Nissin has committed to further product development plans for instant noodles using alternative proteins, after a first launch featuring plant-based ‘eel’ was well received in Japan.
Price premiums, unsatisfactory taste, and a persistent perception of over-processed products are the most common barriers to plant-based meat consumption in Asian markets.
Singapore start-up Hegg has launched its eggless Japanese mayonnaise in the domestic market and is looking to capitalise on growth opportunities across Asia with ‘localised flavours.’
Plant-based, better-for-you alternatives, and functional snacks dominate the latest accelerator cohort in Australia led by a Woolworths-backed accelerator.
NZ-based Off-Piste Provisions has outlined how consumer demands for healthy convenience food and a ‘chewing experience’ are key drivers guiding its product development strategy amidst plans for Australia and United States expansion.
The sports performance-enhancing properties of tempeh should be further explored for application in functional foods such as sports drinks, say researchers.
Singapore start-up Jungle Kitchen is targeting growing interest in sustainable eating and indigenous ingredients, with ambitions to bring its vegan ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook products beyond Asia.
The China plant-based sector has lost ‘some of its hype’ and is far from a ‘quick win’, claims one of the category’s pioneers in the country, which has recently announced a significant new distribution deal.
Chinese firm Haofood says that the convergence of right ingredients with its proprietary tech was key to creating its first clean-label plant-based product - Carefree Pulled Chickless.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has assured food firms dealing in ‘vegan by default’ products that they do not need to have the new national vegan logo displayed on their products and need not undergo the certification process...
Taiwan’s largest plant-based food manufacturers claim consumers are increasingly adopting vegetarian diets for sustainability and health reasons, as opposed to religious factors, and say that recent government policies are helping propel further growth.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has told food bosses to check if they sell ‘vegan ghee’ or ‘vegan butter’ products, calling branding that contains dairy terminology ‘misleading’.
Nutrient quality in plant-based beverages should be considered on a par with sustainability credentials, researchers say as they assessed the quality as well as quantity of micronutrients in common plant-based drinks.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority India (FSSAI) has specified supply chain traceability up to the manufacturer level as a key criterion for food firms manufacturing vegan products to obtain the relevant regulatory permissions.
Innovating at both ends of the price spectrum can fuel Asia’s booming plant-based sector for the long term, say regional experts, who believe that the sector is now at the tipping point of achieving sustained mainstream success.
Experts say that plant-based chocolate needs to overcome taste challenges and offer localised products if it is to achieve significant growth in APAC, especially with potential labelling and regulatory hurdles looming on the horizon.
A new vegan supplement brand from India is seeking to tackle health categories that it believes have so far been overlooked, such as the lack of vegan offerings for liver and lung health.
Upfield is launching its plant-based cheese brand Violife into the Middle East, following the introduction of its Flora spread last year, with Asia markets set to follow suit.
Hygiene standards, at-home experiences and the vegan and healthy trend are expected to form the post-pandemic future of the food and beverage industry in two of the world’s largest economies, China and India.
India energy bar brand Happy Bars will soon be launching a protein bar, followed by a vegan bar later down the road, as it seeks to cater to the rising demand for active nutrition and vegan products in the country.
As the pandemic continues to upend life, the products that will stand out next year will be those that address the consumer’s need for comfort, immunity and mental health, according to Saage Insights 2021 Trend Report.
India’s vegan supplement firm Unived has launched wholly plant-based multivitamins and vitamin B complex capsules to tackle what it believes was a major gap in the local market.
Snacking – a familiar term that used to represent the habit of junking between meals – is today part of the millennials lifestyle. Noorul Malik, savvy millennial and marketing & communications executive, APAC, SGK Global, looks at how urbanisation,...
Japanese start-up True Food & Design is developing a healthy, natural, vegan chocolate product that contains zero sugar, sugar alcohol and artificial sweeteners.
In the very first episode of our new Food and Beverage Trailblazers podcast, we speak to vegan start-up founder and angel investor Simon Newstead about his mission to both lower the prices of vegan products worldwide, as well as to help put more vegan...
Vegan start-up Bite Society has just launched its first chocolate products into APAC, and has revealed plans for further portfolio and geographical expansions, as well as a focus on competitive pricing for its products.
Yeast extract specialist firm Angel Yeast has identified clean label, sodium reduction and rising demand for vegan/vegetarian foods as three mega trends driving the rapid rise of yeast extract popularity as a flavouring replacement worldwide.
Vegetarian and pescetarian diets are linked to a lower risk of coronary heart disease (CHD), but vegetarians and vegans may have higher risk of stroke than meat eaters, suggests a study published in the BMJ, which claims this may reflect low blood levels...
Jealous Sweets, a London-based vegan confectionery business, has grown its international footprint and doubled its turnover, after securing a working capital facility from Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking.
Manufacturers will need to explain why plant-based yogurt are priced higher than animal-based yogurt when selling in China due to a lack of consumers’ understanding, according to insights from Nongfu Spring.
Australian supermarket giants Woolworths and Coles both have an eye on expansion into the vegan market this year in order to cope with increasing demand.
Singapore plant-based review platform abillionVeg started as a review engine for users to review dishes in food outlets, but now has its eye on the packaged foods arena.
UAE-based Organic&Real.com (O&R) may have only just launched, but its boss is already aiming for it to become the biggest online marketplace for certified organic and natural, vegan, gluten-free and free-from healthy food products.
Why will cellular agriculture succeed? “Because people don’t want to stop eating meat, they just have an issue with the process beforehand,” says the founder and president of the Cellular Agriculture Society (CAS).
