Danish innovation to replace beef

In the UK, more than one evening meal out of four is now either vegetarian or vegan. The British have developed an almost insatiable appetite for plant-based food. Danish owned Naturli’ Foods is launching its 100 per cent vegetable-based fresh mince in the UK. Naturli’ Minced can replace minced beef, and will be in the meat counters beside the minced beef.

The world’s current population of seven billion is expected to reach ten billion in 2050, and that is simply too many mouths to feed. Many British people are concerned about nature, the environment and their own health. More than a quarter (28 per cent) said last year that they had cut down on meat in the last six months[1]. Meat is no longer served on the dinner table every day: the British population now eats only half the quantities of beef and veal that were eaten in 1975[2].

A food revolution is under way in the UK, and the new product on the British market from Naturli’ Foods is a worldwide first in 100 per cent plant-based fresh mince. It can take its place in cold counters beside minced beef and simply replace it directly in any recipe, from burgers to chilli sin carne and meat sauce for spaghetti “Bolognese” and lasagne.

The new vegetarian mince will be in cold counters in 400 Sainsbury shops from 27 June. 

Strong demand in Britain

James Hamilton, Meat-Free and Ready Meals Buyer at Sainsbury’s, says: “We are seeing an increasing interest from our customers in plant-based foods, with sales of our current meat-free range growing 20% each week. We’re always exploring new ways to offer even greater choice, quality and value and our new Naturli' mince and burgers are a brilliant example. These are our most authentic meat alternatives yet and for this reason we plan to stock them with our mince and burgers. We’re looking forward to hearing what our customers think when the products launch later this month.”

Naturli’ Minced was introduced to the Danes at the beginning of 2018. It sold so fast that shops had difficulty keeping cold counters re-stocked. Since then, 121,000 kilos have been consumed, and Henrik Lund, CEO of Naturli’ Foods, also expects a strong demand in the UK.

“We are experiencing this overwhelming demand because this is indeed a food innovation. This is the first time consumers can buy a 100 per cent plant-based mince product that looks and tastes like minced beef, can replace minced beef in all recipes, and can be found in the cold counter next to traditional meat.”

“Great potential” – the Vegan Society

The Vegan Society is expecting great things when the product is introduced on the British market.

The Vegan Society’s Trademark Team: “We are delighted that the product will be carrying our internationally recognised Vegan Trademark. With increasing interest in meat alternatives that mimic the appearance and texture of meat, it is sure to be a hit in the UK market and beyond. It has great potential to help people make the transition to a vegan diet, being of a similar consistency, availability and price to meat.”

The society expects the change in British eating culture will continue to a very large degree.

The Vegan Society’s Trademark Team: “We have seen exponential growth in the number of people interested in the vegan lifestyle and expect this to continue for many years to come. This interest has led to significant change in people’s buying habits as they become aware of the how a plant-based diet can significantly reduce your carbon footprint.”

More environment friendly packaging

Just as plant-based mince has a significantly lower CO2 impact on the environment than beef, the packaging makes a reduced impact too. It is made of at least 50 per cent recycled plastic.

Naturli’ Foods expect to sell half a million packs of Naturli’ Minced in the first year in the UK. The price will be comparable to that of minced beef.

Some facts:

• Naturli’ Minced is 100% plant based
• It looks like fresh minced beef
• It has the same colour as fresh minced beef
• It tastes like fresh minced beef
• Its texture is the same as fresh minced beef
• It will be placed beside minced beef in the cold counter
• It can be used to make spaghetti “Bolognese”, chilli sin carne, burgers, lasagne, and all recipes that normally call for minced beef
• The price is about the same as for minced beef
• It has been developed and is produced in Denmark
• Its environmental impact is minimised – for both content and packaging
• The packaging is made of at least 50 per cent recycled plastic

Content: 100 per cent plant based and hence vegan friendly: 

• Texture and protein from soya and wheat protein
• The fat is from coconuts
• The umami flavour comes from almonds, tomatoes and porcini mushrooms
• The colour comes from beetroot

Press photos – for unrestricted use:

Photo 1: The new vegetarian mince from Naturli’ Foods will be in cold counters in 400 Sainsbury shops from 27 June. 

Photo 2: A food revolution is under way in the UK, and a new food product is being introduced: Naturli’ Minced, is 100% plant based and can be used as a replacement for minced beef.

[1]  http://www.mintel.com/press-centre/food-and-drink/28-of-brits-have-cut-back-their-meat-consumption-over-the-last-six-months 

[2]  https://www.livekindly.co/people-in-the-uk-are-now-eating-50-percent-less-beef/

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