World meat industry news

The co-founder of the Association of Producers of Alternative Food Products (APAFP) told how attractive and promising the world market of plant-based products can become for Russian producers. According to Yulia Marcel, in terms of organoleptic properties, Russian alternative products are comparable to European ones.

The expert noted: the development of plant-based food producers on the domestic, Russian market is an excellent solution; it gives an opportunity to become a leader and take key positions in the market.

However, at the same time, it can be said that deliveries abroad are a very interesting way of development for Russian producers of plant-based alternatives: the consumer is ready and well aware of the products, the retail chains are interested in expanding the alternative assortment.

‘The US and European markets are saturated with manufacturers and assortment, however, there are still not enough high-quality alternatives to fish, seafood, delicatessen group, eggs,’ Yulia Marcel added.

The demand for plant-based products, according to the expert, will grow primarily due to the rise in the cost of animal products and the reduction in the cost of plant-based products.

‘We can confidently say that domestic producers of plant-based food products are almost completely ready to work for export. Alternative products produced in Russia have organoleptic characteristics comparable to European ones. In addition, the main producers of alternative products are companies with extensive production experience, having serious factories in which all the processes necessary for export are established. Considering the cost of labor, raw materials and electricity in Russia, our products are extremely competitive in price as well,’ commented the co-founder of APAFP.

Yulia Marcel also shared the experience of the Greenwise brand, which they founded together with Artem Ponomarev:

- Our brand Greenwise supplies plant-based meat to the CIS countries, has distributors in Europe, Japan, the USA and even in Australia and New Zealand.

A number of factors are still hindering the development of exports of Russian plant-based alternatives, the expert stressed. For example, this is the distrust of foreign consumers towards Russian manufacturers and the lack of certification of products applicable abroad (V-label, for example).

‘And so far, despite the fact that Russian manufacturers have every chance to compete seriously with European, American and Asian products, we do not see any interest on the part of compatriots in exporting, but we are trying in every way to motivate them to do so,’ summed up Yulia Marcel.