We are very proud that one of our TPC-partners and former colleague Floor Buitelaar, Managing Partner at Bright Green Partners (BGP), has been recognized in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list. 

Bright Green Partners is a global consulting firm focused on transforming the meat and dairy production industries to solve some of the world’s biggest challenges. The company is founded in 2020 to help large food and biotech companies as well as governments win in the complexity of alternative proteins. Bright Green Partners is thereby dedicated to advancing the plant-based, fermentation-derived and cultivated meat industry.

Forbes highlights Bright Green Partners’ role in accelerating the protein transition, emphasizing their focus on alternative proteins and their capability to deliver profitable and sustainable solutions for their clients. The unique power of Bright Green Partners is the in-house build expert network of over 2000 experts globally, connected to a strong team of strategy consultants.

Floor believes that this recognition by Forbes not only enhances Bright Green Partners’ visibility but also underscores the potential of the industry, reinforcing the importance and relevance of companies operating in the alternative protein sector to create a sustainable and profitable future.

On March 8, TPC, OostNL and GO4EXPORT organised the workshop: Opportunities in Germany,  to successfully enter and grow your company in the German plant-based protein market. 

Germany is by far the largest market in Europe for plant-based meat-, fish- and dairy alternatives and an important catalyst for product development and sales in the protein transition. Entering the German market can be difficult due to differences in regulations, consumers, and ways of doing business.  

Insights workshop Opportunities in Germany 
More than 30 TPC partners joined the workshop. Six keynote speakers shared their knowledge of the German plant-based protein market; Dennis Kraaijeveld, Fred van der Velde, Martijn Bosmans, Dr. Professor Guido Ritter, Jochem Wolthuis and Jeroen Willemsen.  

 Key take aways:   

• Germany has a ‘Eiweißpflanzenstrategie’  in place since 2012. The focus is on improving primary production through research. 
• Germany faces challenges: Edible insects products have a low consumer acceptance. It is difficult to retain consumers when they no longer buy plant-based substitutes out of curiosity, which is now the main driver. Regional origin remains a key buying argument while Germany is far from self-sufficient.
• In Germany, the retail looks different. There are four big retailers on the market and a lot of private label: that make organic and vegan products more affordable.
• The Protein Transition is urgent. There wil be “only 27 harvests till 2050″, says Dr. Professor Guido Ritter. Maybe we should not only focus on plant-based proteins, but also alternative proteins. Interesting question arises from the public: “Why are Germans so scared for the Umami taste? All products can be full of salt or sugar, but MSG or other flavour enhances are very scary to them.” Ritter agrees, he sees possibilities for fermentation, that can create the umami taste as well.
• “Germany is not that far and not that different, it is not China, they are our neighbours”, says Martijn Bosmans. Should we combine the Dutch Inventiveness and Creativiness and the ‘Deutsche Gründlichkeit’?  Would that be the holy grail?

A question to the audience:  Is it difficult to export to Germany? 
“Yes, you need endurance and the right contacts”, the audience concludes.  

That is why this workshop is only the start of the Germany programme. More will follow this year:  

• Wrap-up Workshop: Ask Questions / Online
  March 28th (16.00-17.00) 
• FoodHubub NRW – Startup Fair in Düsseldorf
  September 13th 
• Anuga in Cologne, the world’s largest food fair (pavilion or visit)
  October 7-10th 
• Food Ingredients in Frankfurt (pavilion or visit)
  November 28-30th 
• 3 day ‘trade mission to Germany’ with RVO and Embassy, around FI in Frankfurt.
  November 
• Join a 1-day tour to visit German retail + plant-based protein companies
  To be expected in the next quarter (Q2) of 2023

The activities of the Germany Programme are open to everyone. Partners from The Protein Community will find more information in the upcoming newsletters. Please contact eva.berends@foodvalley.nl if you don’t have access to this information but are interested to join.  

