Tag: Retail

Lidl Netherlands Sets the Standard for Plant-Based Retail

Written by Benjamin Davis on April 17, 2025. Posted in Global Marketplace, Retail.

As plant-based eating continues its rise across Europe, one retailer is making bold moves to ensure the future of food is more sustainable, accessible, and delicious. Lidl Netherlands is proving that plant-based foods are not just a trend—they are the future of grocery retail.

From reformulating plant-based products to improve taste and nutrition, to permanently lowering prices and introducing hybrid meat products with pea protein, Lidl is rewriting the playbook on how retailers can drive plant-based adoption. Most notably, Lidl has set an ambitious target: by 2030, at least 60% of the proteins it sells will be plant-based.

A Commitment to Quality: Reformulated Meat Alternatives

Lidl has taken a strategic approach to improving its plant-based range, focusing not just on availability but on enhancing taste, texture, and nutritional value.

“We wanted to offer the best range of meat substitutes in the Netherlands. In total, we spent over a year developing the optimal recipe for each meat substitute,” said Gijs Regtuit, Buyer at Lidl Netherlands, in a LinkedIn post by V-Label.

This dedication to R&D ensures that plant-based options aren’t just an alternative but a true competitor to traditional meat products. For food buyers and category managers, this move signals a clear shift: consumers expect higher-quality plant-based products, and retailers that invest in improvement will reap the rewards.

Lower Prices, Higher Adoption

One of the biggest barriers to plant-based food adoption has long been price parity with animal-based products. Lidl is tackling this issue head-on by permanently lowering the prices of plant-based alternatives, ensuring that cost is no longer a deterrent for customers making more sustainable food choices.

For retail and foodservice buyers, this pricing shift is a game-changer. If a major retailer like Lidl can offer plant-based products at a more affordable price point, competitors will have to follow suit—or risk losing market share to a growing consumer base that prioritizes sustainability.

Blended Proteins: A Bridge for Meat Eaters

In addition to expanding its fully plant-based range, Lidl has introduced pea protein-based blended meat products, designed to appeal to flexitarian shoppers who aren’t ready to give up meat entirely but want to reduce their consumption.

This hybrid approach recognizes that consumers don’t always switch overnight, and offering incremental shifts can accelerate the transition to a more plant-forward diet. For manufacturers and foodservice providers, this trend toward “balanced proteins” represents an enormous opportunity to develop products that cater to a broad spectrum of dietary preferences.

A 60% Plant-Based Protein Goal by 2030

Lidl’s commitment to making plant-based proteins the majority of its protein sales by 2030 is a bold industry benchmark. With plant-based protein currently making up just a fraction of global protein consumption, Lidl’s pledge shows that retailers can lead the charge in shifting consumer habits on a mass scale.

“By offering more plant-based alternatives and further improving their taste and nutritional value, we are making it easier for our customers to make conscious choices,” said Chantal Goenee, sustainability and health expert at Lidl Netherlands.

For buyers and suppliers alike, Lidl’s leadership highlights a major opportunity to align with this growing market shift. As the retailer continues expanding its plant-based offerings, suppliers and manufacturers that innovate with high-quality, competitively priced products will be in prime position to capitalize on this transformation.

What This Means for the Food Industry

✔ Retailers Need to Prioritize R&D: Lidl’s investment in better-tasting, nutritionally superior plant-based products signals that innovation is no longer optional—it’s necessary to stay competitive.

✔ Price Parity is Becoming the Norm: With Lidl lowering plant-based prices, other retailers will need to match or undercut their pricing to remain attractive to cost-conscious shoppers.

✔ Blended Meat Products Are Gaining Momentum: For manufacturers, hybrid products using both animal and plant proteins represent a significant market opportunity to engage flexitarians.

✔ Plant-Based is the Future of Protein: Lidl’s 60% plant-based protein goal underscores that retailers must start planning for a future where plant-based is the default, not the exception.

Lidl Netherlands is proving that major retailers can take plant-based mainstream—not just by offering more products, but by improving quality, lowering prices, and creating innovative solutions that meet consumers where they are.

For food buyers, manufacturers, and foodservice providers, this is a call to action: The demand for plant-based foods is growing, and the companies that prioritize innovation, affordability, and accessibility will be the ones that thrive in the future of food.

Veganuary 2025 Breaks Records and Inspires Global Expansion

Written by Benjamin Davis on February 27, 2025. Posted in Foodservice, Global Marketplace.

Veganuary has once again proven to be a driving force in shifting food choices worldwide, with a record-breaking 25.8 million participants taking the pledge to eat plant-based this January. Now in its 11th year, the campaign has grown into a global movement, inspiring policy changes, restaurant innovations, and new product launches across multiple industries.

