in the
months ahead, Curtin said. Lightlife is
also in more than 1,000 restaurants and
foodservice locations across the U.S.
and Canada, including Chicago's Soldier
Field and the Memorial Coliseum in
Los Angeles.

September/October 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September/October 2019