Swiss food firms pivot to B2B protein ingredients as meat alternative sales decline
Swiss plant-based food companies are shifting their focus from direct consumer sales to supplying functional protein ingredients to manufacturers as meat-alternative sales begin to decline.
Newsnibs Staff
- 2026-10-12
- Updated 9:08 AM UTC
Switzerland's plant-based food companies are retooling around restaurants and manufacturers rather than supermarket shelves, after several years of growth in meat-substitute sales gave way to a decline in 2025. Coop's Plant-Based Food Report found that sales of meat substitutes fell last year compared with 2024, ending a run of strong growth that had started in 2019. Bern-based start-up Outlawz filed for insolvency this summer.
In response, companies including Fabas, Upgrain, Planted, and Eggfield are shifting toward supplying functional plant protein ingredients to food manufacturers rather than selling finished meat-alternative products directly to consumers.
Fabas, founded in 2021, now supplies liquid legume protein extracts to manufacturers including Sigrist. Upgrain has partnered with the Locher brewery to convert spent grain into proteins used in products such as breakfast cereals. Planted, known for its plant-based meat products, plans to supply structured pea-protein cuts to meat processors for use in their own products.
Eggfield is taking a similar route with aquafaba, the liquid left over from cooking legumes, which it uses to replicate the functional properties of eggs. The company's shift toward supplying manufacturers is seen as a way to build supply chain resilience following the bird flu crisis, which disrupted egg supplies.
Photo by Alex Saks on Unsplash
