The firm is positioning its “East meets West” strategy as key to staying relevant, according to Tee Yih Jia’s Assistant Business Development Manager Tan Wei Xun. This is crucial as the plant-based sector is facing headwinds in general.
ALTN is Tee Yih Jia’s plant-based brand, which offers ready-to-cook frozen, plant-based convenience foods.
“Since the launch of ALTN in the turn of the decade, numerous brands have come and gone with more than 10 different plant-based brands in retail shelf space at its peak [locally]. However, in the competitive “survival of the fittest” retail landscape, time and our track record has proven that product quality still wins customers over,” Tan told FoodNavigator.
The plant-based sector has experienced slower traction in recent years. Major players like Beyond Meat saw a decline in net revenue in Q1 2025; Quorn, owned by Philippines-based Monde Nissin Corporation, recorded a 5.8% sales decline over the same period.
“While we are seeing the exit of Plant-Based brands locally, Tee Yih Jia continues to launch new plant-based products in the market – Spaghetti Bolognese & BBQ Buns in 2024, and Fish Fillet in 2025. This highlights the acceptance of our products and attests to the product quality we always vouch for,” said Tan.
A mix of meat-free Asian cuisine and Western staples
One of the firm’s key strategies to differentiate ALTN from the crowded market space is to offer meat-free Asian favourites – these include dim sum, spring roll, and paratha.
This variety of Asian and Western offerings is what drives growth, said Tan.
“Our direction for ALTN remains unchanged in delivering East meets West recipes, and to develop plant-based alternatives of all-time favourite products,” Tan told FoodNavigator.
“Our targets for ALTN are both domestic and abroad, this is telling in our R&D and new product development process for ALTN where we came up with a plethora of recipes from the East to the West. ALTN offers a culturally diverse range of flavours and alternatives to fit different cultural palates and lifestyle choices – vegan, vegetarian or anyone who wants to experience a new dimension in flavour. For example, we carry Asian Finger Foods like Shaomai, BBQ Bun and Gyoza coupled with Western ready-to-eat meals such as Lasagne and Spaghetti Bolognese.”
With a global footprint in 80 countries, the Singapore heritage brand leverages its extensive network to gather feedback on consumer needs.
“With regular feedback and input from our extensive network of distributors and strategic agents globally, we are on a continuous journey to refine the formulation and recipe for not just ALTN, but all Tee Yih Jia products to appeal to evolving trends and consumers from different cultures and backgrounds,” Tan said.
He added that a good eating experience is key to making plant-based foods attractive.
‘Vegetarian is not the same as plant-based’
Like its parent company, ALTN focuses on frozen ready-to-eat formats prioritising convenience.
“Aside from the convenience that comes with frozen snacks and meals, taste and texture remain the top priority for ALTN. Through endless rounds of product development, we have achieved the closest possible flavour profile to the real thing as far as taste and texture goes. To us, plant-based products are not equivalent to vegetarian food,” said Tan.
While vegetarian diets exclude meat, they may still include high-sodium and ultra-processed foods, whereas plant-based diets typically emphasise whole ingredients.
According to the National Kidney Foundation, vegetarian diets may include high sodium and ultra-processed foods such as chips and cookies, while plant-based diets focus on whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.
Australian researchers also confirmed that people eating diets that emphasise refined grains, potatoes, high-sodium preserved vegetables, fried goods, sweets, juices, and sweetened beverages experienced higher risk of coronary heart diseases and mortality.
Tee Yih Jia is aware that it should keep health-forward formulations top-of-mind.
ALTN products use a blend of plant proteins including soy, pea and fungi.
“We aim to use clean ingredients as much as possible and achieve the flavours and aroma through extracting the goodness of natural sources,” said Tan.
“There are niche segments with growth potential such as high protein, low sugar and low sodium. Though a dedicated brand or format is not currently in the works, these product attributes are heavily considered in the new product development process undertaken by our R&D team across TYJ’s portfolio of brands besides ALTN.”
