Plant-based diet, mental health interventions may help improve older adult sleep
There may be a positive correlation between nutrient-rich plant-based diets and improved sleep health among older adults, according to a study by researchers in China.
Plant-based development
Middle East alt protein sector set for ‘rapid growth’ fuelled by consumer demand
The growing interest in plant-based meat and dairy alternatives in the Middle East, attributed to increasing health awareness and product options, is expected to propel growth of the alternative protein sector over the next few years.
Traditional ties: Chinese firms tapping strong cultural heritage of lotus and beans to develop unique plant-based business focus
Chinese firms are looking beyond common plant-based ingredients such as soybeans and oats to develop their own take on the alternative proteins sector, based on much deeper traditional and cultural heritage.
Popping peas: Origin Nutrition launches high-protein popped pea chips to target Indian healthy snacking market
India-based Origin Nutrition has launched a range of high-protein, compression-popped pea-based chips in a bid to target the slow-but-sure local healthy snacking market.
Eggy excellence: Eggnovo eyes Asia’s booming beauty-from-within market with low-dose, upcycled eggshell collagen
Spain-based Eggnovo has set its sights on the beauty-from within and joint health markets in Asia, believing that its collagen upcycled from eggshells can provide consumers with a versatile option that is required in much lower doses than regular collagen.
Healthier horizons: Sugar reduction and allergen aversion amongst major APAC demands in functional beverage sector
The Asia Pacific functional beverage industry is increasingly seeing consumer demands for sugar reduction, label transparency and allergen aversion becoming commonplace.
Vitafoods Asia 2024
Powder power: South Korean women’s wellness and beauty specialist NGT eyes Asian expansion with Active Enzyme sticks
South Korea’s Natural Good Things (NGT) is eyeing an expansion across Asia with its Active Enzyme sticks after successfully making a name for itself in the domestic women’s beauty and wellness market.
Fermented soybean shown to reduce GERD symptoms and inflammatory markers – 12-week RCT
The supplementation of fermented soybean has been shown to reduce symptoms of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), including heartburn, as well as lowering inflammatory markers, based on findings from a 12-week RCT.
Sticks and snacks: Swees launches 'world-first' vegan rice-based cheese sticks to further reach within snacking sector
Plant-based cheese brand Swees has launched what it claims to be the world’s first vegan rice-based cheese stick product with support from the Thai government, believing this will help it to gain a stronger standing in the snacking category.
Could links to longevity boost plant-based sales?
The plant-based trend has slowed in recent months, but new research could be set to restore its fortunes.
Little Moons sets sights on premium ice cream consumers, Middle East markets on the back of TikTok success
London-headquartered ice cream brand Little Moons hopes to woo premium consumers after successfully winning over youngsters and gaining market presence in the Middle East.
Perception problems: Plant-based innovation in Asia needs to find right format to strengthen health benefits correlation – expert panel
Plant-based product manufacturers still targeting the Asian market need to identify the right product formats that can strengthen the category’s correlation with health benefits, or risk further industry slowdown, experts claim.
Pucker up: Haribo pursues sour-led multipack trend in APAC to attract younger consumers
Global gummies specialist firm Haribo believes that a combined focus on sour flavours and variety packs will be its route to attracting more teenage and young adult consumers to the brand in the APAC region.
Volume-led growth: Agthia doubles down on product innovation and protein production investments
Middle East food and beverage giant Agthia has reaped the rewards of solid investments into new product innovation with significant volume-led growth in the first half of 2024, and hopes to further boost this with its newly opened protein facility.
Garden of growth: Nongshim plant-based brand Veggie Garden maintains optimism for sector’s ASEAN future
South Korean food giant Nongshim remains optimistic for the prospects of its plant-based meat alternative brand Veggie Garden, believing that the sector still has a bright future in the South East Asian region and especially Thailand.
Singapore’s Siam Coconut diversifies portfolio to keep up with market trends as coconut water category hits plateau
Singapore-based manufacturer and distributor Siam Coconut is actively exploring new products and categories to add to its portfolio, as coconut-based products experience a slowdown in growth.
Ageing, women and health concerns are key drivers for Mediterranean diet adherence among Lebanese – study
A study has identified ageing, female demographic, and pre-existing health conditions as some of the key factors that influence the Lebanese population’s uptake of the Mediterranean diet (MedDiet).
