It's going to fail in the market, and the reason is that they are trying the same failed marketing strategy that didn't work for Beyond Burger/Impossible Burger: They are trying to market their product as "environmentally conscious/better/etc".
Vegetarians buy those burgers, other people don't. People simply don't care about other reasons, they care if the product tastes good and is cheaper, they'll also consider health (i.e. lower fat/chemicals/processing/etc). That's it.
And this cheese has an even harder sell: There are even fewer vegans than there are vegetarians.
Their only hope is for this cheese to be cheaper than cow cheese, and based on their website and lack of retail sales I doubt that it is.
Interesting, I guess it depends on where you are, because that's not how it seems to 'work' over here (Netherlands/Germany). Plenty of people buy vegan and vegetarian substitutes just to eat less meat. Both for health and environmental reasons.
Over the past few years there has been a big increase in plant-based products I can buy from the supermarkets. A decade back they had two types of soy-milk, now there is 30-40 types/brands/flavours of plant-based 'milks'. Even the big dairy companies are now actively marketing plant-based dairy.
Are beyond and impossible really failed? In Australia they seem quite popular. Just basing this off the fact that the supermarket section for plant based meat/dairy alternatives seems to be exploding in recent years. Also a few popular burger chains here offer impossible meat as one of the main vege options.
> trying the same failed marketing strategy that didn't work for Beyond Burger/Impossible Burger
Are they? From FTA (emphasis added):
> The difference between that entrant and its competitors wasn’t a silky mouthfeel or buttery flavor, but rather the fact that the Climax Blue — which is served in restaurants including Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park in New York
There's already many vegan cheese varieties on the market, some have been around a while and seem to do quite well. Miyokos is my favorite, made of cashews. Lots of people don't eat dairy for many reasons (ethical, allergies, intolerance)
ars|1 year ago
Vegetarians buy those burgers, other people don't. People simply don't care about other reasons, they care if the product tastes good and is cheaper, they'll also consider health (i.e. lower fat/chemicals/processing/etc). That's it.
And this cheese has an even harder sell: There are even fewer vegans than there are vegetarians.
Their only hope is for this cheese to be cheaper than cow cheese, and based on their website and lack of retail sales I doubt that it is.
boesboes|1 year ago
Over the past few years there has been a big increase in plant-based products I can buy from the supermarkets. A decade back they had two types of soy-milk, now there is 30-40 types/brands/flavours of plant-based 'milks'. Even the big dairy companies are now actively marketing plant-based dairy.
angusturner|1 year ago
h0l0cube|1 year ago
Are they? From FTA (emphasis added):
> The difference between that entrant and its competitors wasn’t a silky mouthfeel or buttery flavor, but rather the fact that the Climax Blue — which is served in restaurants including Michelin-starred Eleven Madison Park in New York
Very clearly a boutique product
igor47|1 year ago
randerson|1 year ago