Five Trending Vegan Food Products in India: Our Picks
The plant-based food market is growing like never before with the demand for vegan food products in India taking a giant leap. The Coronavirus Covid 19 outbreak has forced many people to think about their food choices – how and from where their food is sourced, and how it is delivered. This churning has given a significant push to veganism and brought to the fore some clear food trends in 2020.
Today, we decided to discuss our picks for five trending vegan food products in India. We have every reason to believe that these will become mainstream in the years to come.
1) The Versatile Tofu tops our list of trending vegan food products in India
Tofu, which has been a staple in the East and South-East Asian cuisines for around 2000 years, has been crossing political and sociological borders, and reaching almost every nook and corner of the globe since the last few decades. Now, the Covid 19 crisis has given it an additional boost, what with the very timely PETA billboards boldly stating that “Tofu Never Caused a Pandemic,” and asking people to “try it.”
Protein heavy Western diets were seen lacking for choices after meat went off the shelves as a result of slaughterhouse closures due to Covid 19. Tofu filled the gap and is now seen as the “protein of the future.” A bestseller of 2012 titled, The Book of Tofu: Protein Source of the Future… Now! were among those that had started the tofu revolution, and one can only see it amplifying by the day.
There were memes on the Internet wherein the West, the supermarkets had to put limits on tofu buying due to shortages created as a result of pandemic panic-buying. In India, the tofu trend is picking up rapidly; people are beginning to realize that tofu is not just a tasteless replacement to paneer, but tofu can be crunchy, sticky, spicy, extremely flavorful – in one word, versatile.
2) Plant-based Milks are highly sought after with the global dairy alternatives market projected to grow at 16.7% CAGR
Plant-based milk has been around for some time and been consumed by select strata of people. However, things are changing fast, and this category is also headed for mainstream adoption. Departmental stores in many tier 1 and tier 2 cities have started retailing plant-based milk of some sort. According to Market research firm, Grand View Research, the global dairy alternatives market is projected to grow at 16.7% CAGR.
The big positives about plant-based milk are that they are cholesterol-free and lactose-free as well. Each has unique characteristics and properties, tastes different from the other, and many people have begun to appreciate their distinctiveness. Plant-based milk also has a low environmental footprint, besides, of course, they don’t involve any action for which animals have to be brutalized.
Practically every household in India consumes milk every day in their tea and coffee, and uses it for sweets and curds. Clearly, dairy alternatives is a billion-dollar industry in India. Unsurprisingly, even traditional dairy businesses are creating a plant-based line to jump onto the vegan bandwagon. The Krishi Jagran online magazine has summarized this trend in their article, Vegan Milk is now in Indian Market as Top Brands Start Producing it.
In 2020, we are clearly witnessing a second milk renaissance or a second white revolution as we call in India.
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3) Mock Meat, the future of ‘meat’ indeed seems to be Vegan!
Mock meat or vegan meat is a cruelty-free alternative to animal meat. Mock meat looks and feels like meat, and when cooked like meat, they do taste like meat. Similar to tofu, faux meat is centuries old. The Buddhist monks are said to have created it in the 10th century. Did they know then that mock meats will take the world by storm in the 21st century with powerful people like Bill Gates and Richard Branson investing billions in its propagation?!
Here’s some more cheer: The global plant-based meat market is set out to grow at a CAGR of 15.0% and according to the Good Food Institute, 63 percent of Indian consumers were “very or extremely likely to purchase plant-based meat regularly.”
The mock meat trend seems to have caught up in India now. There has been a surge of home-grown mock meat brands in India and they seem to be doing good business for a category that didn’t exist just a few years back. Veggie meat, vegan hot dogs, vegan salami, vegan kabab, mock-meat satay, vegan fish, soy chaap are no longer fancy items in an upscale vegan restaurant. You don’t even need to go to a restaurant to savor these. They are just a click away and can be ordered online. Not only vegans, these items are also finding favor with dedicated “meat lovers.”
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4) Nutritional Yeast, affectionately called “nooch”
The “nooch” trend is unmistakable on social media, especially Instagram. Nutritional yeast is clearly a favorite of many vegan influencers. It finds its way into smoothies, pasta, vegan cheeses, and what not! These golden yellow flakes are not only healthy but bring a distinctive umami flavor in whatever dish you decide to put them into – whether you want to sprinkle on your green salad to make it yummier or want to try your hand at vegan cheese making. This nutty-ness without nuts and cheesy-ness without dairy is here and it is here to stay in India! One of the interesting things about nutritional yeast is that it is a complete protein. This means it has all the essential amino acids that are necessary, along with iron, zinc, and fiber. Suffice to say, it is a nutritional powerhouse.
5) Kombucha, steadily gaining popularity as a probiotic beverage
Until some time ago, Kombucha was strictly within vegan circles. It was made at home and consumed fresh. Now, its popularity has hit the roof with at least half a dozen companies commercially producing it. Also, it is up for grabs on Amazon India, which takes away the need to learn how to make it! Kombucha is sold as a plant-based probiotic beverage.
Traditionally, kombucha is considered a tea drink. Brands have now blended it with fruit juices and superfoods to enhance its nutritional profile. Kombucha has a rich history that goes back to 2000 years. It seems to have first appeared in China as the ‘Tea of Immortality.’ The fizzy, pungent probiotic drink is replete with antioxidants. While the jury is still out on the said health benefits, there is no denying that kombucha sales are picking and more and more Indians are consuming it as they look past Colas.
Trending vegan food products in India: A Summary
So those were our picks for trending vegan food products in India. Is there anything you find picking traction recently? Let us know in the comment section and we’d love to feature them in our future posts.
Cover: Image by Devanath from Pixabay