And the momentum doesn’t stop here. This March, China will launch its own monthlong plant-based challenge—V-March—marking a major step forward for plant-based eating in one of the world’s most influential food markets.

Why Veganuary’s Growth Matters for the Plant-Based Industry

The success of Veganuary 2025 is a clear indicator of shifting consumer demand and an expanding marketplace for plant-based products. More than just an individual challenge, Veganuary has become an annual catalyst for food industry innovation, with participation spanning multiple sectors:

Restaurants & Foodservice: Over 50 restaurants in New York City alone introduced special Veganuary menus, showcasing new and improved plant-based dishes.
Retail & Brands: Major companies like Lidl GB launched 28 new meat-free products, while plant-based brands like Squeaky Bean and Cauldron Foods introduced innovative tofu offerings.
Corporate Engagement: More than 40 employers across industries like media, education, and solar energy took part in the Veganuary Workplace Challenge, integrating plant-based options into corporate food programs.
Policy Support: The City of West Hollywood officially promoted Veganuary, with Mayor Chelsea Lee Byers issuing a formal proclamation encouraging businesses and residents to participate.

These developments demonstrate the mainstream adoption of plant-based eating—not just among individual consumers but also within corporations, city governments, and multinational food companies.

“While there is some debate over the health aspects of plant-based meat, the environmental benefits of plant-based protein are undeniable, and this is what is drawing more and more people to choosing plant-based foods as part of their effort to reduce their climate impact.”
– Toni Vernelli, Head of Policy and Communications, Veganuary

The China Expansion: V-March Takes the Concept Further

Veganuary’s influence is now expanding into new regions and cultural contexts, with the China Vegan Society launching Mangchun Sanyue (V-March)—a monthlong plant-based challenge tailored to the Chinese calendar.

The timing is strategic: Lunar New Year, which falls between late January and early February, is not an ideal period for dietary changes. By shifting the challenge to March, V-March aligns with a time when Chinese consumers may be more open to experimenting with plant-based foods.

Over 50 businesses in China have already committed to launching or promoting plant-based products for the campaign, with more expected to join.
Government-backed alternative protein initiatives are gaining momentum in China, including the establishment of Beijing’s first cultivated meat and fermented protein R&D center.
A 2024 survey found that when Chinese consumers are informed about the benefits of plant-based eating, 98% say they plan to eat more plant-based foods.

“China boasts extraordinary plant-centered culinary traditions. We have more reasons than ever to celebrate those traditions amid all the health, ecological, and ethical crises we are struggling with today.”
– Jian Yi, Founder & CEO, China Vegan Society

What This Means for the Future of the Global Food System

With each passing year, Veganuary cements itself as more than just a temporary diet shift—it’s a powerful force driving long-term change in the food industry. The campaign’s expansion into China and its continued corporate, retail, and policy engagement signal a broader shift toward plant-based eating on a global scale.

For brands, retailers, and foodservice providers, this is an opportunity to capitalize on growing consumer demand:

Long-Term Behavior Change: Six months after Veganuary 2024, 27% of participants remained fully vegan, while 54% reduced their meat and dairy consumption by half.
Retail Innovation: Companies that embrace Veganuary as a product launch moment are seeing sustained demand beyond January.
Foodservice Expansion: As more restaurants introduce plant-based menu items, plant-based cuisine is becoming a year-round staple rather than a seasonal experiment.

With alternative proteins rising in China, plant-based food options growing across global retailers, and policies supporting plant-forward initiatives, the plant-based movement is no longer a trend—it’s an integral part of the future of food.

The Continuing Evolution of Plant-Based Milk Alternatives

Written by Mindy Hermann on November 8, 2022. Posted in Manufacturing, Retail.

There’s no denying that plant-based milk alternatives have a big presence. From dairy cases to artisanal coffee shops, customers can choose from a growing variety of replacements for cow’s milk. A recent report, the Good Food Institute 2021 U.S. Retail Market Insights, Plant-based Foods, notes that plant-based milk accounts for 16% of all dollar sales for milk in the US, with a 4% one-year dollar growth and a household penetration of 42%. North America is the third largest market globally for plant-based milk. Innova Market Insights reports that North America accounted for an 11% share of dairy alternative drinks launches between July 2021 and June 2022. Launch activity was more robust in Europe and Asia – each region contributed one-third of new dairy alternative drinks over the same 12-month period.

