Nestle offers plant based food under Garden Gourmet brand in Europe and Sweet Earth brand in the US, and across its portfolio. The company has been innovating and expanding its portfolio to meet evolving consumer needs
Nestle, as a part of its plant based food and beverage strategy, is focusing on high-growth areas and expanding its business to cater to evolving market conditions while committing to healthy and nutritious foods. To this end, in February 2021, Nestle announced plans to launch vegan Kitkat, KitKat V, later this year. Also, Nestle Japan is introducing Nescafe lattes with plant-based ingredients, to satisfy the growing interest of customers in plant based beverages.
Nestle offers plant based food under Garden Gourmet brand in Europe and Sweet Earth brand in the US, and across its portfolio. The company has been innovating and expanding its portfolio to meet evolving consumer needs. In September 2020, Garden Gourmet launched a meatier and juicy version of its plant-based burger, which was previously launched in April 2019.Moreover, Garden Gourmet expanded it offering to include Sensational Burger and Sensational Vuna, a plant-based alternative to tuna. Also, its plant-based tuna alternative is currently offered at supermarkets in Switzerland. Consequently, Garden Gourmet offers 80% clean label products and plans to extend the label to its remaining product portfolio.
Also, since 2017, Nestle has been innovating Sweet Earth, its plant based food brand in the US. It launched innovative plant-based pizzas with extra vegetables and fiber. Also in July 2020, it unveiled Sweet Earth Sausages, the Green Chile Chedd'r and Chik'n Apple.
Moreover, Nescafe Gold offers non-dairy creamy lattes with oat, almond, or coconut, and blended with Arabica coffee beans. Also, in the US in February 2021, Coffee-Mate Natural Bliss brand introduced plant-based creamers with oat and almond milk, inulin, pea protein and MCT Oil. Owing to continuous innovation, portfolio and distribution expansion, vegetarian and plant-based food products recorded double-digit growth in the first nine months of 2020.
Further, Nestle Malaysia launched a plant based meal solutions manufacturing (PBMS) facility in Shah Alam plant, one of its first in South East Asia. The company has spent US$37 million (RM150 million) out the total US$69.1 million (RM 280 million) CAPEX planned for 2021.
The PBMS facility will manufacture products not just for Malaysians but also for exports to countries such as China. As per the company, the plant based market will become mainstream eventually in Asia and Nestle is well prepared to capture share in this growing market.
The company is running trials on products and plans to begin offering them in February 2021. To begin with the company intends to supply burgers to restaurants and then move into the retail market in April or May 2021. The products will be marketed under Harvest Gourmet brand which already has a presence in APAC especially in Australia.
