With 37 percent of plant-based consumers in Europe wanting better-tasting protein alternatives, Kerry is beefing up its savory taste solutions. According to the taste and nutrition company, the challenges in creating authentic tasting and sustainable plant-based foods can be complex.

Kerry recently brought VegTec to market, a flavor delivery system that provides a juicy and succulent mouthfeel in plant-based products. 

Speaking to FoodIngredientsFirst following its “Plant-based, Taste mastered” webinar yesterday, Omar Lechuga, R&D director of taste, Kerry Europe and Russia, says that bringing taste to plant-based analogs is “not an easy task.” 

“You need to keep in mind that bringing a better nutritional position to your concepts is key.”

Boosting flavor
Moreover, formulating with low sodium boundaries is key to avoid falling into the trap of getting high sodium to boost some flavors, he highlights. 

“The levels will depend on your final concept but keeping sodium low will give you an advantage in addressing the nutritional value consumers are looking for.”

“To achieve this, ingredients that bring umami taste are very important, as they can boost your flavor without increasing sodium. You will be able to deliver that richness and long-lasting effect that good flavored products achieve,” explains Lechuga. 

“Cleaning the canvas”
According to Lechuga, the main challenge all players in plant-based analogs have is what we call “cleaning the canvas” – flavors that cover off notes that come from the vegetable sources are definitely the main actors. 

“Then it depends on the applications but mostly beef and chicken flavors are currently in high demand, as well as pork,” he continues. 

“To give the final touch to the product and drive even further differentiation, grill flavors or smoky flavors bring a nice touch to the main product.”

What is driving this growth?
According to Ian Carroll, senior strategic marketing manager for plant-based foods at Kerry, the flexitarian trend is driving the huge growth of plant-based foods. 

“Unlike vegans, vegetarians and flexitarians have different expectations in terms of taste profiles, as animal-based products are their basis for comparison.”

Kerry’s recent consumer insight study shows that variety is a key driver for flexitarians consuming plant-based.

“We see evidence of taste variety coming through our recent Radicle AOTN Meat Alternatives study,” adds Carroll. 

Elevated Taste Experience (Dirty Vegan, Marinated, Spice)

Global Cuisine (Middle Eastern, Indian, Mexican, South East Asian)

Sensorial Experience (Colorful, Fresh & Authentic Aromas, Texture Contrasts)

Meanwhile, trends such as “Transparency Triumphs” and “Plant-Forward” are key to the meat-free industry. 

“Transparency has become more important since COVID-19, but it is a multi-faceted topic and can be confusing for consumers,” Carroll explains. “It can relate to how natural ingredients are, but also how a product is made and its impact upon the world.”

“As we move forward, I think we will see brands using heuristics to make things simpler for consumers to assess a product on shelf such as provenance, fair trading and farming stories.”

“Moreover, technology is likely to play a great role in the future too, wherby consumers will be able to trace the farm-to-fork journey of a product digitally,” he adds. 

Emerging flavors
Commenting on whether there is room for new flavors in the plant-based arena, Lechuga is positive. 

“This space is growing in demand as consumers are looking for more functional and tasty products that could help them meet their nutritional needs without compromising sustainability.”

“We also see interest in fish flavors, as well as other types of meat, such as lamb,” he notes. 

“Notably, cheese and dairy flavors are very important in accelerating penetration in the markets.”

Winning on sustainability
During the webinar, Edmond Scanlon, CEO of Kerry, said: “Plant-based wins every time because of sustainability. From a health perspective, it’s better, and in the long term, from a cost perspective, it’s better as well.”

“There’s no doubt it’s complex,” he urged. “It’s still very early days. And, I think a big part of our success is not because of the course we’ve made but mostly because we’ve taken a holistic and end-to-end approach in the whole space.”

“The reality is that there is no silver bullet. It does require a holistic approach. And, of course, that’s what makes it challenging and that’s what makes this whole space all so interesting.”

Creating authentic tasting solutions
Also speaking during the event, Darren O’Sullivan, director of plant protein for Kerry Europe and Russia, said: “There are many challenges associated with creating plant-based food products, particularly around savory taste and creating succulence, juiciness and a moreish flavor.”

“Consumers are demanding meat alternatives, but they will not compromise on the taste of products. With the European plant-based market growing and expected to reach a value of €18.3 billion (US$21.7 billion) by the year 2023, this webinar will help manufacturers address these issues and inspire new products.”

“Our taste expertise allows us to deliver an outstanding flavor that closely resembles authentic meat taste when cooked,” added O’Sullivan.

Mimicking real meat
Daniel Protz, founder and CEO of FlavorWiki, presented consumer sensory analysis of plant-based red meat alternatives. 

According to Protz, what you need for winning on plant-based is a technological need for an authentic flavor.

“We want to see a texture that mimics real meat in terms of cooking and consumption, with this juicy component coming along with it.”

Moreover, both properties need to hold up in cooking and through the whole consumption, chewing, and aftertaste experience for the consumer to get that authentic feeling of real meat, he explains.

Passion for plant-based
According to Scanlon, the Kerry team is “absolutely passionate” about alternative proteins and nutrition.

“It’s either the passion and curiosity is there or not,” he said. 

“Putting together a group of like-minded people who are passionate about plant-based foods was historically the first step in our journey. In addition to that, ensuring that the technical expertise and the scientific capabilities were there was also key.”

Scanlon said it was part of Kerry’s strategy to deliver products that are “completely indistinguishable from the animal-based product” and from a taste or texture standpoint, that is better nutritionally. 

“We want to develop products that are more sustainable and also more affordable. The bar is super high. We’re not there yet, but there’s plenty of headroom in front of and above us. But this approach has been working extremely well for us so far,” he affirmed. 

Earlier this month, Kerry agreed to sell its Consumer Foods’ Meats and Meals business in the UK and Ireland to Pilgrim’s Pride for a cash consideration of €819 million (US$976 million). 

Speaking to FoodIngredientsFirst at the time, Dawn Spencer, marketing director at Kerry Foods, said she expects the plant-based movement to be a dominant theme in the meats arena in the coming years.               

Additionally, in April, Kerry revealed that consumers are proactive in addressing health concerns. As a result, the ice cream sector sees a shift in demand for plant-based formulations with functional ingredients.