Search Results | The Plant Base (2024)

Miyoko’s Creamery unveils flavoured oat milk butters

Miyoko’s Creamery, a US-based plant-based dairy brand, has unveiled two new oat milk butters in ‘Garlic Parm’ and ‘Cinnamon Brown Sugar’ flavours. The new oat milk butters use traditional dairy creamery methods to create a product that appeals to both ‘dairy and dairy-free enthusiasts,’ the brand said in a statement announcing the launch. Miyoko’s latest creations aim to bring a bold and complex flavour to meals, underscoring the brand’s commitment to creating high-quality dairy alternatives while uncovering new flavours in both sweet and savoury varieties. The new flavours are an extension of the brand’s classic oat milk butter product, made with a base of organic cultured oat milk. They are designed to enhance anything from sourdough bread and baking recipes through to sautéing. Stuart Kronauge, CEO at Miyoko’s Creamery, said: “With these fresh additions, we want to capture the simple joy and nostalgia of that first bite consumers experience when they crunch into warm toast topped with savoury butter. This represents our dedication to crafting rich tasting and satisfying products while remaining true to our values of utilising recognisable ingredients.” The new flavours will debut at Whole Foods stores across the US in a 6oz tub format, with a suggested retail price of $4.99. Top image: © Miyoko's Creamery #MiyokosCreamery #US

Apparo and Döhler launch plant-based ingredient partnership

Apparo, a plant protein solutions company, has partnered with global ingredients specialist Döhler to deliver nutritious plant-based ingredients to the food and beverage market. The joint development agreement will see Apparo combine its proprietary processing approach and ingredients with Döhler’s pipeline of ingredient systems and integrated solutions for the food, beverage and nutrition industry. Apparo’s Total Crop Utilization System uses patent-pending processing technologies to upcycle protein, and other nutritional ingredients, from food byproducts. Its current focus is on upcycling sunflower protein. The company aims to meet the demands of the rapidly growing plant-based food and nutrition market, while reducing environmental impact. Ian Mackay, CEO at Apparo, commented: “We are enthusiastic about working closely with Döhler, an established and innovative supplier to the food and nutrition industry. We look forward to the development of significant commercial opportunities.” Döhler has more than 45 production sites, and 75 offices and application centres, operational in over 160 countries. Its workforce of more than 9,500 employees includes 1,000 staff in R&D, focusing on science, technology and innovation. #Apparo #Döhler

Umiami opens €38m plant-based meat factory in France

Umiami , a producer of clean label plant-based meat alternatives, has opened a new 14,000-square-metre factory in Alsace, France. The facility, which will produce plant-based meat and seafood products, was inaugurated this week following a total investment of €38 million. It was supported by €7.5 million funding from France 2030, €1.5 million from the Grand Est Region, and €1.5 million from European EDRF funds. Umiami carried out three years of development and scaling up of production, previously undertaken at a research centre in the Paris region, prior to launching the facility. Spanning a 3.7-hectare site, the food-tech factory employs 53 staff and boasts an annual production capacity of 7,500 tonnes. Umiami plans to increase this to 20,000 tonnes in the future. The inauguration on 18 March was attended by guests such as government officials, regional representatives and local leaders. Original investors and partners including Bpifrance, Astanor Ventures and Redalpine were also present to show their support. Umiami claims that the factory is a ‘world-first,’ focusing solely on large-scale production of plant-based meat and fish fillets using the company’s unique ‘umisation’ texturizing technology. This innovative approach was developed to accurately replicate the taste and texture of thick, whole pieces of meat or fish while preserving their nutritional integrity. Umiami’s plant-based fillets, based on a simple recipe of under ten ingredients, do not contain texturizing agents or additives and allow the brand to meet the rising demand for clean label products within the category. Nicolas Dufourcq, executive director at Bpifrance, commented: “The inauguration of this first factory marks a pivotal moment in Umiami’s journey, following years of development of a unique technology, and illustrates the ambitions of the SME and Industrial Start-ups plan that we are supporting”. He added: “Over and above the challenges of reindustrialisation in the Alsace region, the company is developing innovations that will help to promote our agri-food expertise, taking into account the challenges of a low-carbon transition, and we are proud to have supported it throughout the various phases of its development”. #Umiami #manufacturingplant #facilities #meatalternatives #plantbasedmeat #altmeat #France #alternativeproteins #cleanlabel

