Meat all your greens
AS mouthwatering meaty tangs waft from barbecues this summer, there is a big chance many of those sizzling burgers and bangers could be all plant-based and made by Leeds producer the Meatless Farm Co.
Part of the meat alternatives category, which is expanding 9.6 per cent a year in the UK, its mission is to recreate the taste, texture and experience of cooking meat. Turnover is set to hit £20 million this year.
Following two years development of patent-pending processes based on blended pea protein powder and carrot fibre, Meatless has gone from start-up in 2018 to an international challenger brand taking on the industry’s US behemoths.
Its biggest target is the UK’s 22 million flexitarians, health and carbon footprint watchers of all ages varying between meat and plant-based meals.
Latest tracker figures suggest since Covid-19 a third of consumers are looking to buy greener more sustainable products.
“This is no longer a quirky niche. But we’re appealing to people who eat meat and this differentiates us,” says founder Morten Toft Bech, a financial IT expert whose family looked in vain for options as they cut their meat intake. “It struck me that if we could recreate that taste and texture of meat more sustainably people would make small changes,” he explains.
“We were ahead of the social shift that is now mainstream. We take a humbler approach, we aren’t against meat – however intensive farming is not sustainable.
“We want to make going meat-free accessible and not just a privileged choice. If more people could be persuaded to make changes once or twice a week, it would have a big environmental impact, eight per cent of UK greenhouse gasses would be reduced.” Meatless’s process, ingredients and recipes were developed by scientists and chefs in Leeds, a global centre for food science, where the company’s offices feature a kitchen, test lab and offer children’s tours.
Mince is its best seller, its most recent a meatball, launched by Japanese chain Itsu. “We experimented with thousands of recipes and development is continuous.
“To appeal to meat eaters we have to offer a no-compromise swap,” says Toft Bech.
The company, which employs 65 in the UK, has industry heavyweights on board such as former Lidl chief executive Jesper Højer, now chairman.
Its products now appear in
Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons. Last year it expanded into the US with an influential Whole Foods Market stores listing.
Investment, including Channel 4, totals £14million and Toft Bech is considering a further raise to meet demand in a world market predicted to be worth over £22 billion by 2025.
New lines are planned and there’s good news for some of the hardest-hit post-Covid 19, when he says: “We are focused on recruiting young talent in Leeds”.