In the spotlight today: Sjakes! We are very happy that they have joined The Protein Community. Dylan, founder of Sjakes, begins his presentation with a not-so-fun fact: ”In the Netherlands, only 15 percent of people get their necessary daily dose of fruit and vegetables”. Sjakes wants to make it easier to eat healthy. That’s why their nutritious shakes consist of fruit and vegetables, plant-based protein and a superfood. Watch the video below, to find out more about Sjakes and their role in The Protein Community.

Happy World Pulses Day! Have you spotted the Golden Bean yet?

In 2022, The Protein Community awarded The Golden Bean to a select number of game-changers. They all played an important roll in accelerating the protein transition. Their efforts deserve an award. They are the game changers in the field of plant proteins and are leading the way towards a more sustainable food system.

Today, on ‘World Pulses Day’, we celebrate the bean and our Golden Bean laureates. In 2023, we continue to select new Golden Bean nominees. More information will follow soon!

Soon, the exclusive The Protein Community (TPC) partner event “Texturization: Creating Tasty Plant-Based Food” will take place. And we have big news! In addition to the four speakers that were already confirmed, we have the pleasure to announce the fifth and final speaker of this afternoon: Redefine Meat! 

Redefine Meat
By using cutting edge technology and advanced manufacturing techniques such as 3D-printing, Redefine Meat can mimic the texture of muscles, fats and blood, resulting in plant-based meat that is ‘Precisely the same, but entirely different’. Especially Redefine Meat’s remarkable mission, vision and market approach have led to the great success of this company. In only 12 months the steaks of Redefine Meat have made a big impression on chefs throughout Europe. For more information, see the video below.

With 82 million inhabitants, Germany has five times as many consumers as the Netherlands. Moreover, consumption of plant-based alternatives is growing at a record pace; by more than €800 million per year. Germany is by far the largest market in Europe for plant-based meat-, fish- and dairy alternatives and an important catalyst for product development and sales in the protein transition.

Therefore TPC & OostNL /GO4EXPORT are launching a program to successfully enter & grow your company in the German plant-based protein market. The first workshop: ‘opportunities in Germany’ will be held on March 8 in Arnhem. You can register here.

 What consumer trends are there? Which German protein clusters exist and how can Dutch companies best position their new protein products? You will get the answers (and more!) during this workshop. There is room to ask your questions as well.

This workshop marks the launch of the Germany Protein Program 2023. We encourage you to attend from the beginning. On this day, we will also inform you about the other activities of the German Protein Program and you can give your input. The networking afterwards provides an opportunity to connect with other companies interested in entering the German market. And it is the opportunity to explore the possibilities of participating in a booth at Anuga (Keulen) or Food Ingredients (FI) Europe (Frankfurt).

Program

14.00 – 14.30: walk-in

14.30 – 17.00: Several interactive sessions on the following topics:

• The German Protein Transition,
  Dennis kraaijeveld – Agricultural Attaché bij Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Germany.

• Sales channels; insight into structure German retail & foodservice.
  Jochem Wolthuis – Germany agri-food expert.

• Alternative Proteins – Road to a new food system?
  Prof. Dr. Guido Ritter

• Developments in the green protein landscape in the Netherlands.
  Dr. Ir. Fred van de Velde – Principal scientist Protein functionality. NIZO food research

• First-hand experience on the German market.
  Martijn Bosman – Head of Development – Functional Ingredients at Bösch Boden Spies (BBS)

• Preview of the rest of the German program

17.00 – 18.00: Networking with drinks & bites

17.00 – 18.00: Networking with drinks & bites 

 We are proud to announce that The Protein Community is a founding partner of Plant FWD. Plant FWD is a brand-new conference on the protein shift that aims to bring together start-ups, brands, investors, future talents, and other change-makers from around the globe to create a plant forward future together. 

During this full day event on 18 April, TPC organizes a Community Meeting as a Break-out session. TPC-partners can present their new innovations on stage in a 5 minute pitch. Send us an email if you are interested.   

