​Focus On Plant-Based Food & Drink: 7 November

Focus On Plant-Based Food & Drink, by Julia Glotz (julia@juliaglotz.com) 

Publishing: 7 November

Advertising deadline: 23 October

Download the synopsis

Submissions deadline: 21 Oct

The story

Plant-based food & drink was once dominated by products made from soya protein. That’s changing. In milk alternatives, sales of oat-based products are growing fast. Pea, hemp and barley-based products are also on the rise in categories such as milk, yoghurt, cheese, milk and meat alternatives. What’s driving this change? What are the advantages and disadvantages of the different protein sources in terms of taste, texture and cost? Which are most/least sustainable? Are certain kinds of plant-based protein easier to process?

Key themes

Protein sources: This feature will give an overview of the main protein sources used in plant-based food and drink, exploring the key benefits and disadvantages of each, where they generally come from and how use of each protein is changing. What will be the protein source of the future?

‘Milk’: Nut milks now outsell soya milks in Britain, with almond and coconut being two of the most popular. What is it about these ingredients that make them so popular? And with concerns about the environmental toll almonds takes on the planet, what are producers doing to clean up their act?

‘Cheese’: Cheese has been called the next frontier in plant-based food & drink. Why have cheese alternatives not taken off in this country yet. Who’s pushing this market and what raw materials are they using?

‘Yoghurt’ & desserts: Coconut-based products have long dominated the dairy-free yoghurt and desserts category. Why? What other protein sources are manufacturers using and why? Will coconut continue to dominate?

Meat alternatives: As meat alternative brands move away from soy as their main protein source, what other protein sources are being used and are they any better?

Milk alternative innovations: we will profile four new products or ranges that have ideally not appeared in The Grocer before. We need launch date, rsp, and a hi-res picture of each.

Cheese alternative innovations: we will profile four new products or ranges that have ideally not appeared in The Grocer before. We need launch date, rsp, and a hi-res picture of each.

Yoghurt alternative innovations: we will profile four new products or ranges that have ideally not appeared in The Grocer before. We need launch date, rsp, and a hi-res picture of each.

Meat alternative innovations: we will profile four new products or ranges that have ideally not appeared in The Grocer before. We need launch date, rsp, and a hi-res picture of each.