PLANT-DERIVED DAIRY PRODUCTS GAIN POPULARITY

SOYA-BASED FOOD: Minimal content of saturated fatty acids and cholesterol-free –that is one of the reasons why increasing numbers of people are choosing dairy products based on soya beans

“Replacing animal-derived protein with plant-derived protein can reduce the cultivation area by a factor of 10, water consumption by a factor of 100 and fuel consumption by a factor of 11,” says Poul Agger, director of Naturli’ Foods, whose production of plant-derived dairy products is growing by 30% annually in Denmark, and 100% in Norway.

“What we are actually doing at Naturli’ Foods is to replace the cow’s digestive process, but in a far more effective and healthy way,” says Poul Agger. “Our soya-based milk products are cholesterol-free and have a minimal content of saturated fatty acids. When we introduced our products 18 years ago, they were originally intended for people allergic to dairy products, people with cholesterol problems and vegetarians. But today we see a clear consumer trend towards organic foods and healthy alternatives to animal-derived products.”

Great market potential
In the near future, Poul Agger will assess the opportunities for starting Danish production of organic soya beans. Today the soya beans are imported from USA, Canada and Europe, and the production is carried out at Europe’s largest plant, Alpro in Belgium. Poul Agger, a trained engineer in the dairy sector, develops production recipes in collaboration with Alpro. This year, the collaboration between Naturli’ Foods and Alpro is being strengthened through a strategic partnership to share product ranges, sales and distribution.

“This will help us meet the increasing demand,” says Poul Agger. “There is enormous potential, especially in the Nordic region where consumption still lags behind UK, Benelux and Germany. Consumption in Britain is 10 times greater than in Denmark. Experience shows however that what the US and Britain do, the Nordic countries adopt a few years later.”

Expanding the product range 
Product development is also being accelerated. In addition to plant-derived milk products, one of the most successful products is a cooking alternative to cream. Naturli’ Foods aims to expand its range with low-fat desserts and ice cream products, as well as cream cheeses.

“This is just the beginning. Consumers have recognised that our plant-derived alternatives are not only replacement products, but also have independent value,” says Poul Agger.

http://www.naturli-foods.dk