Edonia secures €2m to turn microalgae into tasty meat alternatives

Paris-based start-up Edonia has secured €2 million ($2.1 million) in funding to leverage microalgae in the creation of protein-rich ingredients that promise to transform the consumption of meat alternatives. Led by CEO Hugo Valentin, Edonia is at the forefront of a burgeoning market for commercial algae, which is projected to reach a value of $25.4 billion by 2033. With this recent investment, the company aims to tackle one of the biggest challenges in plant-based foods: taste. Microalgae, while nutrient-dense, can have a bitter taste and unappealing green colour. Edonia’s “edonisation” process aims to change that by converts microalgae biomass into a textured super ingredient that features desirable attributes including enhanced taste, aroma, texture and nutritional benefits. The company’s flagship product, Edo-1, offers a meat-like texture and umami flavour, making it an ideal substitute for ground meat in dishes like meatballs. Moreover, Edo-1 boasts a 30% protein content, along with essential amino acids, minerals and vitamins. Beyond taste and nutrition, Edonia is also committed to sustainability. According to Valentin, Edonia’s product emits significantly fewer greenhouse gases compared to traditional ground meat and textured soy alternatives. This aligns with the growing consumer demand for environmentally friendly food options. Looking ahead, Edonia plans to scale up production and bring its microalgae-based ingredient to market by the end of the year. With an initial focus on European markets, the company aims to expand globally through strategic partnerships. The €2 million investment, led by Asterion Ventures and supported by BPI, will fuel Edonia’s growth efforts, including the development of a pilot plant and further research and development. The company has also welcomed industry experts Alexis Angot and Laurent Cardinali to its board. #Edonia #microalgae #plantbasedmeat #taste

France bans meat-related terms on plant-based product labels

The French government has this week published a decree that will ban the use of meat-related terms, such as ‘ham’ and ‘steak,’ in the labelling of plant-based meat alternative products. The decree was originally published in 2022, but was suspended following a complaint from Protéines France, an industry consortium of plant-based and alternative protein companies. Now, a revised version has been published detailing a long list of meat-related terms that will be prohibited in the labelling of plant-based meat alternatives. Prohibited terms include ‘ham,’ ‘steak,’ ‘escalope,’ ‘tendon,’ and ‘entrecote’ among others. These words, defined in the decree as relating to the names and groups of animal species, animal morphology or anatomy, will now be banned in the description, marketing and promotion of processed products containing vegetable proteins in France. A second list within the decree highlights words that may be used to describe food products of animal origin that do not replace animal products, but may contain plant proteins within their ingredients. It sets out the maximum proportion of plant proteins that may be used in such products using these terms – for example, products using the name ‘bacon’ must contain a maximum of 0.5% vegetable protein content, 3% for ‘chicken breast’ and 5% for ‘terrine’. The decree includes a clause stating that products that are manufactured or marketed in another member state of the European Union or in a third country are exempt from the ban. It will be brought into effect three months after its publication, after which time companies will be given up to a year to sell any products that were manufactured and labelled with the banned terms before the decree came into force. Breach of the restrictions will be punishable by maximum fines of €1,500 for individuals and €7,500 for companies. Martin Habfast and Tristan Maurel, co-founders of French plant-based meat brand Umiami , told The Plant Base that they are “dismayed” by the introduction of the legislation. They commented: “The French government had been championing innovation and the promotion of plant-based alternatives within the market. However, this development serves as a setback to the progress made by French food companies and manufacturers striving to offer sustainable and healthier meat alternatives.” “Our dedication lies in local production and economic development, driven by our pride in our expertise. Yet, this places us at a disadvantage compared to foreign competitors who aren’t bound by the same standards of transparency and precision.” Animal agri-food organisations in the country have been calling for tighter restrictions on the labelling of plant-based alternative protein products for years leading up to the ban, claiming that the use of ‘meaty’ terms is confusing and misleading for consumers. However, many plant-based industry players have spoken out against this, including ProVeg International . The company’s global CEO, Jasmijn de Boo, said that the decree is a “hugely disappointing and backward” development, adding: “Consumers are not confused by the use of meaty names for plant-based foods”. She emphasised that the government should be encouraging the consumption of “healthy, climate-friendly and animal-friendly food,” and that France should actively support the plant-based market’s growth through measures such as subsidies, research funding and public procurement contracts for alternative proteins. #Umiami #labelling #meatalternatives #plantbasedmeat #France #ProVegInternational #alternativeproteins

