The Vegetariërsbond foresees seven major trends in vegetarian and vegan food by 2024. The Vegetariërsbond is the organisation that manages the V-Label for the Netherlands. Sources for the trends are mainly the Vegamonitor conducted annually by Panelwizard for the Vegetariërsbond, the developments within the V-Label's customer base and, of course, the observations of the V-Label team's employees who witness developments in the market on a daily basis.
In 2024, meat consumption will fall again. In 2022, the average Dutch person ate 75 kilos of meat. That is already a bit less than in 2010, when 79 kilos per person were eaten. The decline is slow but steady. The Vegetariërsbond is optimistic, because the Vegamonitor shows that 49.8% of people have intended to eat less meat in the past five years. Of this group, 74.9% have maintained this to this day. The Vega Monitor was commissioned by the Vegetarians' Association. Previously unpublished figures from the Smart Protein Consumer Survey further show that 49% of Dutch people plan to further reduce meat consumption.
The shift can also be seen in the growth of the V-Label for vegetarian and vegan products. By 2023, the Dutch section of the V-Label had certified over 5,000 products. Across Europe, more than 40,000 V-Label products are now available. Rini Egomonds, Business Consultant at market researcher Circana sees opportunities for growth in the vega segment: 'Kips managed to secure a place in the brand top 100 by introducing vegetarian meat products - with the V-Label, red-' . More and more people are expected to take the step towards less meat as more and more is known about the negative consequences of overconsumption of meat. Research presented in 2023, conducted by WUR on behalf of the Vegetarian Union, shows that the healthcare costs resulting from the overconsumption of red meat amount to as much as €7.50 per kilo. Rising meat prices are also likely to contribute to declining consumption. As early as 2022, meat substitutes were cheaper than meat.
While meat consumption is declining, the share of plant protein in the diet will increase in 2024. The share of plant protein was 43% in 2021, according to RIVM. The long-term aim is for this to become 60%. Chances are that the so-called 'protein transition' will gain a lot of momentum by 2024. Supermarkets have agreed to substantially increase the share of plant-based proteins. The pace at which this will happen varies. Jumbo, Lidl and Aldi want to be at a 50-50 ratio by 2030. Plus and Albert Heijn are stepping on the accelerator and already want to be at a vegetable protein share of 60% by 2030. Albert Heijn put its money where its mouth is and introduced the 'Terra' label for plant-based protein products at the turn of the year. A simple step in the transition to more plant-based proteins is to facilitate conscious consumers in a plant-based choice. Here, too, the V-Label can be helpful, as it shows at a glance whether a product is vegan or vegetarian. Panelwizard research (2023) shows that helped awareness of the V-Label increased by 3.6 % to 64.7 %. Thereby, a large group of consumers in the same survey indicated that they find the V-Label of added value. A third of respondents find the label helpful in making their choice especially in the categories meat substitutes and cosmetics. About one in five see the added value of the label in the categories snacks, ready meals, baby food, spreads and sweets.
Plant-based fish substitutes are one of the top trends in the near future: demand is growing tremendously, especially from European flexitarians asking for plant-based alternatives to salmon and tuna. Global fish and seafood consumption is estimated to reach 21.5 kg per person by 2030, while already 90% of global marine fish stocks are fully exploited, overexploited or even depleted. There is more than an urgent need for eco-friendly and plant-based alternatives. The V-Label was allowed to approve a number of innovative fish substitutes for the market in 2024: fish producer John West for a fish-free tuna and the startup Vegan Fishmonger for fish burgers and nuggets.
By 2023, the number of brands offering plant-based dairy has increased significantly. Besides plant-based cheese, these include Pea Drink, lupine yoghurt and vegan ice cream. Also catching the eye, of course, is Those Vegan Cowboys' 'iron cow' Margaret, who makes cheese without animals And there is more in the pipeline: Tony's is working on a number of flavours of vegan milk chocolate. Most impressive, however, is the turnaround of dairy company Boermarke, which once started as a dairy farm with an ice cream branch. This company with 180 employees announced in mid-2023 that it wanted to focus entirely on plant-based dairy products. Co-owner Reynier Varvik "We are the largest plant-based dairy producer in the Netherlands. That sets us apart. If we had chosen dairy, we could never have excelled with the FrieslandCampinas of this world as our competitor." The V-Label can also be found on Boermarke's products, including the gouda cheese variants of the Vairy brand.
The market for vegetarian and vegan products is showing unprecedented growth. This applies not only to food, but also to cosmetics. Cosmetics (skin care, hygiene, make-up, sun protection) is one of the few products used by all genders and generations, this makes vegan cosmetics increasingly important in the market. The vegan cosmetics industry is expected to grow at a growth rate of 7.02% during the forecast period from 2022 to 2029. Recent research shows that almost a third of Dutch consumers find the V-Label on cosmetics packaging of value. Among women - by far the most important consumers of cosmetics - the percentage is as high as 40%.
We will see fewer and fewer meat advertisements by 2024. The Bloemendaal municipality announced in late October that it would no longer place advertisements for meat, dairy advertisements and products using fossil fuels as energy sources. Municipalities such as Zwolle, Haarlem, Amsterdam and the province of North Holland are also banning such ads from a climate perspective. In late 2023, the Utrecht city council voted to ban meat advertisements. It is expected that supermarkets will also become more restrained in meat advertisements. After all, they have committed to reducing the share of products sold with animal proteins. That goal is not achievable without a change in advertising policy. However, a number of supermarkets have already taken an important step in this direction by always placing a low-cost meat-replacement product with the V-Label in their advertising brochures alongside meat offers.
Chefs are also increasingly discovering in 2024 that a good menu cannot do without vegetarian and vegan dishes. Foodservice Think Tank research shows that 75% of restaurants offer vegan dishes. Vegan is also starting to gain prominence. Unlike in the supermarket, it is often difficult for conscious consumers to assess whether a meal presented as vegetarian or vegan actually meets mainstream requirements. To be able to answer questions about this clearly, it is helpful for restaurateurs that more and more bulk packs and basic products with the V-Label can be found in the wholesale trade as well. A major player here is of course Unilever Food Service, but a company like Topking also has a large stock of veg snacks in the freezer compartment. Today, 41% of restaurants offer at least one vegan option with every course. Where. There are now more than 560 restaurants with the Lekker Vega label (found at lekkervega.nl/lekker-vega-restaurants)