The findings will be based on 40 products currently being tested by a few hundred consumers in Singapore – a demographically diverse market that reflects taste preferences across Asia Pacific.
The study aims to accelerate the shift to alternative proteins by prioritising taste, said NECTAR, a San Francisco-based non-profit under climate philanthropy Food System Innovations (FSI).
What are blended proteins?
Blended proteins – or ‘balanced proteins’ as NECTAR calls them – are made by combining conventional animal meat with a significant portion of plant-based ingredients. The aim is to reduce environmental impact and improve nutrition without compromising taste.
They are a subset of alternative proteins – a broader category that includes plant-based meat, cultivated meat (grown from animal cells), and proteins from fungi (eg mycoprotein), algae, or insects.
Potential for blended protein to surpass animal meat
NECTAR conducted the same study – Future of the Industry: Balanced Proteins – in the US last year and found that consumers preferred some of the blended protein products over traditional animal ones during blind taste tests.
The categories tested included nuggets, patties, and burgers.
Researchers analysed data from sensory panels with 1,192 omnivores across nine balanced protein categories.
Participants rated both balanced proteins and animal meat on a 7-point scale — with balanced burgers and nuggets scoring 5.6 and 5.5 points respectively, compared to 4.9 and 5.1 for their animal-based counterparts.
NECTAR Director Caroline Cotto is hopeful that the Asian results will yield a similar positive outlook for blended proteins.
“We had multiple burgers, for instance, that were half meat, half mushroom, and they outperformed the 100% beef burgers in taste,” said Cotto.
“We are hopeful the Singaporean study will reveal similar findings – with several blended products outperforming animal-based ones in taste. That would give us strong supporting data to launch more of these products into the market, where there’s clear demand.”
These findings signal optimism but also reveal where alt-proteins still fall short of consumer expectations.
Areas of improvement for alt protein based on study results
In terms of flavour, key complaints included an off-putting aftertaste, excessive vegetable or soy flavours, and overall blandness.
Top areas for improvement were: enhancing meat flavour, savouriness, fatty notes, and introducing more buttery and smoky profiles.
For texture, the feedback was to reduce mushiness and increase juiciness, firmness, and cohesion.
Overall, animal protein ranks top in terms of overall liking, followed by balanced proteins with plant-based alternatives faring the worst – it is therefore unsurprising that balanced proteins offer a good middle ground.
The research findings will help brands – especially smaller ones that cannot afford large scale testing – by offering a detailed R&D roadmap, said Cotto.
NECTAR has also begun testing dairy alternatives across 10 categories in the US, including milk, ice cream, butter, and yoghurt.
“This is the first time we’re doing something outside of meat analogues,” said Cotto. “We want to see if plant-based milk, which already enjoys broader market adoption, also performs well in terms of taste.”
If successful, NECTAR hopes to replicate the study in Asia.
It also plans to explore new testing areas such as plant-based egg replacers, with a focus on functionality in emulsification, gelation, and foaming.
The organisation aims to publish one Taste of the Industry report yearly. Between these annual reports, it does smaller reports on more emerging technologies and categories – such as the Future of the Industry Report 2025, which is ongoing for the APAC region.
Future of the Industry 2025: Balanced Proteins APAC
In its ongoing Future of the Industry 2025: Balanced Proteins APAC study, NECTAR is evaluating blended products made with ingredients such as high-moisture extruded soy, pea protein, shiitake mushroom, jackfruit, and mycoprotein.
This is also the first time the organisation is including seafood analogues, such as blended tuna.
Test categories include chunks/cuts (e.g. chicken, tuna), mince (served in dumplings to reflect local culinary context), meatballs, patties, nuggets, and tenders.
The full findings are expected to be unveiled in early November to coincide with Singapore International Agri-Food Week (SIAW).
To encourage participation in its sensory studies, NECTAR offers brands a comprehensive value exchange.
In the US, participating companies provide samples for testing with 100 consumers and, in return, receive overall liking scores that benchmark their products against category averages, leading products, and conventional animal-based equivalents.
Notably, for the Singapore study, brands can participate free of charge.
“Because we’re conducting this in partnership with the Good Food Institute APAC, all of this is free,” said Cotto. “We’re providing the full dataset to participating brands at no cost.” said Cotto.
Also tune into Climate Smart Food – William Reed’s first carbon neutral broadcast series, which will also shed light on important topics for CPG companies and include expert speakers from the likes of Heineken and Kraft Heinz.