France ban on ‘meaty’ names for plant-based products suspended

France’s Council of State (Conseil d’État) has suspended a decree brought forward by the French government in February, which would ban the use of names like ‘steak’ and ‘ham’ for plant-based products. This latest development marks the second U-turn in attempts to introduce such restrictions, with an original decree published in June 2022 suspended by the Conseil d’État in 2023 over legality concerns. In a statement published yesterday (10 April 2024), the Council affirmed that it has ‘serious doubt’ about the legality of the proposed ban – which was due to come into force at the beginning of May. Prohibited terms included in the February decree include ‘steak,’ ‘escalope’ and ‘tendon’ among others. Companies would face hefty fines of up to €7,500 if found to be in breach of the regulations once implemented. The Council said that the decree would cause ‘serious and immediate harm’ to manufacturers that are exclusively selling plant-based protein products in the country. Specifically, it added that implementing the ban in May would likely lead to a ‘significant drop’ in turnover for these companies. Costs linked to packaging, branding and other marketing strategies would impact manufacturers as a result of the ban alongside a temporary cessation of sales. As part of the proposed law, manufacturers who make their products in other European countries would be able to continue to use ‘meaty’ names to sell their products in France. In a statement offered to The Plant Base in February, French plant-based meat producer Umiami said this would “serve as a setback” to its business and others, placing it “at a disadvantage compared to foreign competitors who aren’t bound by the same standards of transparency and precision”. The Council of State is now awaiting a response from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) regarding the suspension, and whether the ban can go ahead. #Umiami #labelling #meatalternatives #plantbasedmeat #altmeat #France #alternativeproteins

Meatless Farm returns to Tesco with pasta NPD

UK meat alternatives brand Meatless Farm is continuing to roll back out across retail with the launch of a new pasta product, now available at Tesco. The new Chicken and Bacon Tortelloni SKU is filled with a chicken and bacon inspired base and plant-based cheese alternative, seasoned with garlic, salt and pepper. It joins the brand’s other plant-based meat-filled pasta products, which have also launched back into stores following the brand’s acquisition by VFC Foods in June. Other products in the pasta range include No-Duja Ravioli and Beef, Red Wine & Porcini Girasole. The brand is re-launching in Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Ocado, having made its retail return in August alongside the launch of a new pork and apple sausage product. Its plant-based mince has also now returned to Tesco shelves alongside the pasta line-up and its Chickenless Roast Joint. CEO of Meatless Farm and VFC, Dave Sparrow, commented: “Our customers and consumers are our number one priority, and we are delighted to deliver on our commitment of getting the range back on shelf for them, as well as launching NPD that continues to stretch the brand into different consumption occasions”. #meatalternatives #MeatlessFarm #Tesco #UK

