China To Launch Its First Mainstream Vegan Yogurt

The first ‘mainstream’ veganyogurt is set to hit shelves in China in April.

Food giant Nongfu Spring created the range which reportedly took three years of research and development.

Chinese media has speculated that the product could be ‘the start of a completely new category of yogurt in the industry’.

Vegan yogurt

The range, which will include three flavors – walnut, coconut, and almond – will capitalize on the growing global demand for vegan food – a report released in 2018 by Innova Market Insights showed there was a 62 percent increase in plant-based product

“The dairy alternatives market has been a particular beneficiary of this trend,” Lu Ann Williams, Director of Innovation at Innova Market Insights, said in a statement.

“With the growing availability and promotion of plant-based options to traditional dairy lines, specifically milk beverages, and cultured products such as yogurt, frozen desserts and ice-cream.”

‘Something new’

Speaking about the yogurt sector, she added: “In the move to offer something new, we are starting to see an increasing variety of non-soy plant-based ingredients, including cereals such as rice, oats, and barley.

“We also noticed an increase in nuts, such as almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, walnuts, and macadamias, as well as coconut and more unusual options such as lupin, hemp and flaxseed.”