Plant-based food products have seen double-digit growth in the Benelux over the past two years. Meat alternatives represent the largest segment, but new categories such as plant-based yoghurt and vegan cheese are growing the fastest. Discounters are catching up.
49 per cent growth in turnover
Between September-October 2018 and September-October 2020, the European market for plant-based alternatives to meat and dairy grew by up to 49 per cent in terms of turnover. The total value at the end of 2020 was worth 3.6 billion euros, according to a new report by The Smart Protein Project based on Nielsen figures. Especially in recent times, growth accelerated in most countries – whether that could be thanks to the Covid crisis is not specified. Discounters have an average market share of 11 per cent in the plant-based market. They are lagging behind mainstream food retail but are now playing catch-up.
The report provides detailed figures on the plant-based market in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Spain and the United Kingdom. We highlight some figures concerning the Benelux.
Belgium: strong progress on oat milk
In Belgium, market growth amounted to 17 per cent in value: the plant-based market is now worth 134 million euros. In terms of volume, the market grew by 8 per cent. Discounters experienced stronger growth: +35 per cent in value and +19 per cent in volume. They have a share of 7 per cent in value and 10 per cent in volume.
The largest market segment is meat substitutes, representing 48 million euros in value, and sales grew by 19 per cent. Around 90 per cent of this segment is chilled, the remainder can be found in the frozen aisle.
Plant-based ‘plain’ milk accounts for 39 million euro in sales. The category is dominated by soy milk (14 million euros), followed by almond milk (11 million euros) and oat milk (5 million euros). Oat-based milk is the biggest grower: +50 per cent. Flavoured plant-based milk achieved a turnover of 21 million euros.
The plant-based yoghurt segment grew by 20 per cent to a turnover of 26 million euros. Non-soy varieties (such as coconut) showed the biggest growth. The growth spurt of yoghurt at discounters is impressive: +497 per cent, a turnover of 163,000 euros.
Aldi and Lidl, in general, are growing faster than the market. However, there still is potential: the discounters have some catching up to do when it comes to plant-based yoghurts as they only sell soy varieties. This also applies to flavoured plant-based milk.
The Netherlands: exponential growth for vegan cheese
In the Netherlands, plant-based food accounted for a turnover of 291 million euros: growth was 50 per cent in value, 35 per cent in volume. The discounters even grew by 83 per cent in value and 58 per cent in volume. They have a 10 per cent market share.
Meat alternatives realised a turnover of 174 million euros. Plant-based burgers (42 million) dominate this segment, followed by stir-fry (33 million) and meatballs (21 million). All divisions are growing.
Milk alternatives represent 62 million euros: this segment is dominated by almond milk (20 million) followed by soy (19 million) and oat (14 million), which is growing the strongest (+69 per cent).
Plant-based yoghurt accounts for 43 million and is growing by 35 per cent. The strongest growth is recorded by plant-based cheese (+400 per cent), which is still a small segment representing 4.8 million in turnover. Cheese slices are most successful, followed by grated cheese. New types are entering the market: diced cheese, cream cheese, etc. Discounters do not sell plant-based cheese yet.
