By now, you’re probably familiar with the term “ultra-processed.” It’s become a buzzword in recent years, and while there’s no formal legal definition, it’s often used to describe foods with long, complex ingredient lists. Sales of ultra-processed foods remain high, but growing awareness of potential health risks has led some consumers to be more cautious, and some brands to tweak their recipes. The latest brand to do so? Quorn.
The UK-based vegetarian meat brand, which also sells its mycoprotein products across Europe and the US, has refined the ingredients list for two of its best-sellers: Quorn Mince and Quorn Pieces. Alongside mycoprotein, both will now contain only ingredients like natural flavoring, pea fiber, gluten-free barley, and rehydrated free-range egg whites. This makes these popular products vegetarian rather than vegan, though Quorn still offers several vegan options.
So why, amid all this ingredient refinement, have egg whites stuck around?
Quorn
Why is Quorn still using egg whites in its products?
According to Quorn, free-range egg whites are added to its mycoprotein as a binder, and help its mince, nuggets, sausages, and pieces keep their shape and texture. “It is then frozen, giving all of our products a remarkably similar structure, texture, and consistency to meat,” the brand explains on its website.
So far, it makes sense. But there’s a stickler: Quorn also makes very similar vegan products, and these also keep their shape and texture with the help of potato starch.
So why not just go completely plant-based? It might have something to do with the brand’s desire to appeal to flexitarians and vegetarians, rather than just vegans.
In 2020, Tim Ingmire, Quorn’s chief of R&D, told Food Navigator: “Flexitarians and meat reducers are driving the current growth in the market. We’ll be focusing on products to help these customers transition into the meat-free category.”
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Eggs: an unreliable ingredient?
The egg industry has faced an extended period of instability. Prices are finally easing, but they have soared over the past year due to global bird flu outbreaks and shortages.
This rocky stretch exposed just how vulnerable the egg market is, for both consumers and brands. On the flip side, it fueled an unprecedented surge in demand for vegan alternatives. “Often, we’re the only egg option in stock, creating an unprecedented awareness opportunity in the plant-based category,” Just Egg CEO Josh Tetrick recently told VegNews. “I think this is the most important moment for any plant-based product ever.”
Could Quorn eventually ditch the eggs in its vegetarian products? With plant-based binders like potato starch already proving effective in its vegan lines, there’s no technical reason it couldn’t. And with supply volatility, disease risk, and growing demand for minimally processed, plant-based foods, maybe the next iteration of Quorn might just be egg-free.
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Charlotte is a VegNews editor and writer based in sunny Southsea on England's southern coast.
