Plant-based ANNIE RYU FOUNDER AND CEO, THE JACKFRUIT COMPANY I'm a little concerned about how the word plant-based has been diluted, and I think that there's just a lot of malaise about it right now. The association between ‘plant-based’ and ‘processed’ is pretty damaging. It’s a question of: Does that perception get fixed or change? Or does the word we use need to evolve? If we decide our term needs to evolve, we have to make sure that it’s applied specifically to products that are less processed, that are really made from plants, that are better for you. We need to ensure that whatever term we use doesn’t get diluted again. BRETT CHRISTOFFEL FOUNDER AND CEO, ALL Y’ALLS FOODS The term ‘vegan’ has been around a long time, and I think of vegan products as causing the least harm possible to animals. The term, though, turns a lot of people off, and that’s been shown in study after study. The term ‘plant-based,’ though, continues to hold value. To me, that means it’s made from plants, but it’s not quite as well defined as ‘vegan.’ People respond to the term ‘plant-based.’ The problem is that not all companies play with it the same way — some will say a product is ‘plant-based’ when it is loaded with animal products because one specific ingredient is made from plants. There are a ton of vegan certifications a product can achieve. The parameters are well defined, and the certifying organization does audits of a brand’s facilities and everything else. Not so for plant-based. I’ve always encouraged the Plant Based Foods Association to do something to really define ‘plant-based’ in the marketplace and hold companies account-able to it. I think that would help a lot. Contributors: Ed Finkel 14 Alt-Meat August 2025
Alt-Meat August 2025: Page 14