Opinion: Ultra-processed panic – Debunking plant-based meat myths

From multi-million-dollar advertising campaigns aiming to convince viewers that plant-based meats are toxic and unhealthy, to misrepresented research findings giving rise to sensationalist headlines about meat alternatives ‘slowly killing’ vegans – the category has faced an onslaught of bad press over the past few years. Melissa Bradshaw, editor of The Plant Base, delves into the discourse around 'ultra-processed' plant-based meat. In recent years, ultra-processed foods (UPFs) have hit the headlines as numerous studies and reports bring awareness to potential health risks associated with this category of food products – a category largely dominated by pre-packaged convenience foods, often high in saturated fat, sugar and salt. The ‘ultra-processed food’ definition was conceived by researchers at the University of São Paulo, Brazil, as part of the ‘NOVA’ system – a classification framework that categorises foods according to their level of processing. It ranges from group one – minimally or unprocessed foods such as fruit, vegetables and unprocessed meat – through to group four: UPFs. The system defines UPFs as foods that have undergone industrial processing and tend to be formulated with a mixture of many ingredients, such as artificial food additives you wouldn’t find in the home kitchen, for enhanced palatability and increased shelf life among other purposes. The UPF category comprises food and beverage products you’d typically expect – calorie-dense foods such as chocolate bars, crisps, biscuits, ice cream and fizzy drinks. It also includes many consumers’ everyday diet staples such as packaged bread, flavoured yogurts and some breakfast cereals. Then, of course, there are ultra-processed meat products like sausages, ham and burgers – and their plant-based counterparts, many of which are created with additives to enable a more realistic imitation of the meat they emulate. But does ultra-processedautomatically equal unhealthy? The issue may not be so clean-cut. In a world that loves to think in extremes, perhaps we could benefit from a more balanced view. Within plant-based, and more broadly, there is no denying the positive health benefits of a nourishing, whole foods-led diet. But not all UPFs are created equal. In studies assessing health risks associated with such foods, many tested UPFs contain high levels of sugar, sodium and saturated fat, while being low in other beneficial nutrients like fibre. We already know the health risks of consuming too many of these foods, and these unbalanced nutritional profiles are likely the main culprit behind negative health outcomes – rather than the processing itself. Additionally, it’s difficult to ignore the important role that food processing plays in preventing food waste. Many of the preservatives added to everyday food items are vital in extending shelf life and preventing spoilage, reducing environmental impact – around 6% of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions are caused by wasted food. UPFs often also provide more convenience than whole foods – particularly for individuals who may lack the time, money, access to ingredients and cooking ability to prepare more ‘healthy’ meals on a daily basis. Alt-meat misinformation So what’s it all got to do with plant-based meat alternatives? Recently, as consumer awareness of UPFs has grown, pro-meat lobbyists have seized the opportunity to criticise plant-based meat substitutes. Many of these substitutes are classified as ultra-processed under the NOVA system, similar to numerous meat, bread and dairy products. Critics use this classification to undermine claims of health or environmental benefits associated with consuming vegan alternatives. The US group Center for Consumer Freedom – an organisation that advocates for the meat industry, funded by anonymous food industry members ‘from farm to fork’ – has launched a series of adverts in recent years targeting ‘fake meat’ and its ‘chemical ingredients,’ with one declaring: “If you can't spell it or pronounce it, maybe you shouldn't be eating it”. This has promoted alt-meat heavyweights like Beyond Meat and Impossible to launch their own advertising campaigns, bringing attention to the positive health and environmental impacts of their products as a replacement for conventional meat. Both companies also had their steak and beef alternatives certified by the American Heart Association’s Heart-Check Food Certification Program, which certifies products based on heart-healthy nutrition requirements. The latest blow to the category has come in the form of a slew of misleading headlines splashed across the mainstream media, reporting on a new study from the University of São Paulo and Imperial College London that was published in the Lancet Regional Health journal last week. The study assesses the impact of UPFs on heart health, finding that they are linked with worse health outcomes and a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. It goes on to reveal that plant-based UPFs are linked with a 7% increase in the risk of cardiovascular diseases, compared with eating unprocessed plant-based foods. However, it classifies ‘plant-derived’ foods as products that don’t fall into the meat, eggs or dairy-based category – and includes foods that may still contain animal-derived ingredients even if not the ‘primary ingredient,’ like biscuits, pastries, confectionery, breakfast cereal, alcohol and salty snacks. Plant-based meat alternatives constitute the smallest food category within the plant-sourced UPF group, accounting for just 0.2% of the foods eaten by the study’s participants. Most of the foods within the plant-sourced UPFs group are consumed regularly by those following an omnivorous diet – not just vegans or vegetarians – and are already widely known to be associated with higher health risks if consumed in excess, many of them being classed as HFSS foods. With this in mind, the study doesn’t offer a huge amount of insight into vegan diets and plant-based meat in particular, instead showing relatively unsurprising findings about UPFs being less healthy than non-UPFs generally. Despite this, the findings have been misrepresented and the study direly misunderstood – headlines across major media outlets have used it to suggest that plant-based meat and ‘vegan diets’ are responsible for the health risks mentioned, rather than the categories taking up the largest share of the plant-sourced UPF group: packaged bread, pastries and cakes, and biscuits. One