The entrance of Big Meat into the plant-based category was nothing short of inevitable when the food industry began to realize both the huge potential of alternative foods as well as the future limitations on the planet’s capacity to “grow” animals for human consumption.
Back in 2019, the New York Times highlighted the fact that Big Meat (with this particular article focusing on Tyson, Smithfield, Perdue, and Hormel) was beginning to gain a foothold in the plant-based category. And last year, Yahoo Finance declared: “The meat industry is going through major upheavals. For example, a dramatic rise in the number of consumers preferring vegetarian food has forced companies to develop plant-based meat products.”
Whether the animal meat industry indeed had its hand “forced” by the arrival of the new wave of vegan products or whether it rather presented a valuable opportunity, is debatable. In this series, we will take a look at meat companies around the world that entered the plant-based category, some that tried and failed, with the products no longer listed, and others that succeeded and are still on sale today.
We will begin with America (North & South), in no particular order:
JBS, Brazil
JBS is one of the world’s largest beef processors. The company is based in Brazil and has operations across Europe, Canada, the United States, Australia, the UK, and more. JBS produces factory-processed chicken, beef, lamb, and seafood. JBS has attempted multiple forays into the plant-based industry, the first of which was its US plant-based meat division, Planterra Foods, which was established in 2019. Planterra launched the plant-based protein brand OZO Foods in 2020, and then in 2022, the entire division was discontinued as JBS claimed to want to focus its efforts on plant-based operations in Brazil and Europe.
In 2021, JBS established plant-based meat brand Incrivel Seara in Brazil, which the company claims is currently number 1 in the segment in the Brazilian market. In the same year, JBS also acquired Vivera, the third-largest plant-based food producer in Europe, as part of a joint deal with BRF. Both ventures are still operating successfully.
Additionally, JBS has entered the cultivated meat space, commencing construction of its first commercial-scale cultivated meat plant in Spain earlier this year through its subsidiary, BioTech Foods.
BRF, Brazil
With a profile of over 800 products, BRF is one of the largest producers of animal protein and a leading global exporter of poultry. The company is headquartered in Brazil and has over 50 production factories in eight different countries, including UAE, Thailand, Turkey, the UK, and Argentina.
In 2021, BRF partnered with JBS to purchase European plant-based food producer Vivera and also invested $2.5 million into Israeli cultivated meat company Aleph Farms to co-produce cultivated steak. One of BRF’s most popular subsidiaries is Sadia, which features a plant-based line called Veg & Tal. This line features 14 meat-free products, including Veg&Tal Nuggets, Veg Chicken in Cubes, Veg Shredded Chicken and Veg Chicken Strips.
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