Dutch Meat Giant Debuts Vegan Liverwurst

Dutch meat company Zwanenberg Food Group will debut a vegan meat line under its Kips brand in the final weeks of 2018 at local supermarket chain Albert Heijn. The new line includes four products: vegetarian liverwurst, pâté, spreadable liverwurst, and “filet Americain” (ground beef traditionally eaten raw in dishes such as steak tartare). Jo-Anne Van der Laan, Kips Marketing Manager, revealed that the brand added vegan products to its meat-driven portfolio after noticing a consumer shift toward plant-based foods. “We have noted for quite some time that the consumption of meat is slightly decreasing annually,” Van der Laan said. “So-called flexitarians choose not to eat meat every day. We are responding to this trend by offering vegan products. In doing so, we aim at a wider target group including vegetarians and vegans, because there is no animal protein in these new Kips products.” The meat brand will promote its vegan line through commercials on Dutch television stations, digital promotions, and an in-store advertisement at Albert Heijn before Christmas and up through its launch. In 2017, Zwanenberg announced that it would sell a portion of its company—which makes 90 percent of its profits from meat products—to focus 50 percent of the business on developing new vegetarian products.