Several factors are driving innovation in North American dairy alternative drinks. In its analysis of the marketplace, Innova identifies varied factors around clean products (crafted using 100% natural, carbon neutral packaging), enhanced protein content, nutrient parity with cow’s milk, reduction of inherent and added sugar, and functional ingredients (ginger, green tea extract, other immune-boosters and antioxidants). Innovation is likely to continue as new companies enter the marketplace and all products compete for consumers.

Production methods

Production of dairy alternative milk, sometimes spelled “mylk” to differentiate it from traditional milk, involves several steps. The cell structure of the plant base – typically nuts, seeds, grains, or legumes – is disrupted through soaking and grinding, or other methods. The resultant base mixture requires heating to deactivate enzymes, filtering to remove unwanted material, and heating to destroy pathogens. What differentiates one brand from another is the chosen base or bases, ingredients that enhance sensory properties, masking agents to cover up any bean or pea flavor notes, and added nutrients.

Types of bases continue to expand

Years ago, soy was the dominant base in dairy milk alternatives. Consumer sentiment, particularly in the US, then turned away from soy as questions arose regarding genetic modification of soy beans and health implications of soy consumption. Despite the lack of scientific evidence to substantiate these concerns, US consumption of soy milk dropped. Today, almond is the number one base in plant-based milk and accounts for about 60% of product bases. Oat is a fast-growing number two base, even in Asia where soy products are readily embraced.

Many leading brands offer a portfolio of products with varied bases and flavors to appeal to a broad range of consumers. Danone’s Silk line includes soy, cashew, almond, and coconut milk products. Beverage products from Blue Diamond Growers, an agricultural cooperative for California almond growers, feature an almond milk base alone or combined with coconut milk or bananas. Elmhurst Milked produces a wide range of clean label nut milks, including almond milk, cashew milk, walnut milk, and hazelnut milk. Most are made from only the signature nut plus water. Other brands in the US include Ripple (pea protein), Seeds of Wellness (chia seeds), Good Karma (pea protein with flax oil), and Califia Farms (almond milk, oat milk with pea protein, almond plus coconut milk). Companies typically offer both unflavored and flavored varieties, and many produce thicker products for use in coffee beverages.

Seeking nutrition parity

Plant bases for dairy alternative drinks do not match the nutrition profile of cow’s milk. That is why many products are fortified to better replicate key dairy nutrients. Because almonds and cashews are relatively low in protein – and their milks are even lower – almond milk and cashew milk brands that feature a protein claim have added a source of protein, typically pea protein. Pea protein-based Ripple adds enough protein to match the level in dairy milk; the brand’s products also are fortified with calcium and vitamin D. Hope & Sesame enhances its sesame protein base with either pea protein or chickpea protein. Dairy alternative bases also lack the key vitamins and minerals of dairy milk, so many brands fortify with the hallmark dairy milk nutrients calcium and vitamin D. Ripple, for example, adds calcium and vitamin D in amounts that exceed the nutrient content of an equivalent volume of cow’s milk. Several brands also add vitamin B12, which is found naturally in dairy milk but not in plant-based products, to serve as a source for vegans. Still, fortified soy milk currently is the only plant-based dairy alternative drink included in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and permitted in school meals programs as a nutritional equivalent to cow’s milk.

Products also may contain nutrients and ingredients not found in dairy milk, such as fiber, medium-chain triglyceride oil for followers of the ketogenic diet, omega-3 fatty acids, including alpha-linolenic acid, and functional ingredients.

One ingredient to watch for is animal-free whey protein. Cultivated through precision fermentation, animal-free whey protein offers high quality dairy protein that is identical to the whey protein found in cow’s milk. While not strictly plant-based, it offers an option for consumers looking for animal-free products.

Drinking to sustainability

The sustainability messaging found on dairy alternative packaging can appeal to consumers who shop with the environment in mind. Sustainable products are highly prominent in Europe, where approximately half of 2021 new food and beverage launches carried a sustainability-related claim, according to Innova Market Insights. This compares to 17% in Asia and 8% in North America, although the prevalence of claims is growing in both regions.

Consumer interest in sustainability is helping drive growth of plant-based dairy alternatives. As reported in a 2020 article in the Journal of Dairy Science on consumer perception of the sustainability of dairy products and plant-based alternatives, consumers who purchased plant-based dairy alternatives along with dairy products were more likely to say that sustainability is important, as compared to consumers of dairy only. Consumers who participated in the study defined sustainability as minimal carbon footprint and greenhouse gas emissions, few or no preservatives, animal happiness and welfare, and simple ingredients. Many plant-based dairy alternatives call out their sustainability credentials on their website. Common claims include reduced carbon footprint, lower water usage, less plastic used in packaging, restoration of land and water, and alignment with organizations committed to sustainability.