such headline published in The Telegraph , authored by a dairy farmer, reads: ‘Vegans are slowly killing themselves – there’s nothing healthy about ultra-highly processed fake “meat” products’. Commenting on the study, Hilda Mulrooney, reader in nutrition and health at London Metropolitan University, said: “The study remains limited to showing associations and causality cannot be demonstrated. It also relies entirely on the NOVA classification system and a number of concerns about this have been raised – particularly that it assumes that the health implications of a foodstuff are based only on the degree of processing, rather than their nutritional content.” She continued: “Although some may assume the message of this study is that all ultra-processed plant-based foods are bad for health, I think that in fact what the evidence in the study shows is that poor diets are associated with increased risk of chronic diseases. Too high an intake of any one group of foods is likely to result in imbalance, and I would have far more concern that healthy foods are made more affordable.Consuming lower quality foods is the only option for many people due to cost-of-living pressures.” What do we know about plant-based UPFs? It’s no secret to the food industry that many UPFs do have poorly balanced nutritional profiles and would not be considered ‘healthy’ options. The food industry should make efforts to improve the nutritional profile of these foods and continue to provide cleaner label varieties – while as consumers, we can certainly all work to include more whole foods in our diets and promote healthier lifestyles while keeping consumption of UPFs in moderation. The Imperial study showed that increasing the dietary contribution of plant-based non-UPFs by 10% was associated with a 13% reduction in mortality from all cardiovascular diseases, with a 20% reduction in mortality caused by coronary heart disease. This does demonstrate the benefits of adding more plant-based whole foods to our diets, regardless of where alt-meat plays into the picture. The focus on UPFs is not likely to dissipate any time soon – a recent World Health Organization report has identified UPFs and alcohol as two of the four products responsible for 19 million deaths worldwide each year. In particular, it states that 117,290 deaths per year in Europe are caused by diets high in processed meats and 252,187 by diets high in salt. However, as reported by FoodBev Media last week, food industry organisation FoodDrinkEurope’s science director, Rebeca Fernández, believes that the report – which groups UPFs and alcohol alongside fossil fuels and tobacco – is "highly misleading". She commented: “We all need food – and we all need processed food. Unfortunately, the WHO report does not acknowledge that there is no agreed definition of what ultra-processed foods are, let alone their impact on health, which is why last year the UK Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition and the Nordic Nutrition Guidelines concluded, respectively, that the evidence was insufficient to use UPF terminology to define public health guidelines and that it detracts from well-established food classifications and dietary recommendations.” She instead recommended that the best way to tackle dietary-related diseases is to focus on food’s nutrition content and the regularity of its consumption in conjunction with lifestyle, adding that European F&B producers are making efforts to reformulate products to cut salt, fat and sugars whilst boosting fibre and micronutrients. Elsewhere, a pan-European study published in the Lancet last year, as reported in The Plant Base magazine’s Feb/Mar 2024 issue, found that while higher consumption of UPFs was linked to increased risk of cancer and cardiometabolic comorbidity, this varied depending on the sub-category. It found animal-based products and artificially- and sugar-sweetened beverages to be associated with the highest risk, while plant-based alternatives were not associated with risk, suggesting that we need to approach the UPF category with more nuance – considering overall nutritional profile, instead, when examining the health benefits or risks of food and beverage products. When it comes to plant-based meat in particular, manufacturers and brands are paying attention to the clean label demand, endeavouring to provide tasty, nutritious and sustainable plant-based alternatives that are made with more natural ingredients and minimal processing. Start-ups such as Umiami and Planted are championing this area of development, delivering plant-based meat products that are made with short and simple labels and recognisable ingredients that won’t deter consumers from picking up a plant-based option. And bigger brands, like Beyond, continue to innovate to enhance the nutritional credentials of their offerings. The company’s latest Beyond Burger and Beyond Beef formulation provides 75% less saturated fat than 80/20 beef, 20% less sodium than Beyond’s previous iteration, no GMOs, and 21g of protein per serving, derived from peas, brown rice, lentils and faba beans. The products were the first plant-based meat alternatives to be officially certified by the Clean Label Project, which tests products based on the presence of impurities such as chemicals and heavy metals. Moving forward The food industry as a whole – including the plant-based category – must make conscious efforts to improve the health and nutrition of everyday foods consumed worldwide, encouraging healthier lifestyles and supporting consumers in making more beneficial and sustainable dietary choices. The recent Imperial and São Paulo study sheds light on the fact that we, of course, shouldn’t assume that any food is ‘healthy’ solely because its main ingredients are not of animal origin. Equally, we should consume more whole foods such as fruit, vegetables and grains, feeding our bodies a diverse variety of everything that nourishes it most. Research suggests that we should all be eating 30 different plant types every week for a healthy and diverse gut microbiome, as explored in the recent Netflix documentary 'Hack your Health: The Secrets of your Gut.' This includes fruit and vegetables as well as herbs, spices, pulses, nuts and seeds. In time, perhaps we will see a revised definition of an ultra-processed food, alongside further research into the effects of the processing itself. Until then, we can all make efforts to be more mindful of what we consume – with regards not just to food, but to the information we read about it.