Fruitful transition: Hey! Chips’ strategic switch to domestic market yields increased sales, rising brand awareness
Singapore-based Hey! Chips says that its switch in business strategy from overseas expansion to building presence in the local market has enabled it to gain a foothold in the healthy snacking category and a spurt in brand awareness.
China’s dual carbon goals: Knowing benefits of plant-based diets ‘not enough’ to convince people to eat less meat
Informing consumers of the benefits of plant-based diets is ‘not enough’ to convince them to reduce meat intake, but rather need to be supported by factors like lifestyle habits and nutritional concerns, according to a recent report.
OATSIDE’s rapid growth in Asia fuelled by 'comprehensive marketing strategy' and targeted flavour innovation
Singapore-headquartered OATSIDE attributes its meteoric rise in Asia to a marketing strategy encompassing targeted campaigns and strategic partnerships, and constant innovation of flavours to satisfy myriad consumer preferences.
Cereal obsession: Vietnam’s Duy Anh looks to reposition beans as healthy staple ingredient with new vermicelli range
Vietnam-based Duy Anh believes its new vermicelli range utilising beans as the key ingredient can help to elevate these to become ingrained as a healthy staple food item.
‘Celebrate competition’: Oatly optimistic about plant-based milk category growth, strides forward in global expansion
Oat drink major Oatly expects continuing demand for plant-based milks as its current generation of consumers mature, and believes that more players entering the market will help boost category growth.
FOOD AND BEVERAGE TRAILBLAZERS EP 51
‘Not all protein is made the same’: Mamame touts nutritional benefits of black-eyed beans to boost healthy snacking
Tempeh chips brand Mamame has highlighted the multiple nutritional benefits of black-eyed beans as a key factor behind its success in the APAC healthy snacking sector, fuelling its upcoming growth into the UK and US markets as well.
Growth Asia Summit 2024 'big bets’: Amway highlights preventive health, plant protein and community building as key strategic focus areas
Amway is focusing its resources on several key categories, including gut health and anti-ageing, based on major trends that it has observed and believes possess immense potential for growth.
Real food only: Education and price the main hurdles for niche products that are wholesome - vegan start-up Everiday Foods
Singapore-based Everiday Foods has identified a gap in the market for clean eating, but the vegan start-up sees educating consumers and justifying the higher prices of wholesome foods as its main challenges.
Lose the calories, keep the indulgence: Konjac manufacturer prioritises food satisfaction for the carb-conscious
Chinese low calorie and high fibre konjac rice and noodle manufacturers Ketoslim Mo says emphasising an enjoyable eating experience is just as important to health needs to drive consumer acceptance.
Fat for fitness: Smaller packs and keto options driving nut butter popularity in Asia
New Zealand nut butter specialist Forty Thieves believes that its flexibility in providing smaller packaging options as well as a dedicated keto range is driving growth across the region.
Integration vs takeover: Plant-based experts disagree over potential directions for industry’s future
Plant-based industry experts APAc are divided on the future direction of the sector, with some believing that it is likely to be integrated into local culture and others still hoping for a more radical takeover.
‘Clear direction’ needed: Thailand drafts new alt-protein policies that ban certain animal-related terms for plant-based products
The Thai government has published draft regulations on governance over the alternative proteins industry starting with the plant-based sector, and has suggested banning certain animal-related terms but allowing others.
‘Very different markets’: China’s immense protein needs continue to propel plant-based dairy demand – experts
China’s large population and enormous protein requirements has given the local plant-based dairy sector room to continue to grow in a ‘very different’ way from plant-based meat, according to local industry leader Yeyo.
Evolving with the times: Singapore’s Gold Kili ventures into new coffee product format and healthier beverages
Singapore-based Gold Kili has launched a new product format for its coffee range and expanded into the thriving healthier beverage category, as part of the firm’s growth strategy.
'Health and affordability': Tyson confident that APAC protein demand will continue to grow
Protein specialist Tyson is confident that Asia Pacific consumers will continue to show strong demand for both animal and plant protein-based products, with health and affordability emerging as more important drivers than ever.
Soy connection: Singapore start-up Jiro-Meat looks to commercialise okara-based meat alternative by this year
Singapore start-up Jiro-Meat is scaling up production of its plant-based meat made from upcycled soy pulp, with the aim of commercialisation within the next six months.
Collaboration drive: How Nurasa aims to drive commercialisation of low-sugar, cholesterol-free, and gut-friendly foods
Start-ups need to be helped to act faster to drive returns, while MNC's need assistance to overcome the challenges of carrying out disruptive innovation in-house, says the CEO of Nurasa, which recently launched a new food innovation facility in Singapore...