At PlantFWD you get the opportunity to connect with policy makers, investors and corporates, meet the founders of promising start- and scale-ups and watch inspiring national and international speakers on strategy, branding, sales and consumer behavior for plant-based brands. Such as Martin Rinqvist, the Executive Creative Director at Oatly and Founder of the National Week without Meat & Dairy, Isable Boerdam. Next to that, you get the opportunity to showcase your own products and discover new ones in the Supermarket of the future.

Our colleague Sylvia Raijmakers conducted research on the establishment of protein-rich Fabaceae in the Dutch food system last year. This research was part of her master thesis  and former internship at Foodvalley NL. The project is directly related to several of the initiatives Foodvalley NL and TPC-partners are involved in. For example, the establishment of the Producer Organisation Eiwitboeren van Nederland and the Green Deal Protein-Rich Crops, also known as the Bean Deal. The results of her research are available now. Curious what activities should be implemented to facilitate the establishment of protein-rich Fabaceae in the Dutch food system? Read it here! 

We are very happy to welcome two new Project Coordinators: Sylvia Raijmakers & Eva Berends. Both have been working at Foodvalley NL for several months. Below you can read what drives them and what their role is at The Protein Community.

What drives you? Why do you work for The Protein Community? 
Sylvia: Since I was young I have always been concerned with animal welfare. With the environmental impact of the livestock industry, and thus meat consumption, becoming more and more apparent, I became even more interested in plant-based diets. Therefore, during my master thesis I researched the establishment of protein-rich Fabaceae in the Dutch food system. I am very happy that by joining Foodvalley NL and supporting TPC and its partners on their journey, I can contribute to a more sustainable food system, where we rebalance the amount of plant and animal proteins in our diet.  

Eva: Having run a small start-up myself, I have experienced first-hand the importance of having a strong network, finding the right connections and collaborating with different parties. Without it, my company would never have been able to produce or market our product. I do my best to help TPC-partners find these connections too, within The Protein Community and beyond. I strongly believe that we need each other to accelerate the protein shift. That is why I am happy to be part of the TPC team.

What will be your roll at TPC? What can people contact you for?  
Sylvia: I will mainly be supporting the TPC team by organising events and composing interesting programs, such as the Germany Program. More specifically, I am organising the acceleration session on texturization to be held on the 15th of February at SmaakPark in Ede. I look forward to seeing many of you there! If you have any questions about this event or any other TPC-related question, please feel free to contact me. 

Eva: I am working on the website, on mailings and the onboarding of new partners. You will hear from me online and will most definitely see me at most of the TPC events. You can always contact me with question related to the mailings you receive (or should receive) or an TPC event.  

On 15 February 2023 from 14:30 – 17:00 CET, an exclusive The Protein Community (TPC) partner event is organized: “Texturization: Creating Tasty Plant-Based Food”.

Texture is essential for the future of plant-based meat, dairy and fish. To encourage meat-, dairy- and fish-loving consumers to adopt a more plant-based diet, the mouthfeel and texture of plant-based variations must be at least as appealing as those of animal products. In recent years, mouthwatering progress is already made and we can’t wait for more. That is why TPC is organising this acceleration session.

Five speakers will share their experience about texturization trends & techniques, such as fermentation and Shear Cell Technology. This event includes a spectacular live demo in High Moisture Extrusion (HME) by Future Foods.

This TPC event will be hybrid and physical networking starts at 17:00. TPC partners are most welcome to attend our event at SmaakPark in Ede, the Netherlands. This event is organized in cooperation with “The Foodvalley Region”.

All TPC partners received an invitation with a registration link via e-mail. You can also register via our online community Foodleap. Please indicate at registration if you want to attend this event on site or online. Note: there is room for approximately 60 people on site. First come, first serve. For participants attending the event online, a live video link will follow.