Mondi and Traceless partner to develop plant-based coating from agricultural waste

Sustainable packaging company Mondi has partnered with advanced biomaterial engineers Traceless to develop a groundbreaking bio-circular coating solution based on agricultural byproducts. The new coating is the first of its kind, offering a plastic-free alternative that meets the growing consumer demand for more sustainable packaging options. Made from renewable plant-based materials, including residues from the agricultural industry, the coating eliminates the need for fossil raw materials. According to a life-cycle assessment by Traceless, the new coating can achieve greenhouse gas emissions savings of up to 95% compared to virgin plastics, across the production and disposal phases.hich began in 2021, combines Mondi's expertise in paper coating and packaging solution The collaboration between Mondi and Traceless, ws with Traceless' knowledge of developing material solutions based on natural polymers. The coating granulates are currently produced in Traceless' pilot plant and applied to Mondi's kraft paper at the company's R&D centre for further testing. Future large-scale production is planned at a designated facility in Hamburg, Germany. Extensive trials have confirmed that the kraft paper coated with Traceless' bio-based material can provide barrier properties against water, oxygen and fats, while also offering good printability – crucial features for a wide range of packaging applications, from ecommerce to frozen and fatty foods. "We are always looking at what the next steps are in creating truly circular packaging, following our customers' demands as well as our own innovative spirit," said Marko Schuster, COO of Mondi's Functional Paper and Films division. "This is a fantastic example of how we can combine our R&D forces to be one step ahead in the sustainable packaging game, contributing to a circular economy." Anne Lamp, CEO and co-founder of Traceless, added: "Our mission is to make pollution and waste history by using materials that impact positively. The goal is to create a truly fit-for-purpose product, that works for as wide a range of applications and industries as possible." The companies aim to further optimise the properties of the bio-based coating to make it suitable for a variety of packaging applications across different end markets while ensuring recyclability within existing European recycling streams. #Mondi #Traceless #sustinablepackaging #frozenfoods #fats

Bunge expands plant protein offerings with pea and faba concentrates

Bunge is expanding its portfolio to include pea and faba protein concentrates, in a move to meet rising demand for alternative plant-based proteins beyond soy. Bunge is collaborating with Golden Fields, an agricultural company and dry miller of pea and faba based in Europe, to produce the protein concentrates exclusively for Bunge at a new factory in Liepaja, Latvia. The new pea and faba protein concentrates will complement Bunge's leading soy protein concentrate offerings. The products are non-GMO, light in colour, finely powdered and deliver 55-70% protein content on a dry basis, allowing food and feed customers to easily enhance protein content and support non-GMO and allergen-free labelling. Bunge says the new concentrates also bring sustainability benefits as they are made from crops farmed through crop-rotation practices and extracted via dry-fractionation without using water or solvents. #plantprotein #fava #pea #plantbased #Bunge

