Heura Announces Plans To ‘Transform The Ultra-Processed Category’

Heura has just opened a new innovation laboratory in Barcelona’s 22@ technology district, where it plans to use advanced technology to accelerate its mission of producing healthy and high-quality food products.

The Spanish brand, known for its realistic plant-based meat alternatives, has said that it will register six new patents in the next nine months. These patents will focus on foods with “unprecedented impact and nutritional density” in the most widely consumed food categories beyond plant-based meat. They will include vegan cheeses, snacks, pastas, and other foods.

The patents will remove additives, saturated fats, and modified starches from food products, replacing them with plant proteins and healthy lipids. According to Heura, this will be achieved without sacrificing taste. The company aims to “transform the so-called ‘ultra-processed’ categories” and set a “new nutritional standard for the entire industry.” Heura will license its technology to other companies as well as using it for its own products.

“These new technologies aim to transform current food production methods, but their real strength lies in how effectively they scale and adapt to regional consumer preferences,” Marc Coloma, CEO and co-founder of Heura Foods, said in a statement. “That’s why we are forging partnerships with industry leaders to accelerate a change that no one can drive alone.”

Plant-based meat and the ‘ultra-processed’ label

Scientists working on developing plant-based products in the Heura innovation lab — Supplied Heura will develop new nutritious plant-based products in its innovation lab

Over the last few years, plant-based meat has increasingly come under fire for being “ultra-processed.” A number of experts have disputed the idea that “ultra-processed” is inevitably a negative trait, and studies have indicated that processed plant-based meat is considerably healthier than processed animal meat. That said, however, a number of brands are distancing themselves from this label.

Last year, Beyond Meat unveiled “Sun Sausages” made from beans, rice, and lentils, as well as a “healthier” whole cut mycelium steak. Dutch company Vivera also launched a selection of whole foods-based protein bites.

Similarly, Heura has been investing in technology to reduce the processed nature of its products. It previously launched the Good Rebel Tech technology platform, which aims to increase the “nutritional value, naturalness, taste and sustainability of all the company’s products.”