Clean power: Nightwatch energy drink highlights all-natural ingredients for ‘new generation’ of plant-based consumers
Dutch brand Nightwatch is aiming to ride the plant-based wave in Asia by launching an all-natural, and caffeine-free energy drink for ethically-minded consumers.
‘No one left behind’: Food system transformation needs greater focus on tech-tradition combos and the potential of aquatic foods
World Food Prize winner Dr Shakunthala Thilsted believes that all-inclusive food system transformation will require a greater focus on combining big data and traditional knowledge as well as better recognition of aquatic food potential and consumer...
A long way to go? A Japanese expert’s take on game changers needed for local consumers to adopt plant-based diet
A 'game-changing phenomenon' needs to take place before plant-based could become a strong trend in Japan, according to an industry expert pioneering meat alternatives in the country.
‘Shortcutting the process’: Thailand’s Buono credits plant-based success to portfolio variety and move away from meat replacements
Thailand-based plant-based specialist firm Buono believes that the success of its business can be credited to its portfolio variety which focuses on more unique products as opposed to meat replacements.
Does plant-based equal healthier? Researchers question nutritional value of some supermarket products in Australia
A nutritional audit of more than 700 plant-based foods in Australian supermarkets has found high levels of salt and saturated fat, with researchers also calling for a more up-to-date food database to be used in the country.
Plant-based meat alternatives don’t appear to offer cardiovascular health benefits for Asians – RCT
Plant-based meat alternatives don’t appear to lower cardiovascular risks for Asians, prompting the need to relook at the nutrition profile during product formulation, say researchers.
Oat milk brand YOOK banks on ‘superior’ taste and texture to propel expansion into Asia and Middle East
Estonian oat milk brand YOOK is looking to capitalise on the pureness, nutritional value and “superior” taste of its products to break into the Asian and Middle Eastern markets.
Plant-based progress? Japan’s NEXT MEATS touts cleaner labels but better texture and taste
Tokyo-based NEXT MEATS’s latest innovation claims to offer several advantages over existing plant-based products, including improved taste and texture despite minimal use of ingredients, and being ambient storage-friendly.
Digital development: Food brands play ‘critical role’ in shifting agrifood system towards modernisation and sustainability
Consumer-facing food and beverage brands play a ‘critical role’ in moving the Asia Pacific agrifood system towards digitalisation, organisation and long-term sustainability by influencing consumer purchasing decisions, say experts.
Bel Group CEO Exclusive Part II: Generational shift and convenience demand in APAC to propel cheese market
The APAC cheese sector is being driven by a generational shift in consumer demand for nutrition, affordability and convenience, all of which need to be met if the category is to fulfil its potential.
Oat milk drink: New Zealand’s A2 and goat milk firm launches plant-based offering for toddlers
New Zealand infant nutrition firm Haven is expanding into the plant-based space with the launch of an oat-milk based drink for toddlers aged one and above.
Future Food Asia 2024
Inclusion and affordability: Why emerging Asian markets risk being sidelined in the sustainability agenda
Developing markets in Asia and Africa risk being sidelined in the efforts to create a more sustainable food system, unless inclusion and affordability are placed front and centre to improve nutrition.
Hassle-free healthy eating: Australia’s v2food eyes new avenues of growth through acquisition of ready meals brand
Australia’s plant-based pioneer v2food is aiming to strengthen its position in the category through the acquisition of ready meals brand Soulara, with portfolio expansion and broadening sales channels as growth drivers.
Dual strategies: Nestle Malaysia hopes ‘core brand strength’ and local production can beat ‘subdued’ consumer sentiment
Nestle Malaysia believes that the strength of its core brands such as KitKat and Maggi, as well as the advantages of its large local production operations, will serve it well in overcoming current ‘subdued’ consumer sentiment in the country.
FNA InnovATE: Cleaner snacking
Smashing it: How Freshcourt is tapping health and RTE trends for avocado boom in Asia and Middle East
Increasing demand for heathier products coupled with manufacturing advances is giving pre-packaged avocado firm Freshcourt optimism to expand across Asia and the Middle East.
House of Pops touts portfolio extension, bigger market presence and contract manufacturing as key drivers for new stage of growth
Dubai-based frozen desserts brand House of Pops has identified three key drivers to propel its next stage of growth, namely expansion of product line-up, increasing market presence, and offering of private label services.