Mycorena scraps new factory project, focuses on pivoted growth plan

Swedish food-tech Mycorena, a developer of mycoprotein ingredients, has discontinued its large-scale factory project to focus on a new pivoted growth plan. The company, which has been active in the mycoprotein market since 2017, had been planning to build a large-scale production plant capable of producing thousands of tons of mycoprotein ingredients for the plant-based sector. In a statement announcing the decision, Mycorena explained that while it has attracted over €35 million in funding, it has faced challenges due to ‘changing market conditions and an unfavourable investment climate’. The company added that despite a €24 million Series A round in early 2022, it failed to raise funding for its Series B round in 2023 due to a lack of investor interest in the capital expenditure project within food-tech, and the ‘slow-moving market interest’ toward the mycoprotein segment. The scale-up factory, designed in collaboration with Tetra Pak, aimed to achieve a total production volume of up to 100,000 tons in multiple stages, with an initial production capacity of 5,000 tons by the end of 2023. Having discontinued the project, Mycorena said it will now redirect its focus to its core operations at its demo facility in Gothernberg, Sweden. It envisions its production scale-up journey to be more focused on a circular upcycling production model, unlocking the potential of co-location with industry partners. "We still have strong confidence in the potential of fungi and mycoprotein's impact on the food system. However, given the current investor climate and geopolitical situations, we must pause our scale-up journey." Ramkumar Nair, founder and CEO at Mycorena, commented: “The scale-up factory was conceived during the market peak. Now, with the market decline, we can't meet expectations on cost competitiveness from the industry.” He added: “In addition, most of our key partners have also slowed their growth plans due to the changing market environment, adding more uncertainty to the scale-up project”. Nair explained that while the start-up successfully scaled its Promyc ingredient, as well as other ingredients beyond mycoprotein – such as its fungi-based fat, Mycolein – the company believes its scale-up project suffered a case of ‘wrong timing,’ with market sentiments changing ‘drastically’. Mycorena is now pivoting from a pure B2B ingredient sales model to a more B2B2C approach. Ebba Fröling, co-founder and COO at Mycorena, described the challenge it faced of a “constant catch-22 situation where investors demand binding purchase contracts to invest in capex, while food companies won’t commit without a proven large-scale production”. She added: “After almost 24 months of efforts, we’ve concluded that the industry isn’t ready yet for big bets on mycoprotein or fermentation-related products. Therefore, we’re taking a step back to focus on our core operations and reinforce the interest in mycoprotein products before scaling up further.” Mycorena’s revised business plan will maximise production capacity at its existing Gothenburg site, supporting existing and new partnerships. It plans to venture into foodservice and private label sectors, focusing primarily on the Nordic market, where consumption of mycoprotein is high combined with strong demand for locally produced alternatives. The facility in Gothenburg has the potential to produce mycoprotein ingredients capable of supplying up to 500 tons of end-consumer products, planned to be rolled out during 2025. Co-founder and CEO Nair concluded: “We still have strong confidence in the potential of fungi and mycoprotein's impact on the food system. However, given the current investor climate and geopolitical situations, we must pause our scale-up journey. We will also focus on our core competence of working with industry side-streams, to build a co-location-based scale-up production model for the future roll-out.” #Mycorena #Sweden

World Plant-Based Taste Awards 2021: Winners Revealed!

