New data from Tesco suggests that people following a plant-based diet are diversifying their tastes by moving into scratch cooking.
Following a slight dip in the market last year, the supermarket claims that the plant-based food revolution is moving into its second phase, with rising volume demand for meat-free ingredients and whole cuts.
For example, sales of fish alternatives are up by 100% versus last year over the last three months, Tofu and Tempeh grew by around 20%, while plant-based steaks and chicken breasts also increased by 20%
One of the biggest recent successes at Tesco has been the launch earlier this year of upmarket meat-free steak Juicy Marbles, which claims to replicate the taste and texture of beef steaks. Demand was so strong in the lead-up to Valentine’s Day that the retailer sold 100,000 meat-free steaks – an unprecedented number for that occasion.
“Plant-based food has been the biggest culinary trend so far this century and attracted interest from vegans, vegetarians and meat-eaters alike who were curious as to what the fuss was all about,” said Tesco Plant-Based Food Buyer Cate May.
“That initial level of interest was inevitably going to drop off slightly but what we are seeing is phase two of that revolution with flexitarians now wanting to take more control over what they eat, whilst continuing to reduce their meat intake. These latest sales figures show they’re doing that by cooking from scratch.
“Customers are starting to understand the versatility of plant-based ingredients and whole cuts, and are creating a wide variety of meals such as tofu stir-fries, meat-free curries using chicken alternatives or beans and pulses, and classic steak and chips using plant-based steaks.
“Awareness is also starting to increase around the health benefits of making some simple swaps in their diet, for example, to reduce saturated fat whilst maintaining strong levels of protein by increasing the amount of plants and plant-based foods in their diets and then supplementing with more fresh veg.”
NAM Implications:
- Whatever one’s personal taste, unwise to ignore.
- 100,000 meat-free steaks sold in the run-up to Valentine’s Day.
- A category that attracts vegans, vegetarians and ‘simply curious’ meat-eaters.
- Continue to watch this space…
