Plant-Based Proteins Are Harvesting Year-Over-Year Growth in Foodservice Market and Broader Appeal

Plant-based proteins aren't just for vegans and vegetarians anymore as U.S. consumers seek more protein in their diets and plant-based foods become more available and tastier, according to The NPD Group, a leading global information company.

CHICAGO (PRWEB) June 06, 2018

Plant-based proteins aren't just for vegans and vegetarians anymore as U.S. consumers seek more protein in their diets and plant-based foods become more available and tastier. Higher demand for plant-based proteins is evidenced by the 19 percent growth in cases shipped of these proteins from broadline foodservice distributors to independent (one to two units) and micro-chain (three to 19 units) restaurant operators in the year ending March 2018 compared to same period year ago(1), according to The NPD Group, a leading global information company. In-home consumption trends are also showing an increase in consumer demand with a 24 percent increase since 2015.(2)

With 60 percent of U.S. consumers telling NPD they want to get more protein in their diets(3), consumers are mixing both meat and plant-based proteins into their diets. In a recent NPD survey(4), 14 percent of U.S. consumers, which translates to over 43 million consumers, regularly use plant-based alternatives such as almond milk, tofu, and veggie burgers, and 86 percent of these consumers do not consider themselves vegan or vegetarian. The heaviest users of plant-based foods are those who are more likely to be on a diet or to have a medical condition, and consumers who tend to think of food as fuel, are more convenience-oriented than others, and less confident in their cooking skills. One of the fastest growing consumer segments who eat plant-based foods are those who are all about the taste of foods.    

Beef alternatives make up 44 percent of the plant-based categories being shipped to independent and micro-chain restaurant operators and are the primary contributor to the total category's growth. Burgers are the largest beef alternative category but ball products, like meatless meatballs, used as ingredients have outpaced burgers and all other plant-based protein formats in terms of growth. The Census Divisions that have realized the strongest growth in case shipments of plant-based proteins to foodservice operators are the Mountain/Pacific Census Division (Arizona, California, etc.) and the South Atlantic (Florida, North and South Carolina, etc.).(5)

"It's clear by the growth of plant-based proteins that this category has mainstreamed beyond those consumers who choose a meatless diet," says David Portalatin, industry advisor for NPD's Food Sector. "Food manufacturers and operators have improved the quality and taste of plant-based foods over the past several years and these foods are appealing to a variety of consumer segments for a variety of reasons."

(1)Source: The NPD Group/SupplyTrack®, year ending March 2018
(2)Source: The NPD Group/National Eating Trends® (NET®), years ending February
(3)Source: The NPD Group/Dieting Monitor, 2017 average issued January 2018
(4)Source: The NPD Group/NET® Consumer Segmentation, YE Feb. 2018 vs. YE Feb. 2017
(5)Source: The NPD Group/SupplyTrack®, year ending March 2018

About The NPD Group, Inc.
NPD is the leading global provider of market information and business solutions covering brick-and-mortar, e-commerce, and emerging channels in more than 20 industries. We combine our unique data assets with analytic solutions to help our clients measure performance, predict trends, and improve results, advising them to help drive successful growth. Practice areas include apparel, appliances, automotive, beauty, books, consumer electronics, e-commerce, entertainment, fashion accessories, food consumption, foodservice, footwear, home, juvenile products, mobile, office supplies, retail, sports, technology, toys, travel retail, games, and watches / jewelry. For more information, visit npd.com. Follow us on Twitter: @npdgroup

For the original version on PRWeb visit: https://www.prweb.com/releases/2018/06/prweb15540748.htm