On Friday afternoon, the winners and finalists in FoodBev’s inaugural World Plant-Based Taste Awards were announced, in association with Plant Based World Expo Europe ! During Plant Based World Expo Europe , the finalists of six live categories were judged blind for a second time by a hand-picked panel of judges – Heather Mills , Richard Fox & Deiniol Pritchard . The judges tasted and scored each finalist on taste, texture, appearance and likeness. The six live categories were; Best faux meat burger, Best faux meat sausage, Best cheese alternative, Best faux chicken product, Best faux fish / seafood, and Best faux bacon product. The winners of these six, and all of the categories were then revealed in the first ever World Plant-Based Taste Awards ceremony, hosted at the Finnebrogue stand, by FoodBev Media marketing manager, Matthew Rushton and awards marketing executive, Jonathan McGowan . A full list of winners and finalists in each category follows below. Best beverage WINNER Friendly Viking – Latte Oat drink FLAX & KALE – Kombucha Dragon Lemonade Bodyhero Plant Protein Shake – Rich Chocolate [LIVE] Best cheese alternative sponsored by MANE WINNER Honestly Tasty – Veganzola Les Nouveaux Affineurs – L’Affiné d’Albert Honestly Tasty – Shamembert Best chilled dessert/ice cream WINNER Chateau Dessert – Vegan & Gluten free chocolate cheese cake Rethink Foods – Pink Albatross Mango & Passion fruit Beau’s Gelato – Raspberry Gelato Best convenience/ready to eat product WINNER Verdino UK Ltd – Plant-Based Pepperoni Pizza Eat Just Inc. – Just Egg Sous Vide Lidl US – Vegan California Burger Best dairy alternative WINNER Bear Paw – Pumpkin Spiced Coffee Creamer Friendly Viking – Greek Style O’gurt Mango Kitchen Circus – Organic Alphonso Mango Yoghurt Best egg alternative WINNER OGGS – scrambled OGGS NABATI – Plant Eggz Eat Just Inc. – Just Egg Sous Vide Best faux analogue meat product WINNER Lidl US – Vermondo Classic Vegan Meatballs Dawn Farms – Plant Deli Jackfruit Vegeroni Omni Foods – OmniPork Luncheon [LIVE] Best faux bacon product WINNER La Vie – Plant based Bacon Dawn Farms – Plant Deli Crispy Bakun Slices Finnebrogue – Artisan Naked Without the Oink Bacon [LIVE] Best faux chicken product WINNER planted.chicken – Lemon & Herbs Quorn Foods – Roarsomes This – This Isn’t Chicken Pieces [LIVE] Best faux fish/seafood product WINNER Seabloom – Tuna Free Flakes – Lemon Omni Foods – Omni Golden Fillet Finnebrogue – Artisan Naked without the Splash No Fish Goujons [LIVE] Best faux meat burger WINNER Beyond Meat – Beyond Burger Biffs – The Biffburger Future Farm – Future Burger 2030 [LIVE] Best faux meat sausage WINNER Verdino – Plant-Based Merguez Sausage Kitchen Circus – Tofu Hot Dogs Beyond Meat – Beyond Sausage Best pie / pastry WINNER Clive’s Purely Plants – Organic Beefy Ale Puff Pie Higgidy Ltd – Spinach & Roasted Tomato Vegan Quiche Best sauce / store cupboard product WINNER RightRice – Risotto Lidl US – Red Lentil Spaghetti Lidl US – Chickpea Fusilli Best savoury snack WINNER Cauliflower Nudie snacks – Crisps SnackIT – Plant-Based Snack Original Lidl US – Organic Roasted Garlic Hummus Best soy-based/fermented product WINNER Kitchen Circus – Sweet Chilli Barbecue Tofu FLAX & KALE – It’s Plant-Based Creamy LIDL US – Organic Firm Tofu Best sweet snack, biscuit or confectionery WINNER Stroop Club – Vegan Stroopwafels Chicago Vegan Foods – Dandies Marshmallows Greenback Plant Protein Bar – Hazelnut About The World Plant-Based Taste Awards The World Plant-Based Taste Awards , in association with Plant Based World Europe Conference & Expo , are a celebration of taste across many categories of the global plant-based industry. As one of the first of its kind in this sector, these awards are a fantastic way for you to enhance the promotion of your plant-based brand and to ensure it gains global recognition. Being named ‘winner’ or ‘finalist’ provides a hallmark of success that will prevail long after the awards ceremony and can highlight the contribution your company’s products and team are making to the plant-based industry. About FoodBev Media Established in 2000, FoodBev Media is the food and beverage industry’s leading media and communication business. With a portfolio of international magazines, the website www.foodbev.com and the industry’s largest social media network, FoodBev Media ensures you are continuously kept up to date with the latest trends and innovations. Since 2003, FoodBev Media has gained a reputation for organising successful international awards schemes in the food, beverage and dairy industries. For more information about our selection of awards programmes, please visit www.foodbev.com/awards/ or email awards@foodbev.com. #Winners #WorldPlantBasedTasteAwards #WorldPlantBasedTasteAwards2021 #PlantBasedWorldExpo #finalists #awards #plantbased