At Unilever Food Solutions, we’re excited to be a part of this and to equip foodservice businesses to deliver on the growing demand for plant-based dishes. A key part of this growth will be driven by the roll-out of our meat substitute brand, The Vegetarian Butcher, as well as increasing vegan alternatives from our other well-loved brands including Hellmann’s, Magnum and Wall’s.
The target falls in line with our ‘Future Foods’ ambition, with which we are striving to help consumers move towards healthier diets whilst also reducing their environmental impact on the global food chain.
What are our commitments?
- We want to halve food waste from factory to shelf by 2025 – five years earlier than previously committed!
- We are doubling the number of products that deliver positive nutrition globally by 2025 – this means products containing ‘impactful’ amounts of vegetables, fruits, proteins, or micronutrients like vitamins, zinc, iron and iodine.
- We shall continue lowering calorie, salt and sugar levels across our products.
The Rise of Plant-Based Products
At Unilever, we have been expanding our plant-based meat and dairy alternatives portfolio over the past few years.
The Vegetarian Butcher is now sold in more than 30 countries and was chosen as the supplier of Burger King’s Plant-Based Whopper and Plant-Based Nuggets across Europe, The Middle East and Africa.
Not only this, the first vegan Magnum was awarded Best Vegan Ice Cream in the UK by PETA in 2019.
Sustainability is at the heart of what we do and since 2010 we have been taking action through the ‘Unilever Sustainable Living Plan’ – helping more than a billion people improve their health and well-being and halving our environmental footprint.
Hanneke Faber, President of Unilever’s Foods & Refreshment Division, says, “As one of the world’s largest food companies, we have a critical role to play in helping to transform the global food system. It’s not up to us to decide for people what they want to eat, but it is up to us to make healthier and plant-based options accessible to all. These are bold, stretching targets which demonstrate our commitment to being a force for good”.
We’ve already got a wealth of plant-based inspiration available to foodservice businesses.
