Meat substitutes are blowing up 25% to the tune of $20.7 billion
We’ve known about plant-based foods since 1970 when Tofurky was “born” and college students everywhere returned from school as newly empowered vegetarians.
Fast forward to 2021, with the global meat substitutes sector at a whopping $20.7 billion, I guess fake orders from the president aren’t the only thing red meat needs to worry about.
Who’s bringing home all that vegan bacon?
- Grocery retail: Sales of plant-based foods outpaced total food sales by 2.5x from 2018 to 2020 and hit a household penetration of 57%.
- eCommerce: Finding all of your favorite soon-to-be-conventional plant-based goodies doesn’t mean haggling at farmer’s markets. Amazon’s online grocery sales were up to $45.9 billion in Q2 last year, and could increase to $70 billion by 2023.
- Prepared meals and kits: Sales of plant-based meals grew 25% over the past two years. Most meal kit brands now include a plant-based offering to stay competitive, and big players like Amazon are getting in on the action. Gotta stay fresh, am I right?
- Restaurants: The restaurant landscape is evolving. Every neighborhood has a new vegan restaurant that is “surprisingly good.” Or you can always check out your nearest fast food chain like Taco Bell, who is really going “above and Beyond…”
And that’s only the beginning. Soon, everything will be plant-based, everywhere you look…okay, not everything. But here’s what’s next in line:
- Fish (see, it’s coming full circle): Forbes and Delish predict that 2021 will be the year for replacing seafood aka “chicken of the sea.” Some brands like Good Catch and Sophie’s Kitchen already have products in the market, and we’re betting there will be many more to come.
- Eggs: Though it’s the least developed plant-based segment, eggs are the fastest growing category (in 2019 US sales increased 192%!). It even managed to poach sales from conventional eggs, which dropped 10% in the same year. Is this the door? I’ll see myself out.
Now more than ever, it’s impossible to move into any sort of food endeavor without considering how a plant-based offering fits in. It’s safe to say plant-based eating is putting some roots down.
In conclusion, it’s like I’ve always said: One if by land, two if by sea…also, plants.