Coming next – products made with upcycled ingredients such as spent barley grain, proteins left over from starch and oil production, and “ugly” ingredients that combine nutrition with sustainability messages.

Get to Know Dot Foods: Opportunity for Brands

Written by Rodd Willis on October 31, 2022. Posted in Retail.

Who Is Dot?

Dot Foods is the largest food redistribution company in North America. The company was founded by Robert and Dorothy Tracy in 1960. It is still family owned, and several family members serve in various roles throughout the company.

Every week, Dot trucks deliver food and non-food products to thousands of distributors across the US and Canada. In addition, Dot sells products to distributors in over 40 countries outside the United States. The company owns and operates 12 U.S. distribution centers and 2 Canadian distribution centers. In addition, Dot has an affiliate trucking company, Dot Transportation, Inc., with a national truck fleet and company drivers.

What We Do

Dot Foods purchases products from brands, and then re-sells these products to distributors and self-distributing retailers across all channels, including grocery, foodservice, vending, convenience store, drug, and industrial. Dot Foods has multi-temp capability, meaning ambient, refrigerated, and frozen items and can all be delivered on the same truck. Distributors that buy from Dot get weekly deliveries within 2-4 days of their order, anywhere within the United States.

How Dot Solves Problems

Dot Foods is a turnkey solution that combines the speed of delivery across North America, with the multi-temp capability and access to distributors across all channels that is simply unmatched in the industry. Distributors and Self-Distributing retail chains can order as little as one case of your product, and it will ship with the rest of their Dot order and arrive the same week. This capability resolves the common supply chain issues that create chaos in your business and unlock your brand’s potential in the marketplace.

Rodd Willis is the Director of Business Development – Natural and Specialty at Dot Foods. He has been with Dot since 1997 and has held various roles in sales and business development during his tenure. He is also a member of the Plant Based World Expo Buyer’s Council. He is based in St. Louis, MO.

Kroger and Hannaford Lead the Way with Plant Based Foods Association Partnerships

Written by Ben Davis on October 31, 2022. Posted in Retail.

It was not long ago that a plant-based eater had to make a separate trip to a natural and organic store like Whole Foods to find a real selection of meat, dairy and other alternatives. This is no longer the case, thanks to recent programs launched by the Plant Based Foods Association (PBFA) in partnership with leading grocers Kroger and Hannaford.

The groundbreaking test with Kroger took place in 60 stores from late 2019 to early 2020. The data was clear: when America’s largest grocery chain placed plant-based products in the meat department, sales of those items increased by 23% on average. A clear sign to the food retail world that consumers are now looking for these products in the traditional meat aisle, and there is money to be made in offering them in this place.

More recent data has shown steep increases in consumption of plant-based food during the pandemic months with 50% growth in plant-based customers and 75% growth in sales. The numbers prove that American shoppers want healthier, more sustainable options now more than ever.

4 shelves of plant-based meats amidst the traditional animal products at Kroger. Photo courtesy of PBFA

PBFA’s newest program with leading retailer Hannaford spans beyond the meat department to the dairy and shelf-stable sections of the store. The partnership thus far has highlighted the importance of creative merchandising to drive consumer attention to the new products that are available. The Plant Based Foods Association is working directly with the grocer to shine a deserving spotlight on these sought-after foods, while also educating grocery employees to understand the benefits that these products have to offer.

Hannaford’s version of a plant-based section in the traditional meat aisle. Photo courtesy of PBFA

These efforts not only increase the bottom line for the grocery store and the brands they carry, but builds community while doing it. There is a true excitement that comes from participating in the movement towards a more plant-based world – an elevated sense of purpose that we can both do our jobs successfully and help people feel healthier and happier while doing so.

Julie Emmett, Senior Director of Retail Partnerships for PBFA, has taken the reins on these initiatives:

PBFA‘s role is to actively support the opportunities and minimize the challenges that a shift in merchandising presents. The incredible results that Kroger and Hannaford have shared have encouraged PBFA as well as major brands to create advisory teams to ensure industry-wide success of this shift in merchandising across the 17+ plant-based food categories available. The opportunity for retailers to provide shoppers with the options they crave – and to profit from those efforts – is becoming limitless!

-Julie Emmett

When the most influential grocery businesses in the United States are on the front lines of this shift, we can only expect the rest to follow. This transformation of consumer habits is here to stay and we look forward to following the great work of PBFA and their partners for many years to come!

Tag: Retail

Lidl Netherlands Sets the Standard for Plant-Based Retail

Veganuary 2025 Breaks Records and Inspires Global Expansion