Century Pacific Food, Inc. (CNPF) continues to promote unMEAT, its range of 100 percent plant-based meat products, in the hopes of tapping into the food’s growing global market.

The firm said in a statement that its new plant-based range is in response to the expandingconsumer preference for a healthier diet, partly triggered by the pandemic when people aimed to eat healthy toboost their immune system.

The plant-based market is estimated to be valued at$20 billion globally, growing at least 15 percent annually. Moreover, studies show that close to 50 percent of consumers, especially in developed markets are flexitarians or individuals who increasingly consume plant-based foods while still eating animal products in moderation.

The unMEAT brand was first introduced in the Philippines through sister company Shakey’s Pizza’s newest offering, the Goood Burger. Since then, it has earnedpositivereviewsfor its meat-like look, flavor, and texture.

Following its successful initial rollout, CNPF isnowmaking unMEAT available directly to consumers.

The brand is being launched in the Philippines and in international markets such as the USA, Singapore, China and the Middle East giving consumers in many parts of the world access to tasty, healthy, and affordable 100% plant-based meat alternative.

CNPF also aims to take advantage of the rapidly expanding market by riding on its network of customers in 80 countries in both the branded and OEM space, explained CNPF Executive Chairman Christopher Po.

With the plant-based meat industry on the rise, CNPF, whichdominates the Philippine canned tuna market, aims to meet thisgrowing consumer demand while fulfillingits company mission toprovideaffordable nutrition.

"In the Philippines, plant-based food options are limited – they’reusuallyexpensive, not palatable or hard to find. For unMEAT, we use simple ingredients by extracting the nutrients from real food rather than using synthetic ingredients and have found ways to make it more affordable andtastier, while retaining all the health-giving benefits of plant-based food,” said Po.

CNPF has partnered with world-renowned companies to help in the development and manufacturing of unMEAT such as Wenger which provided the machinery and equipment for producing high quality, plant-based protein, and with Exter, and Symrise Flavors for creating its meaty texture and flavor.

“Plant-based has become quite a crowded space but I think the difference is the understanding on the ‘clean label’ and the taste profile can hopefully be the right one the consumers want. Many of the plant-based are quite expensive but Century positioning their product effectively on cost may be the right position to be successful,” said Lionel Flutto, President for Asia Pacific for Symrise Flavor.